The following excerpt is from http://www.truthontheweb.org/abe.htm I have included it in this forum only because of its mention of the Knights of the Golden Circle. To read the lengthy article in its entirety please go to the website.
""John Wilkes Booth-Act One
At this time, we introduce you to John Booth, a popular theatre actor, who was not born a Roman Catholic but by 1860 had began to convert to that religion. In 1860, he was initiated into the Knights of the Golden Circle, a catholic lay organization. The Knights of the Golden Circle "were committed to the preservation of slavery in the lands bordering the Caribbean Sea--the so-called 'Golden Circle.' The seal of the Knights featured a cross similar to the maltese cross used by the old Knights of Malta." A book, published in 1866, called The Great Conspiracy tells us of this and quotes the following excerpts of a letter from the hand of J.W. Booth to an unknown person, quite possibly a Jesuit ally (whose return letters were only signed "Veritas" which is "Truth" in Latin ... the language of the Jesuit priests.).
"Dear Sir: The K.G.C. had a meeting; I was initiated.... They tell me that Lincoln, the damn chicken-hearted nigger lover, will perhaps be inaugerated, but I most heartily wish, 'That never shall sun that morrow see.' .... One thing is very clear to my mind, the South must take some decisive step. She must throw a bomb-shell into the enemy's hand that shall spread terror and consternation wherever it goes. You know what I mean, so don't be surprised.
Sincerily yours,
John Wilkes Booth."
Further Evidence of Religious Undertones
"I mention, as an exceptional and remarkable fact, that every conspirator, in custody, is by education a Catholic." U.S. General Baker-patriot
Some circumstantial evidence: After spending many years in a Catholic prep school and two years in a Jesuit college, John Surrat studied to be in the Roman priesthood for three years at a Jesuit monastery. After the assassanation he was confirmed to be in the military service of the Pope in Rome, which was led by the General of the Jesuits or the so-called Black Pope( at that time Cardinal Giacomo Antonelli). Weichmann was a Jesuit professor. Herold graduated from the Jesuit college at Georgetown. Samuel Mudd, the doctor who splinted Booth's broken leg was a Catholic who met Booth at a Mass. The conspirators were all part of or connected to The Knights of the Golden Circle. When he was shot, John Wilkes Booth was wearing a Catholic medallion which said in the Latin language of the priests "Agnus Dei", meaning Lamb of God, which signified the "sacrifice", the shedding of blood, which he would offer the Pope and the Catholic citizens in America. It is interesting to note that, upon Lincoln's death, numerous letters of condolence were sent to the U.S. Government from every civilized nation in the world ... except the Papal States of Rome and the Pope. ""
