







President Dwight Eisenhower and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles in 1958





Here is the text of the Declassified State Department Document from Rome concerning the Papal Election to take place in October of 1958 --- the most critical month in the history of the Catholic Church other than the Crucifixion, Resurrection, and Pentecost. My commentary will follow in a following post. Please feel free to contribute your own valuation of this critical declassified document.

First I have typed out the document itself. After this is the scan of the copy, which I have, of the declassified State Department document. For the friend who came up with this, much thanks for helping to clarify the ecclesiastical situation as this existed in 1958.





From: Rome

To: Secretary of State

No: 1166, October 11, 2PM





Limited Distribution.





DURING CONVERSATION WITH EMBASSY OFFICER, VATICAN SOURCE EXPRESSED PERSONAL VIEW NEXT POPE WILL BE "ELECTED' OUTSIDE CONCLAVE BY AGREEMENT BETWEEN CARDINALS. SOURCE SAID PIUS XII ELECTED THIS MANNER AND RECALLED THAT AS CARDINALS WERE ENTERING 1939 CONCLAVE CARD FIZZARDO HAD CALLED HIM ASIDE AND ASKED HIM TO PREPARE BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF PACELLI. ADDED HE CONSULTED WITH MSGR. MONTINI AND BOTH DECIDED FOR OBVIOUS REASONS NOT TO GO AHEAD WITH PIZZARDO'S REQUEST.





SPECULATING ON PIUS XII'S SUCCESSOR SOURCE SAID COLLEGE MAY VERY WELL CHOOSE AN OLD CARDINAL WHOSE SHORT PONTIFICATE MAY BE DEVOTED ENTIRELY TO THE RE-ORGANIZATION OF THE ROMAN CURIA LEFT BY DECEASED POPE IN "DEPLORABLE STATE." SOURCE INDICATED ELECTION OF SIRI, RUFFINI, OTTAVIANI WOULD BE "MISFORTUNE FOR THE CHURCH'" SINCE THESE THREE CARDINALS HAVE AN UNREALISTIC APPROACH TO GREAT PROBLEMS FACING WORLD TODAY. SOURCE SAID ELECTION OF ANYONE OF THREE COULD DEPEND ON INFLUENCE OF AMERICAN CARDINAL SAND VOLUNTEERED SUGGESTION U.S. AUTHORITIES WOULD DO WELL EXERCISE DISCREETLY "THEIR OWN INFLUENCE ON CERTAIN AMERICAN CARDINALS."





ZELLERBACH















