THE PILGRIM

World attention focused as seldom before (except perhaps in the case of Pope John XXIII) on Pope Paul VI as he journeyed to the Holy Land last year on his own personal ""pilgrimage"" to the sacred shrines of Christendom. This papal action was visible evidence of the great desire of the Pontiff of Rome to reconcile differences with the East, and to explore closely what might be done to bring about unity if not union. Using the pen name of Michael Serafian (in the opirit of Xavier Rynne -- Letters from Vatican City) the anonymous writer sets out to write the ""inside story"" of the problems of the Church today, how Pope John set into motion forces which Paul VI is destined to control and implement if he is to bring about praise to the Almighty by all nations to the earth. As in the Rynne book, the Curia again comes up as the ""bad guys."" Serafian reports gossip and alleged events and conversation as well as the facts which are a matter of record. The mixture makes for fascinating if not necessarily documented reading. As in the case of Letters from Vatican City, The Pilgrim will be disputed and discussed widely -- and enjoyed and appreciated, too -- for its candid evaluation.