Newly Unsealed Vatican Archives Lay Out Evidence of Pope Pius XII’s Knowledge of the Holocaust

[Anastasia]

Aloysius

Thank you for your explanation.

24 minutes ago, Aloysius said:

because that seems to be the accusation leveled at Pius XII--that he was silent because he was antisemitic.

Then the question is (not for you but for them) why they do not also accuse him of being "anti-Gypsist" and also ignore others assigned for destruction  and destroyed in huge numbers like invalids, mentally ill, homosexuals (exterminated in Germany), Jehovah's Witnesses and Communists? (it is just a side thought).

Edited May 13, 2020 by Anastasia

[Aloysius]

38 minutes ago, Anastasia said:

Aloysius

Thank you for your explanation.

Then the question is (not for you but for them) why they do not also accuse him of being "anti-Gypsist" and also ignore others assigned for destruction  and destroyed in huge numbers like invalids, mentally ill, homosexuals (exterminated in Germany), Jehovah's Witnesses and Communists? (it is just a side thought).

the point is that the accusation is that the reason he was silent was because he was antisemitic.  I think that tends to be the narrative about the motivations they ascribe to him when they accuse him of not doing enough.  their argument is not "he didn't do enough against the holocaust, therefore he's antisemitic (and anti-all the things you list)", it's "he was motivated by antisemitism (which was sadly endemic to Catholic history for a long time) into turning a blind eye to the holocaust".  I'm sure if you accepted the premise that he was turning a blind eye to the holocaust, you could accuse him of any of those other motivations also, but IF that premise was true and it was motivated by an anti-anything, the thread of antisemitism in Catholic history WOULD be the most likely motivation to ascribe to it.  I doubt anti-gypsism would really likely be a motivation one would accuse him of, though maybe anti-communism could be conflated with antisemitism as a motivation that could be leveled at him IF one accepted the premise (which I remain unconvinced by, in fact I remain rather convinced of the opposite based on the history I've seen)

actually his anti-communism does tie into the story.  people first seemed to start accusing him of being complicit with the Nazis right around the time he spoke against communist parties in Italy in the 1950's.

[Anastasia]

I was trying to ascertain if St Teresa Benedicta (Edith Stein) wrote to that Pope but it appears she wrote to his predecessor.

"Stein wrote an impassioned and extraordinarily prescient appeal to Pope Pius XI in 1933, urging him to galvanise the church against the Nazi persecution of the Jews.

Stein's letter received no answer, and it is not known for sure whether Pius XI even read it. What is known is that Sant'Uffizzio, the Vatican office that deals with heresy, planned a "sillabo" – a condemnation – "of the errors of Hitler and Lenin", in 1933 and 1934, but it never saw the light of day. And Pope Pius XI, who whether or not he saw Stein's letter, was alive to Nazism's evils, planned an encyclical against anti-Semitism, but after his death in 1939 his successor, Pius XII, it is alleged, shelved it."

Further the author mentions "a forgotten German Jesuit priest called Friedrich Muckermann, wrote a letter as prescient in its way as Stein's. It was directed to Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli, later Pope Pius XII, in 1934, and in it he described Nazism as "a real religion ... a religion that works with revolutionary dynamism and which works above all on subhuman instincts. What confronts us is a phenomenon of diabolical violence ... National Socialism and Neopaganism are identical.

"What is the problem with the Church?" Muckermann went on to ask. "Often it lacks courage ... 

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/this-europe-letters-reveal-auschwitz-victims-plea-to-pope-pius-xi-119745.html

I have no idea how close the above to the topic; perhaps I simply feel that it is good to provide some examples of Roman Catholics who did fight although the majority of the Church was silent.

I have a book on this topic which I highly recommend: Ultimate Price: Testimonies of Christians Who Resisted the Third Reich by Annemarie S. Kidder. She provides plentiful texts written by those people. Of course Dietrich Bonhoeffer is there bit there are also others not so well known.

Edited May 13, 2020 by Anastasia

[Lea]

The overall impression stays that the church(es) did not enough to stop the Nazis. They could and should have done more (as everyone else, of course, as those cruelties were not hidden). 

It might be a little offtopic, but I strongly recommend to read Alfred Delp SJ's notes in prison, if available in your languages. 

[Aloysius]

I definitely think it's right to say that overall the church did not do enough.

I think it's good to get the whole picture, though.  Pius XII seems to have navigated the issue from behind the scenes because he felt that would be more effective than loudly proclaiming against the Nazis and inviting retaliation and escalation.  So he ordered churches in Rome to hide Jews, even the Vatican itself, and through many back channels tried to help Jews and others escape.  He even gave his blessing to attempts to assassinate Hitler.

His strategy can be criticized, definitely.  But it should be recognized as a strategy, not as an endorsement of the Nazis as some have slandered (IMO) him with.  What would have happened if he had been more confrontational with the Nazis?  Hard to say, historical what-ifs are impossible to know for sure (except that we know Edith Keeler must die! that's a star trek refernce lol).  But I think it's valid to say it would have been a show of moral courage if he had done so, and it's valid to think he should have.

Anyway, I will look forward to what more evidence arises from the archives when the study resumes.  I'm sure there will be some positive and some negative aspects of what emerges, I just hope the sensationalism is avoided (though I know it won't be lol)

[Guest]

21 minutes ago, Aloysius said:

I will look forward to what more evidence arises from the archives when the study resumes.

I read that there is 3 years worth of information to look through. Is that true or exaggerated?

[Aloysius]

I wouldn't be surprised.  The archive would include all documents and all correspondences during the entirety of his papacy, and the amount that they'd want to sift through would be relating to the second world war which is also going to be a massive amount of time.

Imagine how many documents there must be in John Paul II's archive.  Scholars in 2075 will have their work cut out for them!  (general practice is to release them 70 years after the death of a pope)

[tinytherese]

St. Gregory's University shut down years ago, so I knew this was a long shot. I asked around and was told that the first year after the school was shut down they offered to give seniors their seminar papers. After that they got rid of them. I didn't know this, so all I can present is my rough draft which is slightly longer than my final draft. I apologize if it doesn't shot up very well on here. 

