Hitler's Pope: Pope Francis And Opening Vatican Archives

[LinaSt.Cecilia2772]

I came across this story going through the web today, and I found it to be particularly interesting to share.

 

Of course, I'm only 18 and still learning new things everyday, which is why I want to hear people's opinions on what this story means if the archives are to be opened regarding Pope Pius XII during the Fascist times in Italy and Germany in the 1930's and 1940's.

 

Obviously this is a very sensitive subject, but I want to hear historically what y'all think and what it means in the history of the Church in such a dark time in history.

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/the-pope/10004609/Francis-will-open-files-on-Hitlers-Pope-says-friend.html

 

 

Also I don't know if this is to be a reliable source, so someone chime in on that too if necessary.

[Nihil Obstat]

I am quite confident that, once again, Pope Pius XII will be completely vindicated. He went above and beyond what anyone could have expected of him, but due to the fact that secrecy was key, many people labour under the false impression that he did not do much at all.

[LinaSt.Cecilia2772]

I am quite confident that, once again, Pope Pius XII will be completely vindicated. He went above and beyond what anyone could have expected of him, but due to the fact that secrecy was key, many people labour under the false impression that he did not do much at all.

 

What do you mean by that?? I don't know much on this subject.

[Gabriela]

Of course, I'm only 18 and still learning new things everyday...

 

I'm 33 and I still learn something new every day. My father is 66 and he learns a bunch of new things every day.

 

:-)

[Nihil Obstat]

What do you mean by that?? I don't know much on this subject.

Basically that contemporary, unbiased scholarship has on several occasions showed that Pius XII actually did a heck of a lot to oppose Hitler and rescue those who were targeted by the Nazis. The whole "Hitler's Pope" thing is an outdated myth based on old scholarship and a bit of anti-Catholicism.

 

Here is a book that you might enjoy.

[Basilisa Marie]

He might open the archives, or he might not.  The article you linked is merely speculating based on the opinions of a friend of his.  It's really just a fluffy article with the sole purpose of getting more clicks to the site by talking about a controversial issue that's only tangentially related to current events. 

 

Thing is Pius XII was stuck between a rock and a hard place with Hitler. He wasn't "Hitler's pope," but it's also wrong to paint him like someone who was always completely and publicly opposed to everything Hitler did.  Before anyone realized the true extent of Hitler's evil, there was an agreement that involved protections for the Church (which, of course, were later ignored).  And then Pius had to figure out if it would be better for him to speak out or work behind the scenes, because the lives of so many people were at stake.  If random Joe speaks out against Hitler, then it's only random Joe's and possibly his family's lives that are at stake. If the Pope spoke out against Hitler, hundreds of Catholics could be killed. 

 

I think the situation is an example of how history is rarely black and white, and that bias has a big role in determining how we tell our stories. 

[LinaSt.Cecilia2772]

He might open the archives, or he might not.  The article you linked is merely speculating based on the opinions of a friend of his.  It's really just a fluffy article with the sole purpose of getting more clicks to the site by talking about a controversial issue that's only tangentially related to current events. 

 

Thing is Pius XII was stuck between a rock and a hard place with Hitler. He wasn't "Hitler's pope," but it's also wrong to paint him like someone who was always completely and publicly opposed to everything Hitler did.  Before anyone realized the true extent of Hitler's evil, there was an agreement that involved protections for the Church (which, of course, were later ignored).  And then Pius had to figure out if it would be better for him to speak out or work behind the scenes, because the lives of so many people were at stake.  If random Joe speaks out against Hitler, then it's only random Joe's and possibly his family's lives that are at stake. If the Pope spoke out against Hitler, hundreds of Catholics could be killed. 

 

I think the situation is an example of how history is rarely black and white, and that bias has a big role in determining how we tell our stories. 

 

I couldn't agree with you more. Thank you for your response. I haven't read much or know a lot of the subject matter on what really happened, so I wanted to see what more knowledgeable people had to say.

[BG45]

In keeping with not being black and white, but that Pius was far from Hitler's pet Pope.  Hitler did order his removal at one point, as well as the mass murder of the Curia, but the SS General personally assigned to do the job by Hitler himself, ended up passively refusing.   Pius XII was aware of this possibility also, and had a letter prepared with a Vatican official which said any arrest that would take him beyond Rome's walls would be his resignation from the papacy.

[Papist]

http://www.catholic.com/documents/how-pius-xii-protected-jews

 

 

http://catholicexchange.com/the-myth-of-hitlers-pope-an-interview-with-rabbi-david-g-dalin/

 

 

http://www.ncregister.com/site/article/pope-pius-and-the-myth-of-hitlers-pope

 

[Spem in alium]

I'm intrigued by Pope Pius XII. I once read a book (I believe it was Hitler's Pope by John Cornwell) that seemed to draw very critical, biased and unsubstantiated views and conclusions. I'm interested to see the outcome of Pope Francis' decisions.

Edited April 21, 2013 by Spem in alium

[Socrates]

The truth is that Pius XII did more to save Jews from the Nazis than anyone else during the war, and widely received gratitude from Jews after the war.  His deeds even led the Chief Rabbi of Rome to convert to Catholicism.  The "Hitler's Pope" garbage didn't begin until about 20 years after the war.

 

Of course, it's easy for armchair critics to sit around and blast him and say that if they were Pope at the time, they would have had much more courage and done so much more to oppose Hitler.  Somehow, I tend to be dubious.

Edited April 21, 2013 by Socrates

[T-fish]

I would hope that Papa Francesco would be more concerned with other things than the past.

So maybe the article is just an opinion or "story" to sell papers. idk.

Pacelli is actually a distant cugino of mine. I think they are in the process of making him a saint.

 

As an ecumenical person, I see the protestants blaming the Roman Church for Hitler's horror, when actually it was 

the Lutheran's who were the ones who let the whole thing go down. So you gotta see where your sources are coming from.

Good thinking for asking!

 

 

[LinaSt.Cecilia2772]

I'm just interested in what really went down from a historical standpoint. I'm not against Pius in any way, which is why I posted the article so I could get more accurate information from others who actually knew what happened since I don't know much on the subject.

 

Thanks to all of the posters who have helped clarify and help with my understanding. It is a good topic to know about.