BELLA DODD: In the late 1920s and 1930s, I personally put 1100 men into the priesthood in order to weaken the Catholic Church from within.

@ProtecttheFaith A point of penetration (no pun intended?) is Bella Dodd in 1953. And there's no reason this should be considered isolated to just America. But there is a Cambridge 5 nexus, believe it or not. See: https://t.co/35NT5ny3jo https://t.co/dTpkoqMx9s

— Stephen Coughlin (@S_Coughlin_DC) October 6, 2026

from Bella Dodd, 1904-1969, Lecture, Fordham University, 1953. 

In the late 1920s and 1930s, I personally put 1100 men into the priesthood in order to weaken the Catholic Church from within.  The idea was for these men to be ordained and progress to positions of influence and authority as Monsignors and Bishops . . . .  Right now they are in the highest places where they are working to bring about change in order to weaken the church's effectiveness against communism.  These changes will be so drastic that you will not even recognize the Catholic Church.  Of all the world's religions, the Catholic church was the only one feared by the Communists for it was it's only effective opponent.

Who was Bella Dodd?  Her book is School of Darkness, Bella V. Dodd, 1954.  

Briefly, 

Bella Dodd (1904–1969) was a lawyer and labor union activist who was a member of the Communist Party of the United States (CPUSA) during the 1930s and 1940s.

She played a significant role in advocating for Communist ideologies within educational systems.  

CONVERSION & CONFESSION

After being expelled from the CPUSA in 1949, Dodd converted to Catholicism in 1952.

In her later years, she publicly confessed to her involvement in efforts to infiltrate the Church and warned about the dangers of Communist ideology infiltrating American institutions.

Stephen Coughlin gives a decent and readable history, "Forgotten Testimony: Dr. Bella Dodd Warns About Communism," Unconrestrained Analytics, July 30, 2019.  

Dr. Bella Dodd, Communist Leader, Confesses to Infiltrating the Church and USA [2 hours]