The Permanent Instruction of the Alta Vendita: A Masonic Blueprint for the Subversion of the Catholic Church

Historical Context: The Struggle Between Freemasonry and the Church

During the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Freemasonry and its affiliated secret societies, such as the Carbonari, sought to eliminate the influence of the Catholic Church in European society.

• The French Revolution (1789–1799) had already weakened the Church’s power, spreading secular and anti-clerical ideas.
• The Italian unification movement (Risorgimento) sought to strip the Pope of his temporal authority over the Papal States.
• Secret societies like the Alta Vendita aimed to replace Catholicism with a secular, rationalist philosophy that aligned with Masonic principles.
• Instead of openly attacking the Church, the Alta Vendita developed a long-term strategy to change it from the inside, ensuring that its teachings would gradually conform to the values of modern society.

The Core Plan of the Alta Vendita

The Permanent Instruction of the Alta Vendita outlines a detailed strategy for infiltrating and subverting the Catholic Church over several generations. Below are the key points of the plan, following the original text as closely as possible while explaining its implications.

1. The Long-Term Strategy: A Slow but Permanent Revolution

• The Alta Vendita explicitly stated that their goal was not to destroy the Church overnight but to change it from within over time.
• The document warns against sudden revolutions, arguing that the faithful would recognize and resist a direct attack on their faith.
• Instead, it calls for subtle changes that would appear natural and go unnoticed by most Catholics.
• This would be achieved through a multi-generational effort, ensuring that by the time the Church had been fully transformed, most Catholics would not even realize that a revolution had taken place.

2. Corrupting the Minds of Future Priests (Infiltrating Seminaries)

• The plan emphasized the importance of controlling the education of young priests, because the next generation of clergy would shape the Church.
• It called for placing teachers and professors in seminaries who would subtly introduce modernist, rationalist, and secular ideas into their students.
• Over time, priests trained under this system would rise through the ranks and become bishops, cardinals, and even popes, ensuring that the Church’s leadership was gradually transformed.

3. Changing the Church’s Teachings from Within

• The goal was not to outright reject Catholic doctrine, but to reinterpret it in ways that aligned with secular and Masonic values.
• This would be done gradually, by promoting a more “open-minded” and “progressive” version of Catholicism.
• Over time, traditional moral teachings (especially on marriage, family, and sexual ethics) would be softened or replaced with ideas more compatible with secularism.

4. Weakening the Authority of the Pope

• The Alta Vendita recognized that the Pope was the greatest obstacle to their plans.
• They sought to undermine his authority by:
• Encouraging internal divisions within the Church, making Catholics question Papal decisions.
• Promoting the idea that the Pope should adapt to modern society rather than uphold unchanging traditions.
• Gradually shifting power away from the Papacy and toward a more democratic, decentralized Church.

5. Promoting Religious Indifferentism (All Religions Are Equal)

• One of the key goals was to eliminate the idea that Catholicism is the one true faith.
• Catholics would be encouraged to embrace all religions as equally valid, leading to a loss of missionary zeal and a weakening of Catholic identity.
• Eventually, the belief in objective truth and divine revelation would be replaced with religious pluralism, where doctrine was seen as subject to change.

6. Changing the Liturgy and Worship Practices

• The Alta Vendita understood that changing how Catholics worship would gradually change what they believe.
• It called for simplifying the liturgy, making it more “accessible” and less “ritualistic”, so that the sense of the sacred would be diminished.
• Over time, this would shift the focus from God to the community, making Catholic worship indistinguishable from Protestant and secular services.

7. Influencing Public Perception of the Church

• Catholic newspapers, magazines, and schools would be used to gradually reshape Catholic thought.
• Catholics would be led to believe that the Church needed to “modernize” to remain relevant.
• Any opposition to these changes would be dismissed as outdated, reactionary, or extremist.

Has This Plan Been Carried Out?

Many Catholics believe that the Alta Vendita’s strategy has been slowly unfolding for over 200 years.  Some key areas where its influence is believed to be evident include:

1. Theological Modernism

The rise of theological modernism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries reflects many of the concerns outlined in the Alta Vendita. Modernism sought to reinterpret Catholic doctrine in light of contemporary philosophical and scientific developments, often at the expense of traditional teachings. Pope Pius X condemned modernism in Pascendi Dominici Gregis (1907), describing it as a “synthesis of all heresies.”

2. The Second Vatican Council (1962–1965)

While the Second Vatican Council introduced many positive reforms, some critics argue that certain aspects of the council’s teachings—such as a greater emphasis on ecumenism and openness to modern culture—align with the objectives of the Alta Vendita. Traditionalist Catholics, such as Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, warned that some of these changes undermined the Church’s historic teachings and authority.

3. Secularization of the Clergy and Laity

A decline in traditional Catholic practices, such as frequent Confession, strict moral teachings, and doctrinal clarity, has been observed in many parts of the Church. Some argue that this shift reflects the long-term influence of secular ideologies that have been gradually introduced into Catholic thought.

4. Increasing Acceptance of Moral Relativism

In recent decades, there has been a growing trend within the Church to soften its stance on issues such as contraception, same-sex unions, and interfaith relations. Critics argue that this trend reflects the type of doctrinal erosion envisioned by the Alta Vendita, where Church teachings are gradually adapted to fit secular values. These changes are part of a slow but deliberate shift away from traditional teachings.

How Have Popes Fought Back?

Despite the long-term efforts described in the Alta Vendita, many Popes throughout history have actively resisted attempts to corrupt and secularize the Catholic Church. These Popes took various measures, including issuing encyclicals, condemning secret societies, enforcing strict theological training, and strengthening traditional doctrine to counteract modernist influences.

