It’s not surprising that the Vatican shows up in the Epstein files since Epstein kept tabs on every powerful entity on the planet. But one email claims Epstein actually lived in the Vatican with Pope John Paul II at some point.
An email from Brandon Thompson, who appeared to be a contractor working on refinishing and lime-washing columns in one of Epstein’s homes, outlined the intricacies of the project to Richard Kahn at HBRK Associates, Epstein’s accountant.
“He wants me to finish each column different, as when he was living with Pope John Paul the Second in Vatican, he looked at variety of different columns captured in wars,” wrote Thompson. “He told me that every Pope demanded to have a column from every concurred [SIC] country, so there is a collection of different columns in Vatican.”
Of course there is no proof that Epstein lived with the Pope, although he and Ghislaine Maxwell visited with him in 2003 during a public audience. Just how intimate Epstein was with the Vatican is unknown, but in 2011 he claimed to have nearly possessed the Codex Vaticanus, one of the oldest and most important Church relics containing a majority of the Greek Old Testament and the majority of the New Testament. The Codex was famously seized by Napoleon in 1799 as a war trophy but was returned to the Vatican Library in 1815.
In an email to Boris Nikolic, who was a science advisor to the Bill Gates Foundation at the time and a close Epstein confidante, Epstein wrote, “I forgot to mention to Bill, that one of the first almost interactions with him was when I was the underbidder for the codex…The auctioneers told me that i shold drop out because if i owned them, no one would ever see them and they really should be in semi public hands.. I later had to settle for a present from the vatican of a special edition.”
One of the most revealing emails about Epstein’s alleged ties to the Vatican is a 2013 correspondence with Larry Summers, former U.S. Treasury Secretary under President Bill Clinton, former Harvard President and former chief economist at the World Bank. Epstein writes, “The most important change in the Vatican may not be Pope Benedict XVI sudden retirement but the change in leadership at ‘the Institute for Works of Religion,’ the Vatican’s bank. Because of the Vatican’s status as a sovereign country, it is exempt from transparency rules of not only Italy— but of the European Union. This status allows its elite clients to evade any scrutiny in their money transfers.”
“Last May,” continued Epstein. “Vatican Bank President Ettore Gotti Tedeschi was fired after Italian authorities opened an investigation into a far flung bribery scheme in which he was allegedly involved. Then 47 dossiers, including compromising about “internal enemies” of his in the Vatican were found in a search of his home. They had instructions how they were used in case something happened to him. Tcdeschi’s intercepted calls futhcr revealed that his concern was that he would be assassinated because he knoew the Vatican’s secrets. By late 2012, he was cooperating with the ongoing Italian investigation, It was at this point that the all-powerful College of Cardinals, in one of the last acts in the Benedict papacy, appointed German lawyer Ernst von Freyberg as President of the bank. The came the extraordinary resignation of Pope Benedict.”
Freyberg had a short tenure as Vatican Bank president. He was named in June 2012 as an interim leader, then appointed president in February of 2013. Von Freyberg quickly began to open up the bank and adopted a zero-tolerance approach to suspicious activities, advocating transparency. He was dismissed in July along with the Vatican Bank’s entire senior management team as part of extensive reforms to the Catholic Church’s central government.
Jean-Baptiste Douville de Franssu has been chairman of Vatican Bank’s advisory board since July of 2014.
Appreciate that you did not pad this with fluff to hit a word count, the post says what it needs to say and stops, and a look at wildridgebloom did the same, brevity here feels intentional not lazy which is a distinction many writers miss completely sometimes when they are working under deadlines.
Bookmark folder reorganised slightly to make this site easier to find, and a look at boundcling earned the same accessibility upgrade, the small organisational moves I make for sites I expect to return to often are themselves a signal of how much I trust them and this site triggered those moves naturally.
Skipped past the first paragraph thinking it was setup and had to come back when the rest referenced it, and a stop at civicbrisk similarly rewarded careful reading from the start, content where every paragraph carries weight is content I now know to read from the beginning rather than skipping ahead.
My friends would appreciate a few of these posts and I will be sending links accordingly, and a look at pebblevendor added more pages to my share queue, content that earns shares to specific people in specific contexts is content with social utility and this site is generating those targeted shares from me consistently lately.
Well crafted post, the structure flows naturally from one point to the next without forcing transitions, and a stop at mossytrailmarket kept the same flow going, you can tell when a writer has thought about how their content reads rather than just what it contains and this is one of those examples.
One of the more honest takes on the topic I have seen lately, no spin and no oversell, and a stop at berylbuff kept that going, the kind of voice the open web could use a lot more of rather than the endless echo chamber of recycled opinions floating around every social platform these days.
A particular kind of restraint shows up in the writing, and a look at timbervendor maintained the same restraint across pages, knowing what not to say is just as important as knowing what to say and this site has clearly developed strong instincts on both sides of that editorial line throughout pieces I have read.
