From the Shadows into the Light

Vatican Spies: from the Second World War to Pope Francis
Yvonnick Dendël

Vatican Spies is an engaging history of espionage committed by and against the Vatican since the 1930s. It actually begins during the reign of Pius XI but with a focus on Eugenio Pacelli who, in 1939, became Pope Pius XII. It is at this point that the book gets into its stride.

Pius, John XXIII, Paul VI, and John Paul II all have their own dedicated sections. John Paul I, whose one month papacy means that in terms of intelligence nothing of note happened during his papacy, is treated at the start of the section on John Paul II, while Benedict XVI and Francis are placed together. The recency of their papacies means that many of the files relating to their deeds vis-à-vis espionage are still classified. With that said, as Vatican Spies was only published in 2024, it may be said to provide as good an overview of Francis' papacy in terms of intelligence as will be possible for some years to come.

If the focus of the book is on spies, its scope is definitely broader. For example, Dendël also covers various controversies involving that perennial black sheep of the Holy See: the Institute for the Works of Religion (Istituto per le Opere di Religione - IOR) aka The Vatican Bank. Thus, as well as learning about how the Vatican fought against Nazism and Communism, Dendël also lifts the lid on how the IOR has been used by various financiers and prelates for nefarious purposes. We meet shady people like Roberto Calvi and Archbishop Paul Marcinkus and groups such as the Mafia and the infamous P2 lodge. The presence of Pope Francis means that even the still active and disgraced cardinal Angelo Becciu makes an appearance. 

Before reading Vatican Spies I thought I knew a fair bit about the inner workings of the Vatican. This book, however, showed me that I was wrong. I learnt a lot. Not just about the past but even Francis' reign. For example, his relationship with rich American Catholic right wingers who were determined to undermine him. Sadly, they tended to be traditionalists. I have a strong suspicion now that when Francis restricted access to the Extraordinary Form of the Mass he was acting against his American enemies more than against the EF Mass, but who knows.

Something I did know before reading Vatican Spies but which the book has reinforced is that to speak about the Vatican as if it is a monolithic unit is wrong. The Holy See is so compartmentalised and secretive that it is truly the case that the right hand may not know what the left is doing. This applies all the way up to the pope. With that in mind, it is hard to see how Dendël's suggestion that the Vatican create its own intelligence department could ever be made a reality. Half its time would be spent spying on the various dicastieries who refused to give it information. 

All in all, if Church politics, controversies and espionage are of interest to you, Vatican Spies is definitely worth your time. Dendël has his opinions but it is a book written with a desire to unearth the truth in mind rather than score points or take sides and is to be applauded for that. A really good read.