 

Pope Pius XII and the Holocaust

Introduction

         Pope Pius XII is regarded in history as a coward for not speaking out against the Holocaust. Historian John Cornwell refers to him as “Hitler’s Pope,” claiming that Pius and the Catholic Church were “responsible for the Holocaust.”[1] The pope would have certainly had great influence in the world, so by remaining silent he had the blood of six million Jews on his hands. Is this an accurate portrayal of the man? What do the facts sayabout how he handled World War II? Did he handle the situation like a true Catholic? The actions of Pope Pius XII regarding the Jews during the time of the Third Reich serve as examples of Christian virtue because he spoke out against their discrimination, aided refugees, saved as many Jewish lives as possible through hiding them, encouraged others to help the Jews, secretly intervened on behalf of the Jews, and assisted Jewish leaders displaying the cardinal virtues of justice, prudence, and fortitude.

1 The Virtue of Justice

       A virtue is a firm habit to do what is good.[2] Three of the four cardinal virtues are seen in the life of Pope

Pius XII: justice, prudence, and fortitude. (The fourth cardinal virtue is temperance.)[3] Justice is giving what is

due to both God and neighbor.[4] The focus of this research is justice towards our neighbors the Jews. One

who is just respects the rights of others and promotes the common good.[5] Discriminating because of

another’s race, ancestry, religion, culture, social condition, and or sex is contrary to the Gospel.[6] Jews were

unjustly treated. They faced immense discrimination through the Third Reich’s actions because of their

ancestry, which eventually led to the death of millions of Jewish people in the concentration camps.

Deliberately taking the life of an innocent human being is a serious sin, goes against their human dignity, and

is contrary to the ways of the Lord.[7] Taking the lives of innocent human beings falls under the fifth

commandment “You shall not kill” (Ex 20:13; Deut 5:17; Ex 23:7).[8] The Third Reich’s murder of Jews

therefore was a horrendous act which could not be tolerated.

2 Speaking Out Against Injustice

       Prior to his papacy, Pius was Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli who served as papal nuncio to Germany.[9] A

papal nuncio watches over the life of the Church in the country assigned and advises the pope.[10] During this

period of Pacelli’s life, he made forty-four public speeches in Germany between 1917 and 1929.[11] At least

forty of them attacked Hitler’s doctrines and National Socialism (Nazism.)[12] Also, he “helped prepare a

decree condemning anti-Semitism,” put out on March 25, 1928.

       “The year after Pacelli became secretary of state in 1930, Vatican Radio was established, 

essentially under his control…making such controversial broadcasts as the request that listeners 

pray for the persecuted Jews in Germany after the 1935 Nuremberg Legislation.”[13] “In March 

1935, he wrote an open letter to the bishop of Cologne calling the Nazis ‘false prophets with the 

pride of Lucifer (the devil.)’ ”[14] That year he also berated systems that were “ ‘possessed by the superstition

of race and blood’ ” to an enormous crowd of pilgrims at Lourdes. At Notre Dame in Paris two years later, he

named Germany ‘that noble and powerful nation whom bad shepherds would lead astray into an ideology of

race.’ ”[15] Clearly, even before becoming pope it was well known that Pius did not support the Nazi party.

3 The Church’s Stance on Anti-Semitism

       In 1934 the Holy Office placed Nazi Balt Alfred Rosenberg’s book The Myth of the Twentieth Century,

which described the superiority of Aryans over the Jews, on the Index of Forbidden Books.[16] Once the 1938

code against Jews in social and public life was presented in Italy, the Vatican newspaper Osservatore Romano

condemned it and Pope Pius XI wrote against it.[17] That September, the Pope brought many Belgian pilgrims

to tears with his public speech on how Christians are to regard Jews as dear to our hearts.[18]

       Under Pope Pius XI, Pacelli helped draft the 1937 encyclical, Mit Brennender Sorge which is Latin for

“With Burning Anxiety,” which spoke out against the Third Reich’s abuses such as persecuting Catholic

schools, coercing youth to join the Third Reich, and mistreating the Jews.[19] The events of the Old

Testament, which mainly feature God’s chosen people the Jews, are described as telling the story of salvation

up until when Christ became man.[20] The encyclical “was smuggled in, printed and distributed to be read

from hundreds of pulpits before the police could intervene. It was dated Passion Sunday, 14 March.”[21]

Persecution against Jews, Catholics and Protestants increased after the encyclical.[22] Distributors and

printers of the encyclical were immediately arrested, and all copies were confiscated.[23] From this, we can

see not only how the Church fought against the anti-Semitism of the Nazis, but that the Nazis themselves tried

to hide the Church’s protest.

4 Reactions to Election of Pacelli

       Cardinal Pacelli was elected pope on March 2, 1939.[24] Italy and Germany made public their opposition

to his nomination.[25] After Pacelli’s election, Germany complained because it knew of his opposition to the

Third Reich and speculated that the cardinal “practically determined the policies of the Vatican under his

predecessor.”[26] Meanwhile, the Jewish community was elated with the choice of Pacelli. Jerusalem

newspaper Palestine Post commented that “Pius XII has clearly shown that he intends to carry on the late

Pope’s [Pius XI] work for freedom and peace…We remember that he must have had a large part to play in the

recent Papal opposition to pernicious race theories and certain aspects of totalitarianism.”[27] The Canadian

Jewish Congress, the Synagogue Council of America, the Polish Rabbinical Council, and the Anglo-Jewish

Community each sent messages of congratulations to the Vatican upon the election of the new pope.[28] The

editorial from the Canadian Jewish Chronicle commented on 10 March 1939 that “The plot to pilfer the Ring of

the Fisherman has gone up in white smoke.”[29] This implies that the Third Reich tried to prevent the election

of Pacelli.[30] Clearly, the Third Reich did not consider Pius to be an ally, but the Jews however considered

him to be theirs.

5 The Virtue of Prudence

       The virtue of prudence drives a person to discern what the good “in every circumstance and to choose the

right means of achieving it.”[31] It “guides the judgment of conscience. The prudent man determines and

directs his conduct in accordance with this judgment.”[32] One applies “moral principles to particular cases”

and rises above “doubts about the good to achieve and the evil to avoid.”[33] The serious situation with Hitler

and the Third Reich called for careful yet appropriate action, which demanded proper consideration. On June

2, 1943, Pius XII wrote to “the Sacred College of Cardinals that: ‘Every word that We addressed to the

responsible authorities and every one of Our public declarations had to be seriously weighed and considered

in the interest of the persecuted themselves in order not to make their situation unwittingly even more difficult

and unbearable.’ ”[34]

6 How He Came to His Decision

       During the September of 1939, the pope sent objection letters when the Third Reich began shutting down

