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Some of the 50 miles of bookshelves in the Vatican secret archive Rome, Italy, Feb 29, 2012 / 03:29 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- For the first time in history, the Vatican is making public over 100 historical documents from its Secret Archives. “They are revealed as a cultural context, as a fascinating appeal to the memory of our past, the past of the Church, of empires, kingdoms, duchies and republics,” said Cardinal Raffaele Farina, Archivist and Librarian of the Holy Roman Church. The “Lux in Arcana” exhibit at Rome’s Capitoline Museum was created to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the Vatican's Secret Archives and includes notable...

The Holy See’s archives contain scrolls, parchments and leather-bound volumes with correspondence dating back more than 1,000 years. High-quality reproductions of 105 documents, 19 of which have never been seen before in public, have now been published in a book. The Vatican Secret Archives features a papal letter to Hitler, an entreaty to Rome written on birch bark by a tribe of North American Indians, and a plea from Mary Queen of Scots. The book documents the Roman Catholic Church’s often hostile dealings with the world of science and the arts, including documents from the heresy trial against Galileo and...

Toshiyuki Shimada was looking for inspiration as his tenure at the Portland Symphony Orchestra came to a close. He has found it as a Yale University professor in pursuit of long-forgotten musical treasures at the Vatican.The mild-mannered maestro believes that deep within the Vatican Library's archives are pieces of music that have not been heard in modern times.Under a licensing agreement, Shimada hopes to bring some of this music to the masses through a series of compact discs carrying the library's seal."We know that there's a lot of music that has not seen the daylight," said Shimada, his eyes lighting...

Tonight on CBS, viewers will be treated to a special hour of “60 Minutes Presents: Inside the Vatican.” Scott Pelley will profile Pope Francis, who is surprising the world by spurning tradition; and Morley Safer will lead viewers on a tour of the Vatican Library. The program will air at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time and Pacific Time. To whet your appetite for what is certain to be a fascinating disclosure of rarely seen documents, let me tell you a little about the things I’ve seen in that hallowed space. Center> * * * * It was my great privilege to...

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- With millions of documents filling almost 53 miles of shelf space, the Vatican Secret Archives obviously still hold some secrets. Despite the aura of mystery surrounding the archives, the Vatican actually encourages academics to research its holdings and has worked with a Belgian publishing house to bring 105 of the most important, or curious, documents to the public. The coffee-table book, "The Vatican Secret Archives," was published by VdH Books in Dutch, English, French and Italian. Cardinal Raffaele Farina, the Vatican archivist, wrote in the introduction that he knows popular books and movies love to imply...