Pope John Paul I conspiracy theories John Paul I, he mysteriously dies. In "The Company: A Novel of the CIA" by Robert Littell, Pope John Paul I is murdered by a KGB hired killer. Pope John Paul I conspiracy theories Pope John Paul I died suddenly in September 1978, 33 days after his election. Following contradictory reports about the circumstances of his death and apparent anomalies about the issuing of the death certificate and other procedures, several conspiracy theories have gained currency. Many of these concern the serious corruption in the Vatican Bank (Istituto per le Opere Religiose), possibly linked to Freemasonry, which is forbidden by
History of the papacy Here he continued to act as pope, creating new cardinals and issuing decrees, until his death in 1423. The council in Constance, having finally cleared the field of popes and antipopes, elected Pope Martin V as pope in November. From the election of Pope Martin V of the Council of Constance in 1417 to the Reformation, Western Christianity was largely free from schism as well as significant disputed papal claimants. Martin V returned the papacy to Rome in 1420. Although there were important divisions over the direction of the religion, these were resolved through the then-settled procedures of the papal