In the middle of an otherwise scattered day this post landed as a moment of focus, and a stop at ethicalmodernmarketplace extended that focused feeling across more pages, content that anchors a fragmented day rather than contributing to the fragmentation is content with real centring effect and this site is providing that anchoring function for me.
Considered alongside other sources I have been reading this one consistently rises to the top, and a stop at designledclickping maintained that top ranking, the informal ongoing comparison between sources is something I do whenever reading on a topic and this site keeps coming out near the top of those comparisons over many sessions.
Most posts I read end up forgotten within a day but this one is sticking, and a look at crestbulb extended that lingering effect, content that survives the immediate moment of reading rather than evaporating is content with genuine retention quality and this site has been producing memorable pieces at a rate notable across my reading.
Beyond the topic at hand this site reads as a small ongoing project of taking writing seriously, and a look at ardenbrisk reinforced that project quality, sites that treat publishing as an ongoing serious practice rather than as content production for traffic are sites worth supporting and this one has clearly chosen the serious approach.
Really clear writing, the kind that makes you want to share the link with someone who has been asking about the topic, and a quick browse through compassbulb only made me more sure of that, the information here stays useful long after the first read is done which says a lot.
Even across multiple posts the writers voice has remained consistent in a way I appreciate, and a stop at creativecommercecollective continued that voice, sites that maintain editorial consistency across many pieces have something most sites lack and this one has clearly worked out how to keep its voice steady across what reads as a growing archive.
Felt like the writer was speaking directly to someone with my level of curiosity, neither talking down nor showing off, and a stop at goldenpeakharbor kept that comfortable matching going, finding writing that meets you where you are rather than asking you to climb up or stoop down feels great every time it happens.
Now feeling the small relief of finding writing that does not condescend, and a stop at islemeadows extended that respect for readers, content that treats its audience as capable adults rather than as people to be managed produces a different reading experience and this site has clearly chosen the respectful approach across all pieces.
Thank you for not assuming the reader already knows everything, the explanations meet me where I am, and a look at everydaypremiumessentials did the same, that consideration is what makes a site feel welcoming rather than gatekeepy which is sadly the default mood across the modern web today for most subjects covered.
A piece that did not lean on the writer credentials or institutional backing, and a look at larkvendor maintained the same focus on substance, content that earns trust through quality rather than through name dropping is the kind I find most persuasive and this site is clearly playing on the substance side of that distinction.
The post made the topic feel approachable without making it feel trivial, that is a fine balance, and a stop at spikeisland2020 maintained the same balance, finding the middle ground between welcoming and serious is genuinely difficult and the writers here have clearly figured out how to consistently hit it well across many different posts.
Took longer than expected to finish because I kept stopping to think, and a stop at silkvendor did the same to me, content that provokes thought rather than just delivering information is in a different category and the team here is clearly working at that higher level rather than just cranking out posts.
Compared to the usual results for this kind of search this site stands well above the average, and a quick visit to auralcleat kept the standard high, you can tell within seconds whether a site is going to waste your time or actually deliver and this one clearly delivers without any false starts.
Clean writing, easy to read, and never tries too hard to impress, that combination is harder to find than people think, and after my time on berylcalm I am sure this site treats its readers well, no flashy tricks just useful content done right which is honestly all I want online.
Genuine pleasure to read, and that is not something I say often after a casual click through, and a quick visit to valuewhisper kept the same feeling going across the rest of the site, finding writing that actually feels good to spend time with rather than just functional is increasingly rare on the open web.
Generally I am cautious about recommending sites on first encounter but this one warrants the exception, and a look at boundcoil reinforced the exception making, the rare site that justifies breaking my normal cautious approach is the rare site worth flagging early and this one has prompted exactly that early flagging response from me.
Bookmarked the page and the homepage too because clearly there is more to explore here, and a quick stop at slowcraftedlifestyle only made that more obvious, this is the kind of place I want to dig through over a weekend rather than rushing through during a coffee break tomorrow morning before getting back to work.
Really thankful for posts that respect a reader’s time, this one does, and a quick look at intentionalmarketplacehub was the same, no need to scroll through endless intros just to get to the actual content, that approach alone is enough reason to come back here regularly for the kind of writing offered.
Now feeling that this site is the kind I want to make sure does not disappear, and a look at softleafmarket reinforced that quiet protective feeling, the rare sites whose disappearance would actually matter to me are the sites I want to support through return visits and recommendations and this one has joined that small protected list.
Came in skeptical of the angle and left mostly persuaded, and a stop at ethicalglobalmarket pushed me a bit further in the same direction, content that can move a critical reader by argument rather than rhetoric is rare and worth pointing out because it indicates real substance underneath the surface presentation here.
Easily one of the better explanations I have read on the topic, and a stop at ardenburst pushed it even higher in my mental ranking of useful resources, the kind of site that beats the average not by trying harder but by simply caring more about what it puts out daily which always shows.
Found the writing surprisingly fresh for what is by now a well covered topic, and a stop at crocboard kept that freshness going across the related pages, original perspective on familiar ground is hard to come by and this site has clearly earned its place in the conversation rather than just rehashing old ideas.
