The recently released Epstein files have shed light on a surprising geopolitical target: the Vatican. Internal communications suggest Steve Bannon orchestrated a deliberate strategy to undermine Pope Francis's authority from within. These revelations offer a stark view of how high-level political manoeuvring sought to disrupt one of the world's most influential religious institutions.

Freshly disclosed records from the USDepartment of Justiceexpose a collaboration betweenSteve Bannonand the late financier Jeffrey Epstein to weaken Pope Francis's influence. The correspondence illustrates a shared belief among Epstein's elite associates that the Vatican functioned as a vital lever for global political control.

Correspondence from June 2019 indicates that Bannon viewedEpsteinas a key financier for a film project that ultimately failed to launch. This documentary was intended to adapt Frédéric Martel's 2019 investigation, 'In the Closet of the Vatican,' which explored the inner workings of the Holy See.

Hard to read today’s Gospel from Mark on beheading of John the Baptist and not think of yesterday’s revelations: Steve Bannon promising Epstein in 2018 that he “will take down Francis”. Power and ambition hate goodness and seek to destroy it.pic.twitter.com/AggkgO3e6m

Bannon claims the film 'will take down Francis' before adding, 'The Clintons, Xi, Francis, EU — come on brother.' The book the film was based on exposes a world of secrecy and perceived insincerity regarding homosexuality in the Church. It triggered a massive wave of conservative backlash when it first hit shelves, largely for claiming that 80% of the Vatican's clerical staff are gay.

During a series of discussions withReligion NewsService, Martel recalled that Bannon said he 'loved' the work. Their initial meeting took place in a penthouse at the Hôtel Bristol in Paris, where Bannon proposed adapting the research into a film. Martel noted that Bannon 'was very enthusiastic' and explicitly shared his desire to produce a film based on the book.

Martel explained that he neither agreed to Bannon's proposal nor took any money from him, noting that the book's rights were held by his publisher in France. Furthermore, the author stated he had never been in communication with Epstein.

Bannon's fascination with Martel's research eventually pushed US Cardinal Raymond Burke to distance himself from the Dignitatis Humanae Institute. Burke felt the conservative Catholic group had become too closely linked to Bannon's personal influence. In a correspondence sent on 25 June 2019, the Cardinal made his stance clear, stating, 'I am not at all of the mind that the book should be made into a film.'

Steve Bannon — who conspired with Jeffrey Epstein to “take down” Pope Francis — warned that the election of the man who would become Pope Leo XIV would be his worst nightmare.Bannon lost. The world won.pic.twitter.com/0ASGMRUVhL

The messages between the two men coincided with a peak in organised conservative efforts to challenge the Pope's authority. At the time, Francis was actively softening the Church's approach to LGBTQ Catholics and remarried couples, while frequently using his writings to champion environmental causes and the rights of refugees. For Epstein's network, these shifts transformed the Vatican into a significant ideological battleground.

Source: International Business Times UK