1932: Playing with the Japanese Communist Party with a doll

Even non-Catholics and even materialists are shocked by the courage and will of these martyrs.

"I imagine that while the Roman doves were flying through St. Peter's Square with the ashes of burning roses in their beaks, the Swiss Guards were scrubbing the tiles with brushes dipped in perfumed ointment;"

"The cardinals are probably gathering together, using twenty typewriters to write Anderson's 'History of the Inheritance of Mental Illness and Epilepsy' overnight, and they may also throw heavy mud on him;"

"But it's no use."

"When Anderson burned himself at the stake, the sky, covered by the twelve-diamond-encrusted crown, finally cracked open:"

"I saw light leaking onto the shoulders of a young prostitute on the streets of Milan, falling into the empty bread basket of a mother in Kiev, melting into the blood-stained cross pendant of a Romanian miner, and flying into the strings of a wandering artist in a Paris subway station..."

“Those Ukrainian souls, curled up in the folds of the Lateran Treaty, are now singing a loud chorus through the ashes of Father Anderson!”

"Oh, God! Look at that moth-eaten red robe! That's Satan who needs to be crucified!"

"The flames burning within him were never the end of despair, but rather the kindling that transformed the corrupt anointing accumulated by the Church over the past millennia into a spark!"

"When the burnt rose petals, mixed with his holy blood, seep into the cracks between the stone slabs, the foundations of the entire Christian world will tremble!"

"When he lit the match, the details of his past life gradually faded away, and when his clothes and skin were scorched, his race, identity and nationality no longer mattered;"

"When he shouted his last words and knelt in front of the icon, motionless and accepting the end of death, there was only a great saint left!"

"This priest who adopted many children from an orphanage yet called himself a 'blasphemer', this monk who exchanged his monthly salary for bread to distribute to the poor yet filled his confession book with 'I am guilty', is exactly the kind of saint that even God would recognize!"

“When the stained glass windows of St. Peter’s Basilica reflected seven hundred shades of blood in the morning light, I discovered that God still retains the most ancient way of revelation—it always brings down the true gospel where the ashes are scattered;”

"The ashes of the martyrs will never cool; they will reignite in the rainstorm as comets that tear through the night."

“It is not that he will be consumed in fire, but that we will all be reborn in fire.”

506 will do whatever it takes to make them look decent!

It's over, the Vatican is over.

When Pope Pius XI saw Springfield's article on the front page of the "Roman Post", his eyes went dark and he quickly confirmed this.

This kind of collapse doesn't mean the Vatican will collapse immediately. How could the Catholic Church, which has been operating for thousands of years and has about a billion believers, be destroyed because of one article?

Rather, it means that in the foreseeable future, the Holy See will gradually lose the powerful appeal it once had in the minds of believers, lose its "divine authority" and then lose other rights.

Although Catholicism has been challenged from all sides since the Industrial Age, especially after the end of World War II, with revolutions breaking out in various European countries and being impacted by various new ideas,

Especially with the influence of liberalism and Bolshevik atheism, coupled with the encroachment of the more "liberal" Protestantism, the status and power of the Church had already declined significantly;

But this "death" is like the decline of the British Empire, a slow, imperceptible decline in the strength of the Catholic faith of believers;

For the Holy See, being confined to the Vatican, a place of imprisonment, is nothing. As long as people's faith in the Lord remains, other lost things can be retrieved one day through other means.

Until Springfield appeared and Anderson's self-immolation occurred.

The very foundation of the Holy See's existence was shaken, like a decayed tooth hanging thinly on the gums, and then being punched.

A Saint President is enough to make the Vatican feel threatened by death, and Anderson's self-immolation is even more troubling. What if the two are combined?

Catholicism may continue to exist in another form, but the same cannot be said about the Vatican.

This threat brought together Pope Pius XI, Cardinal Eugenio Giovanni Pacelli, Secretary of State, Cardinal von Lateran, Cardinal P. Gaspari, and other high-ranking Vatican officials to discuss countermeasures.

The first thing that can be confirmed is that all the previously agreed-upon coping strategies such as "history of mental illness", "epilepsy", and "stigmatization" must be scrapped.

If you still use these methods when they've been clearly pointed out in the article, aren't you just walking into a trap?

The second thing that can be confirmed is that they could not seek help from their collaborators, such as Mussolini of Italy, or other secular forces, because Springfield used "Field" instead of "President of the United States";

In other words, the secular world belongs to the secular world, and the divine world belongs to the divine world. If the Holy See "does not follow the rules", then Springfield may have to take action personally as the President of the United States, and the situation will only get worse.

the most important is...

"How much does that woman know?"

A cardinal scratched his hair in frustration: "Did Anderson tell her something?!"