Catholic parish organizations, societies, and schools.[35] Persecution of the Church escalated after his

protests: Catholic schools, both private and public were gradually suppressed; Catholic organizations were

dissolved; religious houses as well as other Church institutions were closed and confiscated; and Catholic

publishing houses and presses were suppressed.[36] “In Germany, where listening to Vatican Radio was a

capital offense, how could a papal appeal have effect? This was a country with a controlled press, where

priests were subject to Gestapo surveillance (almost 2,600 were imprisoned in the Dachau concentration

camp and 1,072 died there.)”[37]

       A great sense of fear was present in Germany during Hitler’s reign.[38] Priests had to be careful what they

said in sermons and even in confession.[39] There were cases when spies would pose as penitents

confessing involvement with the Nazi party to see what the priest would say.[40] Numerous German Catholic

prelates were put to death for criticizing the treatment of Jews by the Third Reich.[41] The Vatican was

informed by inmate Bishop Jean Bernard of Luxembourg that prisoners were treated even worse immediately

after protests were made.[42]

       Immediately following a protest against the Third Reich’s treatment of the Jews by Dutch bishops, the

regime increased its anti-Jewish actions in the Netherlands.[43] The very next week, those in the priesthood or

religious life with Jewish ancestry were deported to concentration camps.[44] Among these religious was a

convert to Catholicism from Judaism, St. Edith Stein.[45] 

       Many Jews approved of the decision of Pius to reject the option of a formal condemnation.[46] One

Jewish couple from Berlin, the Wolfssons, stated: “None of us wanted the Pope to take an open stand. We

were all fugitives, and fugitives do not wish to be pointed at. The Gestapo would have become more excited

and would have intensified its inquisitions.”[47] Had the pope openly protested, the number of Jews

massacred would have been far more.[48] Pius himself testified, “above all else comes the saving of human

lives.”[49]

       “Because of the strength of the German occupation forces, resistance could be crushed before it could

acquire strength of its own.”[50] Rebellions in concentration camps had little success.[51]

       Some hypothesize that a formal excommunication of Adolf Hitler would have been a serious enough

protest against the actions of his regime.[52] Only in a completely Catholic society that takes excommunication

seriously however, would this work.[53] Germany though, did not even have a Catholic majority.[54] Also, Hitler

was baptized Catholic, but left the Church years before coming to power.[55] Finally, Queen Elizabeth I of

Great Britain and Napoleon of France had been excommunicated as well, yet neither changed behavior.[56]

Excommunication therefore was not an option either. Pius himself said:

              After many tears and many prayers, I came to the conclusion that a protest from me would not only                  not help anyone, but would arouse the most ferocious anger against the Jews and multiply acts of                    cruelty because they are undefended. Perhaps my solemn protest would win me some praise from                    the civilized world, but would bring down on the poor Jews an even more implacable persecution                      than the one they are already enduring.[57]

       Knowing that he could neither issue a direct statement on Hitler and the Third Reich nor excommunicate

them, he strove to serve those that he could with what he had, thus displaying prudence.[58]

7 The Virtue of Fortitude

        Fortitude is the virtue that helps a person to persevere during times of difficulties.[59] One becomes

willing to give up one’s life for a just cause.[60]

       During the Nazi occupation of Rome during September of 1943, a rumor surged that Hitler wished to

kidnap the pope.[61] Despite the rumor, Pius divulged to “Italian Ambassador Dino Alfieri that he had no fear of

being sent to a concentration camp.”[62] Even one of the pope’s most candid critics, Carlo Falconi, disagrees

that Pius felt threatened.[63] He states, “It would probably have been his finest hour if he could have provoked

his own captivity by denouncing Nazi atrocities.”[64] The occupation merely lasted nine months without a

kidnapping.[65]

8 Summi Pontificatus

       During the first year of his pontificate, Pope Pius XII published his first encyclical Summi Pontificatus: On

the Unity of Human Society.[66]

       The first of these pernicious errors, widespread today, is the forgetfulness of that law of human solidarity

and charity which is dictated and imposed by our common origin and by the equality of rational nature in all

men, to whatever people they belong, and by the redeeming Sacrifice offered by Jesus Christ on the Altar of

the Cross to His Heavenly Father on behalf of sinful mankind.[67]

       The statement is an indirect criticism of the Third Reich’s treating the Jewish people as inferior instead of

equals. The supreme pontiff proceeds to describe how in Genesis 1:26, 27 that all men are created in the

image and likeness of God.[68] Therefore, every human being is to be treated with dignity.[69] Next, the pope

refers to all men as “brothers in one great family,” the family of God that is, by once again referring to Sacred

Scripture.[70] He points to Acts 17:26, 27 to illustrate that God created mankind to dwell together on earth to

seek Him.

       The human race is united because we all have God as our origin (Eph 4:6) and intended destination and

are composed of both body and soul.[71] Pius continues:

              And the nations, despite a difference of development due to diverse conditions of life and of culture,                  are not destined to break the unity of the human race, but rather to enrich and embellish it by the                      sharing of their own peculiar gifts and by that reciprocal interchange of goods which can be possible                  and efficacious only when a mutual love and a lively sense of charity unite all the sons of the same                    Father and all those redeemed by the same Divine Blood.[72]

       Diversity in the human race is enriching and complimentary. All people have “equal rights as children in

the House of the Lord, where the law of Christ and the peace of Christ prevail.”[73] The Apostles appointed by

Christ represent the different races of the world because they dispersed the Gospel throughout the world.[74]

Finally, when describing those who follow the Gospel, Pius quotes from Scripture that, “there is neither Gentile

nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, barbarian nor Scythian, bond nor free. But Christ is all and in all”

(Colossians 3:11).[75] No one in the Church is to be regarded as greater or lesser because of one’s origin.

       On October 27, 1939, New York’s Jewish Telegraphic Agency noted the pope’s condemnation of racism in

the encyclical and commentated that few people anticipated it to be so outspoken.[76] On November 9, 1939,

the American Israelite editorial in Cincinnati praised how the Pope’s encyclical stressed “the inviolability of the

human person as a sacred being.”[77]

9 The Internal Order of States and People

       In 1942, Pope Pius published his Christmas Message, The Internal Order of States and People. Just as in

Summi Pontificatus, Pius speaks of unity in society and claims that differences found are enriching.[78] The

state is to use “its power to the service of human society, to the full recognition of the respect due to the

human person.”[79] The pope protests the treatment of “the hundreds of thousands of persons who, without

any fault on their part, sometimes only because of their nationality or race, have been consigned to death or to

a slow decline.”[80] This “was widely understood to be a public condemnation of the Nazi extermination of the

Jews.”[81] An internal analysis from the Nazis commented, “His speech is one long attack on everything we

stand for...He is clearly speaking on behalf of the Jews...He is virtually accusing the German people of

injustice toward the Jews, and makes himself the mouthpiece of the Jewish war criminals.” [82]

