SPIES IN THE VATICAN PA

Infamous for the arbitrary and paranoid persecution of their owncitizens, it is a little known fact that the Soviet Union also wageda vicious espionage war against the Catholic Church and its followers. From the targeting of local priests to an assassinationorder against Pope John Paul II, the KGB viewed Catholicism asa threat to stability in Eastern Europe and treated the Church asan enemy of the State. Former U.S. Army Intelligence Officer John Koehler has writtenthe definitive book on this startling history. Using never beforeseen documents and transcripts, including an order against thePope that was signed by Gorbachev, Koehler paints a vivid pictureof the network of spies and double agents who were working toinfiltrate the Church#x19;s infrastructure, from the Vatican down tolocal parishes. But what is most impressive is the overwhelmingevidence of the extreme courage of everyday believers who offeredshelter and protection to the persecuted, despite the danger oftheir own arrest or execution. The KGB#x19;s efforts to purge the Soviet Union of the Church#x19;s#x1C;conspiratorial influence#x1D; would eventually backfire. This unprecedented history of the Soviet Union#x19;s cold war against the Catholic Church is a vital and important contribution to the works oftwentieth century history.