As mentioned above, as an "absolute insider," Anderson, despite his relatively low rank, enjoyed a high level of trust within the Vatican before the self-immolation incident.

He was allowed to enter some databases that were not open to ordinary priests or even ordinary bishops. In the second year after the death of the previous Anderson, he was even allowed to enter the secretarial library once.

Who would have thought that this guy actually had such a ruthless trick up his sleeve? Therefore, the Vatican is currently urgently investigating what materials Anderson has borrowed and which divisions he has visited.

Originally, even if Anderson saw or obtained some information that was not easy to disclose to the public, it would not matter. The Vatican had encountered similar incidents before and they could be easily handled.

The problem is that if Springfield, the American Saint President, intervenes, the lethality of this information will increase exponentially and may even cost the Vatican its life.

"I think I didn't tell her anything, otherwise, that woman wouldn't be so quiet."

"Yeah, I think so too."

This is one of the reasons why the people in the Vatican can still sit here and discuss countermeasures with peace of mind.

Although the article written by Springfield, which was produced at an astonishing speed, was deeply moving and extremely damaging, it did not contain any substantive accusations;

In other words, it seems that Springfield simply heard about Anderson's self-immolation and, out of "indignation" and his own interests, used it to attack the Vatican;

If Haruta really had some key evidence from Anderson, her attack would probably not be so "simple and weak".

Seeing several cardinals still "comforting themselves" here, Pius X tapped his fingers heavily on the teak conference table, the gilded ring of authority colliding with the cracks in the wood grain making a dull sound, and he said dissatisfiedly:

"Everyone! Let's put aside for now whether Field is colluding with Anderson! Now we need to discuss how to deal with this crisis!"

Pius X seemed to be accusing everyone of talking nonsense and not getting to the point, which immediately aroused the dissatisfaction of several cardinals.

Humph! The situation is so bad, isn't it because you, the Pope, were too slow to react and mishandled the previous incident, which allowed that wild saint to grow to this point?

A cardinal actually said to him in a sarcastic tone:

"That's right! Your Holiness is absolutely right! What's the point of guessing? Why not ask for Your Holiness' instructions? We will definitely follow them!"

What is the Pope?

In the final analysis, he is just a former cardinal who is accepted by everyone and elected by the Vatican’s central voting college of cardinals. No one is more noble than the other.

We respect you as the Pope, and you are the Pope. We don't bother to bother with you. You are just an ordinary cardinal in a holy robe!

In the past, everyone thought that Pius XI was calm and steady, and worked in an orderly manner, which was just right for the Vatican, which currently needed to "guard its territory." But now, people dislike him for his lack of quick wit.

Just as when a country is thriving, many contradictions will be covered up by development, but once it starts to decline, internal strife will become extremely fierce;

Over the past year and a half, the Pope's position has been shaken considerably, so some people dare to confront him in person.

Pope Pius XI's face darkened, and Cardinal Basil, his deputy, quickly changed the subject:

"Everyone! Everyone! Field has learned of Anderson's self-immolation and is about to come to the Holy City. What we need to quickly determine is how to define and handle this matter!"

These words made everyone sober up a little.

Yes, this is an overall crisis for the Holy See. If it is not handled properly, everyone will be in trouble.

So, everyone returned to normal discussion:

"How about continuing to attribute Anderson's self-immolation to 'heretic instigation'?" "Heretic? Who do you intend to define as a heretic? That American saint?" "That's absolutely not possible! We must not have a head-on conflict with her now!"

Due to political considerations, Springfield was temporarily unwilling to completely break with the Vatican, but the Vatican was even more afraid of both wolves and tigers.

After all, if the former actively engages in a deadly conflict with the latter, the most he can do is distract himself and cause some trouble.

But if the latter were to initiate an all-out war with the former... well... is it because they think they're not dying fast enough?

"Then who should we push it to?"

"Hmm...what about communists and Jews?" "Hmm?"

After a few seconds of silence, everyone suddenly realized that this was a very good idea.

Isn't this one of the reasons for the existence of the Jews?

In Europe, killing Jews is the most politically correct thing to do.

Besides, Springfield had already publicly declared that she wanted to destroy Judaism, and at the presidential inauguration ceremony, she had revealed many of the Jewish people's secrets, which was a good opportunity to take advantage of.

As for the Communists, they are a mortal enemy a hundred times more detestable than the Jews. Pope Pius X once publicly declared to the Belgian ambassador:

"There is nothing more deadly in human civilization than communism. It takes only a few days to destroy centuries of cultural heritage... We must eradicate it completely."

Therefore, throwing the identity of "demagogue" onto Jews and communists can not only shift the blame from oneself but also strike a blow against the enemy. Why not do it?