10 Aided Refugees

       Both prior to and during his pontificate, Pius aided refugees who were travelers in search of safe places to

live, many of whom were Jews and other runaways.[83] In 1936, while Vatican secretary of state, German

bishops appealed to Pacelli “to ask the Vatican to found an International Emigrant Organization; Pius XI had

agreed, and the Cardinal himself had written to all the American bishops asking for their support.”[84] Before

Italy entered the war, masses of Jews departed to Italy from Poland, Hungary, Austria, Yugoslavia, Germany,

and other Balkan lands.[85] “Assistance for needy individuals and countries was organized by the Pontificia

Commisione Assistenza (PCA), which since 1952 has operated under the name Pontificia Opera di Assistenza

(POA). Aid was extended without discrimination to all suffering persons during the war: prisoners of war,

deportees, internees, refugees, the hungry and homeless, the politically and racially persecuted.”[86]

       Pius appointed Father Anton Weber to direct the projects, yet he himself was actively involved.[87]

“Passports, visas, medical certificates—valid and otherwise—had to be procured; the papal Ministry of State

made innumerable requests of foreign governments for exit and entry papers.”[88] The operation was fairly

successful.[89] 52,000 people were able to return home.[90] “The pontifical information service received

9,891, 497 inquiries about missing persons and in turn sent 11,293, 511 inquiries of its own.”[91] The tale of

false documents supplied by the Church to the Jews throughout “Europe and the Near East is not yet fully

known; nor, if it were, could it be told, for there are countless numbers of Jews whose peaceful enjoyment of

their new citizenship today still depends on the apparent validity of these papers.”[92] Pope Pius oversaw the

distribution of donations delivered from individuals and groups such as the Catholic Refugee Committee of the

United States.[93]

11 Hid Jews

       The pope delivered by hand instructions to the bishops to temporarily remove the enclosure rule from

monasteries and convents, so as to provide hideouts for the Jews.[94] “Thousands of Jews—the figures run

from 4000 to 7000—were hidden, fed, clothed, and bedded in the 180 known places of refuge in Vatican City,

churches and basilicas, Church administrative buildings, and parish houses. Unknown numbers of Jews were

sheltered in Castel Gandolfo, the site of the Pope’s summer residence, private homes, hospitals, and nursing

institutions.”[95] Monasteries and convents were very strict, so religious communities “would never have

ignored their rules unless they had received proper authorization.”[96] Even relatives and friends when visiting

were always restricted to a certain area for visitors outside of the cloister.[97] “In Rome, some convent

buildings were designated ‘Zona Extraterritoriale Vaticana’ and were protected by Vatican guards. Convents

that did not have this protection had to be extremely careful and sometimes served only as temporary lodgings

until a more permanent place could be found.”[98]

       The Vatican invited and employed many Jewish citizens who had been expelled from scientific, teaching,

and government positions.[99] Jews and other refugees served as Swiss Guards in Vatican City.[100] To

accommodate the dietary practice of the Jewish people sheltered, the Holy Father sent those designated “to

perform the ritual slaughter and store food for the Jews sheltered there.”[101]

12 Gave Instructions to Help the Jews

       Pius circulated a secret letter to Europe’s Catholic bishops called Opere et caritate, which is Latin for “By

Work and Love.”[102] The letter “ordered that all people suffering from racial discrimination at the hands of the

Nazis be given adequate help.”[103] The pope elsewhere encouraged “Catholics to cleave to the humane

principles of their religion,” and sent messages to bishops to do everything in their power to help those

victimized by the Third Reich.[104] Both of these directions were indirect commands to aid the Jews as well as

others who were under persecution by the Nazis.

       When accepting Israel’s Holocaust Memorial for hiding Italian Jews, Cardinal Pietro Palazzini claimed that

“the merit is entirely Pius XII’s, who ordered us to do whatever we could to save the Jews from

persecution.”[105] Some Catholic laity who also hid Jews persistently cited Pius as their inspiration.[106]

13 Interventions

       In 1942, when Jews were deported from the French-occupied zone to parts of Russia and Silesia, French

bishops attacked this practice in pastoral letters.[107] “Pius sent his nuncio to protest to the Vichy government

against ‘the inhuman arrests and deportations of Jews.’ ” [108] The pastoral letters from the French bishops

were commented on Vatican Radio “six days in a row—at a time when listening to Vatican Radio was a crime

in Germany and Poland for which some were put to death.”[109] The Vatican Radio also told the people of

France in late June of 1943, “He who makes a distinction between Jews and other men is unfaithful to God

and is in conflict with God’s commands.”[110] The New York Times’ headline August 6 of that summer read

“Pope Is Said to Plead for Jews Listed for Removal from France” and three weeks later the Times reported

“Vichy Seizes Jews; Pope Pius Ignored.”[111] In the fall, the Third Reich “distributed ten million copies of a

pamphlet naming Pius XII as the ‘pro-Jewish pope’ ” and explicitly cited the interventions of Pius in

France.”[112]

       “From June 9th to July 9th, 1944, more than 437,000 Hungarian Jews were deported to Auschwitz.”[113]

On the 25th of June, the pope wired Regent Admiral Miklos Horthy, requesting that he use his power “to save

many unfortunate people from further pain and sorrow,” who suffered “on account of their national or racial

origin.”[114]  Almost immediately, Horthy ended deportations.[115] The Nazis imprisoned the regent on

October 15th.[116] 

       “Some maintain that the Holy See looked on in silence while Roman Jews were deported on October 16,

1943,” however this is false.[117] Once the pope discovered what was happening, “he immediately had

German Ambassador von Weizsäcker called and ordered State Secretary Luigi Maglione” to passionately

object, requesting that actions similar to this to end.[118] The pope threatened to denounce these actions

publicly.[119] Pius sent a letter protesting the deportations “through Bishop Alois Hudal to the military

commander in Rome, General Rainer Stahel, requesting that the persecution of Jews cease

immediately.”[120] Because of these protests the deportations and arrests were interrupted at precisely 2 P.M.

that very day.[121] “Instead of the 8,000 Jews Hitler requested, 1,259 were arrested.”[122] The proceeding

day, 259 Jews were released.[123] “Those who were arrested were betrayed by collaborators.”[124] Clearly,

Pope Pius XII’s interventions helped save thousands of Jews.

