OCR
- page three = It happened like that : at the end of April it was suddenly learned, that one of the leading Jesuits of Rome, the 44 years old Rew, Alighiero Tondi, hadssuddenly escaped from his convent and had joined the ranks of the Communist Party. A few days later he was writing in the Communist:papers and was elected a Member of the Italian Communist Politburo. the truth behind these terse news was as follows. 16 years ago, the then atheist Alighiero Tondi had suddely got religion, and after a spectacular conversion had joined tne Jesuit order, He showed true fervor, became a priest and being of vast intelligence and knowledge was appointed as a Professor, which task he fulfilied to the entire satisfaction of his Superiors, until the very day he left. What the Jesuits did not know was, that Tondi never had. donverted, Before his alleged conversion, he had received special training at Lenin University. He was a friend of Togliatti. He of being for 16 years in the most austere and severe order without arousing suspicion. His secret was so well kept, that for eight years he was in contact with Togliatti directly and that for the same period he was already a secret Member of the Politburo, without his Superiors discovering it. That Tondi finally left was due to the fact, that ever since the trial of Cardinal Mindszenty, there had been the conviction in Vatican circles that there must be a deadly efficient treason organization in the Vatican, A secret inquiry was made, but so far with no avail. It is this inquiry, which is far from terminated, which by a pure acci= dent got close to Tondi — but without having as yet any suspicion The whole fact was a shock only somebody.can fathom who knows the deep confidence the Vatican had in the Jesuit order, And this shock is the greater, since Tondi really achieved a thing no one thought possible. It revealed suddenly to many people the ineredible devotion of Communists to their ideal. And the shock was even increased by the fact, that evidence points the way, that Tondi is not the only one ; that in fact the leakeages under investigation where not the result of his work, but of other persons, And that these persons might be even higher up than Tondi was, The inquiry continues now with the greatest energy, but some= how the great confidence which existed is gone s: Alighiero Tondi for the first time showed the highest Vatican circles what diabolical power is fighting against the Church , a power compared to which ail the past persecutions are dwarfed,