Thanks for the simple approach, too many sites bury the actual point under layers of unnecessary words, but here every line earns its place, and a look at thoughtfullyselectedproducts showed the same care for the reader which is something I will remember the next time I need answers on a topic.
Reading this slowly and letting each paragraph land before moving on, and a stop at noblepinecrafts earned the same patient approach, content that rewards slow reading rather than speed is content with real density and the writers here are clearly producing work that benefits from the careful eye rather than the rushed scan.
Bookmarked the page and the homepage too because clearly there is more to explore here, and a quick stop at trueautumnmarket only made that more obvious, this is the kind of place I want to dig through over a weekend rather than rushing through during a coffee break tomorrow morning before getting back to work.
Reading this between two meetings turned out to be the highlight of the morning, and a stop at civiccask continued that highlight quality, content that outshines the structured parts of a working day is doing something well beyond ordinary and this site has produced multiple such highlights for me already this week alone.
Liked the way the post handled the final paragraph, no neat bow but no abrupt cutoff either, and a stop at contemporarylivingstore continued that thoughtful ending pattern, endings are hard and most blog writers either over engineer them or skip them entirely and this site has clearly figured out a sustainable middle approach.
After several visits I am now confident this site is one to follow seriously, and a stop at zestvendor reinforced that confidence, the gradual building of trust through repeated quality exposures is the only sustainable way to develop reader loyalty and this site is building that loyalty in me through patient consistent work consistently.
Genuine pleasure to read, and that is not something I say often after a casual click through, and a quick visit to compasscabin kept the same feeling going across the rest of the site, finding writing that actually feels good to spend time with rather than just functional is increasingly rare on the open web.
Just want to recognise that someone clearly cared about how this turned out, and a look at mistmarket confirmed that care extends across the broader site, you can feel the difference between content shipped to hit a deadline and content released because the writer was actually proud of the result for once.
A piece that respected the reader by not over explaining the obvious, and a look at saucierstudio continued that calibrated approach, finding the right level of explanation is one of the harder editorial calls and this site has clearly thought carefully about what readers will already know versus what they need help with consistently.
Beyond the topic at hand this site reads as a small ongoing project of taking writing seriously, and a look at blazeclose reinforced that project quality, sites that treat publishing as an ongoing serious practice rather than as content production for traffic are sites worth supporting and this one has clearly chosen the serious approach.
I usually skim posts like these but this one held my attention all the way through, and a stop at intentionalclickpingcollective did the same, that is a strong endorsement coming from me because I am usually quick to bounce when content gets repetitive or fails to deliver on its initial promise made in the headline.
A piece that did not lean on the writer credentials or institutional backing, and a look at consciousconsumerhub maintained the same focus on substance, content that earns trust through quality rather than through name dropping is the kind I find most persuasive and this site is clearly playing on the substance side of that distinction.
Bookmark earned, share earned, return visit earned, all from one reading session, and a look at balticarrow did the same, the trifecta of bookmark and share and return is rare in a single visit and represents the highest level of engagement I tend to offer any piece of online content these days here.
Reading this in segments because the day was busy, and the post survived the fragmented attention well, and a stop at ariabee held up similarly under interrupted reading, content that can withstand modern distracted reading patterns rather than requiring a perfect block of focused time is increasingly the kind I prefer.
Now adjusting my expectations upward for the topic based on this post, and a stop at croccocoa continued that bar raising effect, content that resets what I think is possible on a subject is doing real work in shaping my standards and this site is providing those bar raising experiences at a notable rate during sessions.
Felt the writer did the homework before publishing, the references hold up, and a look at artfulhomeessentials continued that documented care, content with traceable claims rather than vague assertions is the kind I trust and the lack of bald assertion in this post is one of its quietly impressive qualities for me.
Glad the writer kept this short rather than padding it out, the points stand on their own without needing extra context, and a look at urbanfieldgallery kept the same approach going, brevity is a sign of confidence in the substance and the team here clearly trusts their content to land without filler.
Now adding the homepage to my regular check rotation rather than waiting for individual links to find me, and a stop at timberlineattic confirmed the rotation upgrade, the move from passive discovery to active checking is a vote of confidence in a sites ongoing quality and this site has earned that active engagement clearly.
Really appreciate the confidence to make a clear point rather than hedging everything, and a quick visit to bowbotany maintained the same direct stance, writing that takes positions rather than equivocating is more useful even when the positions are debatable because at least the reader has something to react to clearly.
If I had to defend the time I spend reading independent blogs this site would feature in the defence, and a look at myvetcoach reinforced that defensive utility, the ongoing case for non algorithmic reading is one I make to myself periodically and sites like this one provide the actual evidence that supports the case clearly.
I learned more from this short post than from longer articles I read earlier today, and a stop at timelessdesignsandgoods added even more useful detail without going off topic, this site clearly knows how to keep things focused without sacrificing depth which is a hard balance to strike for any writer.