14 Assisted Jewish Leaders

       Jewish leaders from around the world requested the pope’s help.[125]  Two examples of are Chief Rabbi

Isaac Herzog of Jerusalem and Rabbi Safran of Romania.[126] Pius recommended to Rabbi Herzog

Archbishop Angelo Roncalli—the apostolic delegate in Istanbul to assist Rabbi Herzog’s Jewish Aid Fund in

rescuing Balkan Jews.[127] This operation with the future Pope John XXIII was a success.[128] To help Rabbi

Safran, the Holy Father sent Archbishop Cassulo, the papal nuncio of Romania, to improve conditions in the

Romanian concentration camps.[129] Cassulo accomplished this by distributing donations from Pius and

interceding before a government official.[130] Rabbi Safran notified the Vatican the significant advancement of

concentration camps conditions.[131]  Why would Jewish leaders from around the world come to the pope if

they did not expect him to help them? They must have been aware of his opposition to the Nazi treatment of

the Jews.

15 Historical Bias

       A great deal of historical distortion and bias is displayed towards Pope Pius XII.[132] Works such as

Hitler’s Pope by John Cornwell and Under His Very Windows by Susan Zuccotti defame his name.[133] Any

historian who claims otherwise is looked down upon both by readers and in academia.[134] Instead of seeing

truth as objective, many people see it as simply being what people want to be true.[135] Historians must judge

the people of history inside of their historical context instead of their own.[136] Catholics frustrated with Church

teaching and those outside the Church are known to bring their own issues with the Church when evaluating

Catholics in history.[137] Meanwhile there are those on the opposite extreme who are defensive about anyone

questioning the actions of another Catholic who white-wash history.[138] In the end, it should not surprise us

that there have been corrupt Catholics and still are today, however we must not assume the worst in Catholic

figures.[139] Instead, we must evaluate them as they are.[140]

16 Solutions to Historical Bias

       When people act in derogatory or offensive ways, it is often because they have good intentions, but go

about them the wrong way.[141] This is why historians who have issues with the Church are often biased in

their research. We as Catholics can charitably dialogue with those who struggle with certain aspects of The

Church. We can listen to their complaints, provide information for them on topics of conflict, and pray for them.

Conclusion

       Contrary to popular belief, Pope Pius XII certainly provided a great deal of help to the Jews during World

War II. Unquestionably, “no one can claim that enough was done. To claim, however that nothing was done by

the Pope and the Church—or that the failure to do more was the result of indifference, cynicism, or cowardice

—is grave historical falsification.”[142] One can easily second-guess what could have or should have been

done after the events have unfolded, however such knowledge may not have been available at the time.[143]

Something significant to note, is that everyone who condemns him never took part in the war themselves, so

they do not have a completely accurate picture of the historical context.[144] Pius handled the situation like a

true Catholic. The actions of Pope Pius XII regarding the Jews during the time of the Third Reich serve as

examples of Christian virtue because he spoke out against their discrimination and saved as many Jewish

lives as possible through hiding them, secretly intervening on their behalf, and encouraged others to do so as

well, displaying the cardinal virtues of justice, prudence, and fortitude.

 

[1] Margherita Marchione, Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII. (Mahwah, NJ. Paulist Press, 2002), 109.

[2] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed., 1803.

[3] Ibid., 1805.

[4] Ibid., 1807.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Catholic Church. “Gaudium et Spes: Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World.” Promulgated by Pope Paul VI. (Vatican, December 7, 1965), http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651207_gaudium-et-spes_en.html (accessed July 26, 2012). 29.

 

[7] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed., 2261.

[8] Ibid.

[9] New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2003 ed. s.v. “Pius XII, Pope.” 396.

[10] Robert A. Graham, Introduction to Papal Diplomacy in the Modern Age, (Westport, Connecticut: Praeger Publishers, 1994), 6.

 

[11] Margherita Marchione, Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII. (Mahwah, NJ. Paulist Press, 2002), 41.

[12] Ibid.

[13] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[14] Ibid., Parentheses added.

[15] Ibid.

[16] Sir Alec Randall, The Pope, the Jews, and the Nazis (London: Catholic Truth Society, 1963), 12.

[17] Ibid., 7.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Ibid., 10-11.

 

[20] Pope Pius XI, “Mit Brennender Sorge: On the Church and the German Reich” (encyclical, Vatican, March 14, 1937), http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xi/encyclicals/Documents/hf_p-xi_enc_14031937_mit-brennender-sorge_en.html (accessed May 24, 2012). 15, 17.

[21] Sir Alec Randall, The Pope, the Jews, and the Nazis (London: Catholic Truth Society, 1963), 10.

[22] Ibid., 11.

[23] Ibid.

[24] New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2003 ed. s.v. “Pius XII, Pope.” 396.

[25] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 107.

 

[26] Ibid.

[27] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 47.

[28] Ibid.

[29] Ibid.

[30] Ibid.

[31] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed., 1806.

[32] Ibid.

[33] Ibid.

[34] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 96.

[35] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 12-13.

[36] Ibid., 13-14.

[37] Margherita Marchione. Yours Is a Precious Witness: Memoirs of Jews and Catholics in Wartime Italy (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997), 178.

[38] Larry McNeil, interview by author, telephone interview, 29 July 2012.

[39] Ibid.

[40] Ibid.

[41] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 119.

[42] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[43] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 98.

[44] Ibid.

[45] Ibid., 114.

[46] Ibid., 98.

[47] Ibid., 99.

[48] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[49] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 100.

[50] Martin Gilbert. Never Again: a History of the Holocaust. (New York, NY: Universe, 2000), 94.

[51] Ibid., 126-127.

[52] José M. Sánchez. Pius XII and the Holocaust: Understanding the Controversy. (Washington, D.C. Catholic University of America Press, 2002), 40.

 

[53] Ibid.

[54] Ibid.

[55] Ibid.

[56] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

 

[57] José M. Sánchez. Pius XII and the Holocaust: Understanding the Controversy. (Washington, D.C. Catholic University of America Press, 2002), 116.

[58] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[59] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed., 1808.

[60] Ibid.

[61] José M. Sánchez. Pius XII and the Holocaust: Understanding the Controversy. (Washington, D.C. Catholic University of America Press, 2002), 77.

[62] Ibid., 77 and 78.

[63] Ibid., 78.

[64] Ibid.

[65] Ibid., 77.

[66] Pope Pius XII, “Summi Pontificatus: On the Unity of Human Society” (encyclical, Castel Gandolfo, Italy, 1939), http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xii/encyclicals/documents/hf_pxii_enc_20101939_

summipontificatus _en. html(accessed May 24, 2012).

