Researchers say Vatican archives hold historical UFO secrets
The Vatican is believed to possess a vast collection of rare documents related to unexplained phenomena.
The Vatican Apostolic Archive, formerly known as the Vatican Secret Archive, is the central repository in the Vatican City of all acts promulgated by the Holy See. This repository holds thousands of items, including books, manuscripts, state papers, letters, and even presidential missives.
As one of the largest and most secret collections globally, these documents are stored on miles of shelving deep beneath the Vatican.
Recently, UFO disclosure advocates have attempted to access the archives to uncover historical accounts of unidentified flying objects and similar phenomena. Paranormal researchers are similarly keen to explore records of supernatural occurrences, reports usccb.org.
Although efforts have been made in recent years to digitize and publish some materials from the archives, much of the content these researchers seek is unlikely to be prioritized.
“The historical record is filled with these kinds of [supernatural] events. The people at the Vatican don’t even know where to look; it’s in their basements,” said Diana Walsh Pasulka, an author and religious studies professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.
“The archivists are in a mad rush to digitize what they have; they have to prioritize what they think is most important. They aren’t really prioritizing orbs that are bothering nuns in the 1800s.”
The interest in the Vatican’s holdings extends beyond the realm of scholars of religion. Scientists like Garry Nolan, a professor of medicine at Stanford University, view the Vatican archives as a potential treasure trove for understanding UFOs.
“The Vatican is probably the oldest library system of paranormal or supernatural knowledge still extant,” Nolan said. The archive “has an aura of both mysticism and a feeling of deep truth that if you just know how to read it, you can pull that information out.”
However, exactly when the Vatican might grant access to its centuries-old X-Files remains unclear for now.