Here’s a deeper look at how different Popes fought against this infiltration:

Pope Pius VII (1800–1823) – The First Major Papal Opponent of Secret Societies

Before the Alta Vendita document was written, Pope Pius VII was already fighting against secret societies like the Carbonari and the Freemasons.

• In 1821, he condemned the Carbonari, the secret organization that later wrote the Alta Vendita.
• He issued the papal bull Ecclesiam a Jesu Christo, formally excommunicating any Catholic involved in these societies.
• Although he made strong efforts to prevent their influence, the Carbonari continued to operate underground.

Pope Pius IX (1846–1878) – The Defender of the Church Against Modernism

Pope Pius IX was one of the strongest opponents of the ideas in the Alta Vendita. His long reign (32 years) was marked by his struggle against revolutionary forces that sought to weaken the Church. His Major Actions Against the Alta Vendita’s Influence:

1. Allowed the Publication of the Alta Vendita (1859) – Recognizing the seriousness of the threat, Pope Pius IX permitted the document to be published, exposing the secret plans of Freemasonry and the Carbonari to infiltrate the Church. This was meant to alert Catholics worldwide about the hidden dangers that threatened their faith.
2. The Syllabus of Errors (1864) – One of his most famous documents, the Syllabus of Errors, condemned modernist and secularist ideas. It specifically rejected religious indifferentism, rationalism, socialism, and the separation of Church and State—ideas promoted by the Alta Vendita.
3. Declared Papal Infallibility (1870) – In response to growing secular pressures, he called the First Vatican Council (1869–1870), where the doctrine of papal infallibility was officially defined. This ensured that the Pope had supreme authority in matters of faith and morals, making it harder for external forces to manipulate Catholic doctrine.

Pope Leo XIII (1878–1903) – The Pope Who Exposed the Freemasonic Conspiracy

Following Pope Pius IX, Pope Leo XIII continued to battle the spread of secularism, modernism, and Freemasonic influence. His Major Actions:

1. Exposed Freemasonry in the Encyclical Humanum Genus (1884) – This encyclical was one of the strongest condemnations of Freemasonry ever written by a Pope. He directly accused Freemasons of trying to corrupt societies and churches from within and urged Catholics to resist their influence.
2. Promoted the Rosary as a Spiritual Weapon – He wrote 11 encyclicals on the Rosary, encouraging Catholics to use prayer as a way to combat spiritual infiltration. He also wrote the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel.
3. Reaffirmed the Authority of the Pope and Traditional Catholic Doctrine – He called for a return to Thomism (the philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas), which emphasized reason and faith in a way that opposed modernist interpretations of Catholic teachings.

Pope Pius X (1903–1914) – The Strongest Opponent of Modernism

Perhaps the most aggressive Papal fighter against the infiltration of the Church was Pope St. Pius X. He recognized modernism as the “synthesis of all heresies” and took radical steps to root it out. His Major Actions:

1. Oath Against Modernism (1910) – He made it mandatory for all priests, bishops, and teachers in Catholic institutions to swear an oath against modernism. This was an unprecedented move to ensure that those within the Church would not secretly introduce modernist teachings.
2. Pascendi Dominici Gregis (1907) – The Most Direct Condemnation of Modernism; This encyclical denounced modernist theology, which sought to reinterpret Catholic dogma in a way that aligned with secular thought. He described modernism as a hidden enemy working within the Church itself, which perfectly aligns with the warnings from the Alta Vendita.
3. Sought to Purge Seminaries of Modernist Influence – He restructured seminaries to remove professors who promoted liberal theology, ensuring that future priests would be trained in traditional doctrine.
4. Strengthened Traditional Worship and Devotion – Encouraged frequent Eucharistic Adoration and reception of Holy Communion, emphasizing the sacred nature of the sacraments.

His efforts significantly slowed down the modernist movement, but after his death, modernist ideas re-emerged.

Later Popes’ Efforts: The Fight Continues

While later Popes did not take as strong a stance as Pope Pius X, several continued the battle against modernist and secular influences.

Pope Pius XI (1922–1939) – Opposition to Communism and Secularism

• Issued Divini Redemptoris (1937), condemning Communism as an anti-Christian force.
• Reaffirmed Catholic social teachings against liberal capitalism and Marxist socialism.

Pope Pius XII (1939–1958) – Defending the Church in a Secular Age

• Issued Humani Generis (1950), warning about new theological errors that sought to reinterpret Catholic teachings.
• Secretly worked against Communist infiltration in seminaries.

Pope John Paul II (1978–2005) – Fighting Secularism in the Modern World

• Opposed relativism and secularism in his encyclical Veritatis Splendor (1993).
• Strengthened Marian devotion and re-emphasized traditional Catholic moral teachings.

A Battle That Continues Today

The Permanent Instruction of the Alta Vendita is seen by many as a blueprint for changing the Catholic Church from within. We believe in its authenticity and Freemasonry has already succeeded in infiltrating the Catholic Church. The Second Vatican Council is a realization of the Alta Vendita’s strategy. The shifts in liturgy, changes in moral teachings, and ecumenism are signs of infiltration. However, we must not lose hope and always remember what Our Lord Jesus said when He built the Church:

And I say to thee: That thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Matthew 16:18

The Church has always survived and thrived through trials. By staying faithful to its traditional teachings and resisting pressures from the modern world, the Church can continue to fulfill its mission as the sole guardian of Truth on earth.