 

[67] Ibid., 35.

[68] Ibid., 36.

[69] Ibid.

[70] Ibid., 37.

[71] Ibid., 38.

[72] Ibid., 43.

[73] Ibid., 47.

[74] Ibid., 48.

[75] Ibid.

[76] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 48.

[77] Ibid.

[78] Pope Pius XII, “The Internal Order of States and People” (Christmas Message, Vatican, December 25, 1942), http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Pius12/P12CH42.HTM (accessed May 24, 2012).

 

[79] Ibid., 5.

[80] Ibid.

[81] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[82] Ibid.

[83] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 123.

[84] Ibid.

[85] Ibid.

[86] New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2003 ed. s.v. “Pius XII, Pope.” 398.

[87] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 122.

[88] Ibid., 123.

[89] Ibid.

[90] Ibid., 123-124.

[91] New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2003 ed. s.v. “Pius XII, Pope.” 398.

[92] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 124.

[93] Ibid., 120.

[94] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 58.

[95] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 126.

[96] Margherita Marchione. Yours Is a Precious Witness: Memoirs of Jews and Catholics in Wartime Italy (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997), 140.

[97] Ibid.

[98] Ibid.

[99] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 121.

[100] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 24.

[101] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 121.

[102] Ibid., 103.

[103] Ibid.

[104] Ibid., 114.

[105] Ibid.

[106] Ibid.

[107] Ibid.

[108] Ibid.

[109] Ibid.

[110] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 114-115.

[111] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[112] Ibid.

[113] Margherita Marchione. Yours Is a Precious Witness: Memoirs of Jews and Catholics in Wartime Italy (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997), 147.

[114] Ibid., 55 and 147.

[115] Ibid., 55.

[116] Ibid.

[117] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 63.

[118] Ibid.

[119] Ibid.

[120] Ibid.

[121] Ibid.

[122] Ibid.

[123] Ibid., 64.

[124] Ibid.

[125] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 127.

[126] Ibid., 127 and 128.

[127] Ibid., 127-128.

[128] Ibid., 128.

[129] Ibid.

[130] Ibid.., 110-111.

[131] Ibid., 111.

[132] Ibid.

 

[133] Ibid.

 

[134] Larry McNeil, interview by author, telephone interview, 29 July 2012.

 

[135] Ibid.

[136] Ibid.

[137] Ibid.

[138] Ibid.

[139] Ibid.

[140] Ibid.

[141] Gregory K. Popcak. God Help Me! These People Are Driving Me Nuts: Making Peace with Difficult People. (Chicago. Loyola Press, 2001), 40.

 

[142] Margherita Marchione. Yours Is a Precious Witness: Memoirs of Jews and Catholics in Wartime Italy (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997), 181.

 

[143]José M. Sánchez. Pius XII and the Holocaust: Understanding the Controversy. (Washington, D.C. Catholic University of America Press, 2002), 178.

[144] Larry McNeil, interview by author, telephone interview, 29 July 2012.

 

Edited May 15, 2020 by tinytherese

[tinytherese]

Let's try this again. I tried to fix the changes earlier, but since I took longer than what the phorum allows I couldn't get through. Hopefully you can read this version better.

 

Pope Pius XII and the Holocaust

Introduction

         Pope Pius XII is regarded in history as a coward for not speaking out against the Holocaust. Historian John Cornwell refers to him as “Hitler’s Pope,” claiming that Pius and the Catholic Church were “responsible for the Holocaust.”[1] The pope would have certainly had great influence in the world, so by remaining silent he had the blood of six million Jews on his hands. Is this an accurate portrayal of the man? What do the facts sayabout how he handled World War II? Did he handle the situation like a true Catholic? The actions of Pope Pius XII regarding the Jews during the time of the Third Reich serve as examples of Christian virtue because he spoke out against their discrimination, aided refugees, saved as many Jewish lives as possible through hiding them, encouraged others to help the Jews, secretly intervened on behalf of the Jews, and assisted Jewish leaders displaying the cardinal virtues of justice, prudence, and fortitude.

1 The Virtue of Justice

       A virtue is a firm habit to do what is good.[2] Three of the four cardinal virtues are seen in the life of Pope Pius XII: justice, prudence, and fortitude. (The fourth cardinal virtue is temperance.)[3] Justice is giving what is due to both God and neighbor.[4] The focus of this research is justice towards our neighbors the Jews. One who is just respects the rights of others and promotes the common good.[5] Discriminating because of another’s race, ancestry, religion, culture, social condition, and or sex is contrary to the Gospel.[6] Jews were unjustly treated. They faced immense discrimination through the Third Reich’s actions because of their ancestry, which eventually led to the death of millions of Jewish people in the concentration camps.

       Deliberately taking the life of an innocent human being is a serious sin, goes against their human dignity, and is contrary to the ways of the Lord.[7] Taking the lives of innocent human beings falls under the fifth commandment “You shall not kill” (Ex 20:13; Deut 5:17; Ex 23:7).[8] The Third Reich’s murder of Jews therefore was a horrendous act which could not be tolerated.

2 Speaking Out Against Injustice

       Prior to his papacy, Pius was Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli who served as papal nuncio to Germany.[9] A papal nuncio watches over the life of the Church in the country assigned and advises the pope.[10] During this period of Pacelli’s life, he made forty-four public speeches in Germany between 1917 and 1929.[11] At least forty of them attacked Hitler’s doctrines and National Socialism (Nazism.)[12] Also, he “helped prepare a decree condemning anti-Semitism,” put out on March 25, 1928.

       “The year after Pacelli became secretary of state in 1930, Vatican Radio was established, essentially under his control…making such controversial broadcasts as the request that listeners pray for the persecuted Jews in Germany after the 1935 Nuremberg Legislation.”[13] “In March 1935, he wrote an open letter to the bishop of Cologne calling the Nazis ‘false prophets with the pride of Lucifer (the devil.)’ ”[14] That year he also berated systems that were “ ‘possessed by the superstition of race and blood’ ” to an enormous crowd of pilgrims at Lourdes. At Notre Dame in Paris two years later, he named Germany ‘that noble and powerful nation whom bad shepherds would lead astray into an ideology of race.’ ”[15] Clearly, even before becoming pope it was well known that Pius did not support the Nazi party.