This idea was quickly agreed upon by everyone, and everyone enthusiastically participated in adding details and improving the plan, and the discussion continued until late at night.

"...Everyone, now that this has been confirmed, please be cautious in your words and actions when you return. The Central Committee will handle this matter at all costs. Please obey the overall situation!"

"Understood!"

"understood!"

The cardinals responded and left the temple, but several of them did not follow the procession. Instead, half an hour later, they sneaked back to the Holy See's room.

The real discussion began.

"...Putting all the blame on the Jews is unconvincing, even more impossible to quell public opinion, and it will not restore the Vatican's image. As for blaming communism, it will only erode our faith in the hearts of believers!"

The Pope's words caused Cardinal Basili, Cardinal Lateran and other core decision-makers of the Holy See to nod their heads frequently:

"That's right, those rotten idiots always think that they can solve all problems by pushing the responsibility aside, but they never considered that the situation this time is completely different!"

Before the self-immolation incident broke out and attracted Springfield's attention, it was possible to shift the blame. Under the Vatican's pressure, ordinary people's opposition voices could not cause any disturbance.

But now, after the US President, who is the Holy Lady of God, has personally intervened, if she continues to pass the buck, it will only lead to greater doubts.

Push it to the Jews?

Regardless of whether we believe it or not, has the Freemasonry actually grown to the point where it can interfere in the core affairs of the Vatican?

What is your church doing?

What a bunch of corrupt and degenerate losers! Blame it on the communists?

That’s a bigger problem!

How could Communism, which the Vatican repeatedly denounced and publicly demanded its followers resist, and even collaborated with the Nazis to suppress, actually succeed in persuading a priest of good family descent and unwavering faith to self-immolate in protest of the Vatican?

ha?

What is communism and why is it so magical? Let me find out.

Well, in a sense that's even worse.

Therefore, passing the buck is not an option. Not only will it fail to resolve the current crisis, but it may also be seized by Her Highness the Saint, causing even greater trouble for the Holy See.

Because Pope Pius X had informed him in advance, everyone who was qualified to come here knew that the Pope must have made up his mind:

"Holy See, what exactly are your thoughts..."

"Since that woman is so devoted to Anderson and has publicly called him a 'saint approved by God,' why shouldn't we just go along with her?"

The Pope skillfully rotated the metal-framed glasses on his broad nose with two fingers, and the sunken eye sockets made his eyes look deeper:

"Why don't we just publicly acknowledge in the name of the Holy See that Father Anderson is indeed a saint, a great martyr, willing to use his own brutal death to awaken internal reforms within the Holy See? Wouldn't that be a good idea?"

"Um?"

The Pope's words triggered a brief silence. The cardinals exchanged glances with each other, pondering the pros and cons of this proposal.

Compared with shifting the blame onto other people or forces, this behavior of "bravely admitting one's own mistakes" will undoubtedly win more public favor and restore the image of the Holy See.

only...

"We need an opportunity to convince the world that Anderson was truly sacrificing himself to promote Vatican reform, and not for any other reason."

"How about having Anderson leave us a suicide note?"

Lying and fabricating are essential skills for reaching the top of the Vatican. He could even fabricate a history of mental illness across three generations, so a suicide note was nothing.

"That's just one aspect. We also need to convince the public that we, the rulers of the Vatican, have long harbored a desire for reform, and aren't simply being forced or provoked by Anderson's self-immolation."

The Pope's finger rested on the center of his rotating glasses, his gaze sweeping over the core decision-makers like a scalpel:

"We want to produce two historical documents that corroborate each other - the Anderson Reform Memorandum, which is public, and the 1929 copy of the Apostolic Instruction, which is destined to be 'leaked.'"

"this..."

As the person handling the important documents, Cardinal Gallipari immediately grasped the key point: "You mean to say that the former must be a reform program written by Anderson himself, accusing the Vatican of its long-standing malpractices and calling for reform, while the latter must demonstrate our determination to carry out comprehensive reforms, which we have already secretly prepared?"

"That's right! This explains why Anderson set himself on fire at this moment! He's dissatisfied with the slow pace of reform, so he's resorting to extreme measures to put pressure on people!"

As he spoke, the Pope took out a yellowed document from a carved iron cabinet. The smell of thunder was mixed with the faint scent of ink. This was the "Proposal for Dealing with the Modern Crisis of Faith" from 1926, which was sealed at the time due to opposition from the majority of cardinals.

"Take out the third part of this document and reformat it, turning it into the minutes of the 1929 Vatican high-level meeting. Finally, add the draft resolution of the Moral Reform Commission that was to be established five years ago..."

hiss...