Documents of the Roman Curia on the activities of I. M. Posnova and of the pilgrimage of Russian Catholics to Rome in 1950

The article, using documents of the Vatican Apostolic Archive, examined a number of topics related to the fate of russian catholics in Europe. Of particular interest is the work of I.M. Posnova, who became the soul of russian catholics in Belgium. Initially, Irina Mikhailovna’s work was aimed at providing spiritual support to displaced persons, but then, as it expanded, it turned out to be connected with the fate of all russian catholics in Europe and some Latin American countries. I.M. Posnova’s endeavors attracted the attention of the Vatican. An analysis of the documents showed that members of the curia were interested in I.M. Posnova’s work, supported her financially, and helped her implement certain endeavors. The Vatican provided assistance not only to the publishing center in Belgium, which established regular publishing activities, but also to a large group of Russian pilgrims who arrived in Rome in 1950 to celebrate the next Holy Year. Positive assessment of I.M. Posnova was largely associated with the Pope's support for the initiatives of the apostolate of the laity. The pilgrimage turned out to be an important event for several reasons. In addition to participating in the Jubilee, russian catholics managed to organize a single printed publication, the Russian Catholic Herald. In addition, Pope Pius XII was presented with a petition asking for the fulfillment of the Fatima prophecy, which happened in 1952.