3 The Church’s Stance on Anti-Semitism

       In 1934 the Holy Office placed Nazi Balt Alfred Rosenberg’s book The Myth of the Twentieth Century, which described the superiority of Aryans over the Jews, on the Index of Forbidden Books.[16] Once the 1938 code against Jews in social and public life was presented in Italy, the Vatican newspaper Osservatore Romano condemned it and Pope Pius XI wrote against it.[17] That September, the Pope brought many Belgian pilgrims to tears with his public speech on how Christians are to regard Jews as dear to our hearts.[18]

       Under Pope Pius XI, Pacelli helped draft the 1937 encyclical, Mit Brennender Sorge which is Latin for “With Burning Anxiety,” which spoke out against the Third Reich’s abuses such as persecuting Catholic schools, coercing youth to join the Third Reich, and mistreating the Jews.[19] The events of the Old Testament, which mainly feature God’s chosen people the Jews, are described as telling the story of salvation up until when Christ became man.[20] The encyclical “was smuggled in, printed and distributed to be read from hundreds of pulpits before the police could intervene. It was dated Passion Sunday, 14 March.”[21] Persecution against Jews, Catholics and Protestants increased after the encyclical.[22] Distributors and printers of the encyclical were immediately arrested, and all copies were confiscated.[23] From this, we can see not only how the Church fought against the anti-Semitism of the Nazis, but that the Nazis themselves tried to hide the Church’s protest.

4 Reactions to Election of Pacelli

       Cardinal Pacelli was elected pope on March 2, 1939.[24] Italy and Germany made public their opposition to his nomination.[25] After Pacelli’s election, Germany complained because it knew of his opposition to the Third Reich and speculated that the cardinal “practically determined the policies of the Vatican under his predecessor.”[26] Meanwhile, the Jewish community was elated with the choice of Pacelli. Jerusalem newspaper Palestine Post commented that “Pius XII has clearly shown that he intends to carry on the late Pope’s [Pius XI] work for freedom and peace…We remember that he must have had a large part to play in the recent Papal opposition to pernicious race theories and certain aspects of totalitarianism.”[27] The Canadian Jewish Congress, the Synagogue Council of America, the Polish Rabbinical Council, and the Anglo-Jewish Community each sent messages of congratulations to the Vatican upon the election of the new pope.[28] The editorial from the Canadian Jewish Chronicle commented on 10 March 1939 that “The plot to pilfer the Ring of the Fisherman has gone up in white smoke.”[29] This implies that the Third Reich tried to prevent the election of Pacelli.[30] Clearly, the Third Reich did not consider Pius to be an ally, but the Jews however considered him to be theirs.

5 The Virtue of Prudence

       The virtue of prudence drives a person to discern what the good “in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it.”[31] It “guides the judgment of conscience. The prudent man determines and directs his conduct in accordance with this judgment.”[32] One applies “moral principles to particular cases” and rises above “doubts about the good to achieve and the evil to avoid.”[33] The serious situation with Hitler and the Third Reich called for careful yet appropriate action, which demanded proper consideration. On June 2, 1943, Pius XII wrote to “the Sacred College of Cardinals that: ‘Every word that We addressed to the responsible authorities and every one of Our public declarations had to be seriously weighed and considered in the interest of the persecuted themselves in order not to make their situation unwittingly even more difficult and unbearable.’ ”[34]

6 How He Came to His Decision

       During the September of 1939, the pope sent objection letters when the Third Reich began shutting down Catholic parish organizations, societies, and schools.[35] Persecution of the Church escalated after his protests: Catholic schools, both private and public were gradually suppressed; Catholic organizations were dissolved; religious houses as well as other Church institutions were closed and confiscated; and Catholic publishing houses and presses were suppressed.[36] “In Germany, where listening to Vatican Radio was a capital offense, how could a papal appeal have effect? This was a country with a controlled press, where priests were subject to Gestapo surveillance (almost 2,600 were imprisoned in the Dachau concentration camp and 1,072 died there.)”[37]

       A great sense of fear was present in Germany during Hitler’s reign.[38] Priests had to be careful what they said in sermons and even in confession.[39] There were cases when spies would pose as penitents confessing involvement with the Nazi party to see what the priest would say.[40] Numerous German Catholic prelates were put to death for criticizing the treatment of Jews by the Third Reich.[41] The Vatican was informed by inmate Bishop Jean Bernard of Luxembourg that prisoners were treated even worse immediately after protests were made.[42]

       Immediately following a protest against the Third Reich’s treatment of the Jews by Dutch bishops, the regime increased its anti-Jewish actions in the Netherlands.[43] The very next week, those in the priesthood or religious life with Jewish ancestry were deported to concentration camps.[44] Among these religious was a convert to Catholicism from Judaism, St. Edith Stein.[45] 

       Many Jews approved of the decision of Pius to reject the option of a formal condemnation.[46] One Jewish couple from Berlin, the Wolfssons, stated: “None of us wanted the Pope to take an open stand. We were all fugitives, and fugitives do not wish to be pointed at. The Gestapo would have become more excited and would have intensified its inquisitions.”[47] Had the pope openly protested, the number of Jews massacred would have been far more.[48] Pius himself testified, “above all else comes the saving of human lives.”[49]

       “Because of the strength of the German occupation forces, resistance could be crushed before it could acquire strength of its own.”[50] Rebellions in concentration camps had little success.[51]

       Some hypothesize that a formal excommunication of Adolf Hitler would have been a serious enough protest against the actions of his regime.[52] Only in a completely Catholic society that takes excommunication seriously however, would this work.[53] Germany though, did not even have a Catholic majority.[54] Also, Hitler was baptized Catholic, but left the Church years before coming to power.[55] Finally, Queen Elizabeth I of Great Britain and Napoleon of France had been excommunicated as well, yet neither changed behavior.[56] Excommunication therefore was not an option either. Pius himself said:

              After many tears and many prayers, I came to the conclusion that a protest from me would not only not help anyone, but would arouse the most ferocious anger against the Jews and multiply acts of cruelty because they are undefended. Perhaps my solemn protest would win me some praise from the civilized world, but would bring down on the poor Jews an even more implacable persecution than the one they are already enduring.[57]

       Knowing that he could neither issue a direct statement on Hitler and the Third Reich nor excommunicate them, he strove to serve those that he could with what he had, thus displaying prudence.[58]

7 The Virtue of Fortitude

        Fortitude is the virtue that helps a person to persevere during times of difficulties.[59] One becomes willing to give up one’s life for a just cause.[60]

       During the Nazi occupation of Rome during September of 1943, a rumor surged that Hitler wished to kidnap the pope.[61] Despite the rumor, Pius divulged to “Italian Ambassador Dino Alfieri that he had no fear of being sent to a concentration camp.”[62] Even one of the pope’s most candid critics, Carlo Falconi, disagrees that Pius felt threatened.[63] He states, “It would probably have been his finest hour if he could have provoked his own captivity by denouncing Nazi atrocities.”[64] The occupation merely lasted nine months without a kidnapping.[65]

8 Summi Pontificatus

       During the first year of his pontificate, Pope Pius XII published his first encyclical Summi Pontificatus: On the Unity of Human Society.[66]

       The first of these pernicious errors, widespread today, is the forgetfulness of that law of human solidarity and charity which is dictated and imposed by our common origin and by the equality of rational nature in all men, to whatever people they belong, and by the redeeming Sacrifice offered by Jesus Christ on the Altar of the Cross to His Heavenly Father on behalf of sinful mankind.[67]

       The statement is an indirect criticism of the Third Reich’s treating the Jewish people as inferior instead of equals. The supreme pontiff proceeds to describe how in Genesis 1:26, 27 that all men are created in the image and likeness of God.[68] Therefore, every human being is to be treated with dignity.[69] Next, the pope refers to all men as “brothers in one great family,” the family of God that is, by once again referring to Sacred Scripture.[70] He points to Acts 17:26, 27 to illustrate that God created mankind to dwell together on earth to seek Him.

       The human race is united because we all have God as our origin (Eph 4:6) and intended destination and are composed of both body and soul.[71] Pius continues:

              And the nations, despite a difference of development due to diverse conditions of life and of culture, are not destined to break the unity of the human race, but rather to enrich and embellish it by the sharing of their own peculiar gifts and by that reciprocal interchange of goods which can be possible and efficacious only when a mutual love and a lively sense of charity unite all the sons of the same Father and all those redeemed by the same Divine Blood.[72]

       Diversity in the human race is enriching and complimentary. All people have “equal rights as children in the House of the Lord, where the law of Christ and the peace of Christ prevail.”[73] The Apostles appointed by Christ represent the different races of the world because they dispersed the Gospel throughout the world.[74] Finally, when describing those who follow the Gospel, Pius quotes from Scripture that, “there is neither Gentilenor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, barbarian nor Scythian, bond nor free. But Christ is all and in all” (Colossians 3:11).[75] No one in the Church is to be regarded as greater or lesser because of one’s origin.

       On October 27, 1939, New York’s Jewish Telegraphic Agency noted the pope’s condemnation of racism in the encyclical and commentated that few people anticipated it to be so outspoken.[76] On November 9, 1939, the American Israelite editorial in Cincinnati praised how the Pope’s encyclical stressed “the inviolability of the human person as a sacred being.”[77]

9 The Internal Order of States and People

       In 1942, Pope Pius published his Christmas Message, The Internal Order of States and People. Just as in Summi Pontificatus, Pius speaks of unity in society and claims that differences found are enriching.[78] The state is to use “its power to the service of human society, to the full recognition of the respect due to the human person.”[79] The pope protests the treatment of “the hundreds of thousands of persons who, without any fault on their part, sometimes only because of their nationality or race, have been consigned to death or to a slow decline.”[80] This “was widely understood to be a public condemnation of the Nazi extermination of the Jews.”[81] An internal analysis from the Nazis commented, “His speech is one long attack on everything we stand for...He is clearly speaking on behalf of the Jews...He is virtually accusing the German people of injustice toward the Jews, and makes himself the mouthpiece of the Jewish war criminals.” [82]

10 Aided Refugees

       Both prior to and during his pontificate, Pius aided refugees who were travelers in search of safe places to live, many of whom were Jews and other runaways.[83] In 1936, while Vatican secretary of state, German bishops appealed to Pacelli “to ask the Vatican to found an International Emigrant Organization; Pius XI had agreed, and the Cardinal himself had written to all the American bishops asking for their support.”[84] Before Italy entered the war, masses of Jews departed to Italy from Poland, Hungary, Austria, Yugoslavia, Germany, and other Balkan lands.[85] “Assistance for needy individuals and countries was organized by the Pontificia Commisione Assistenza (PCA), which since 1952 has operated under the name Pontificia Opera di Assistenza (POA). Aid was extended without discrimination to all suffering persons during the war: prisoners of war, deportees, internees, refugees, the hungry and homeless, the politically and racially persecuted.”[86]

       Pius appointed Father Anton Weber to direct the projects, yet he himself was actively involved.[87] “Passports, visas, medical certificates—valid and otherwise—had to be procured; the papal Ministry of State made innumerable requests of foreign governments for exit and entry papers.”[88] The operation was fairly successful.[89] 52,000 people were able to return home.[90] “The pontifical information service received 9,891,497 inquiries about missing persons and in turn sent 11,293, 511 inquiries of its own.”[91] The tale of false documents supplied by the Church to the Jews throughout “Europe and the Near East is not yet fully known; nor, if it were, could it be told, for there are countless numbers of Jews whose peaceful enjoyment of their new citizenship today still depends on the apparent validity of these papers.”[92] Pope Pius oversaw the distribution of donations delivered from individuals and groups such as the Catholic Refugee Committee of the United States.[93]

11 Hid Jews

       The pope delivered by hand instructions to the bishops to temporarily remove the enclosure rule from monasteries and convents, so as to provide hideouts for the Jews.[94] “Thousands of Jews—the figures run from 4000 to 7000—were hidden, fed, clothed, and bedded in the 180 known places of refuge in Vatican City, churches and basilicas, Church administrative buildings, and parish houses. Unknown numbers of Jews were sheltered in Castel Gandolfo, the site of the Pope’s summer residence, private homes, hospitals, and nursing institutions.”[95] Monasteries and convents were very strict, so religious communities “would never have ignored their rules unless they had received proper authorization.”[96] Even relatives and friends when visiting were always restricted to a certain area for visitors outside of the cloister.[97] “In Rome, some convent buildings were designated ‘Zona Extraterritoriale Vaticana’ and were protected by Vatican guards. Convents that did not have this protection had to be extremely careful and sometimes served only as temporary lodgings until a more permanent place could be found.”[98]

       The Vatican invited and employed many Jewish citizens who had been expelled from scientific, teaching, and government positions.[99] Jews and other refugees served as Swiss Guards in Vatican City.[100] To accommodate the dietary practice of the Jewish people sheltered, the Holy Father sent those designated “to perform the ritual slaughter and store food for the Jews sheltered there.”[101]

12 Gave Instructions to Help the Jews

       Pius circulated a secret letter to Europe’s Catholic bishops called Opere et caritate, which is Latin for “By Work and Love.”[102] The letter “ordered that all people suffering from racial discrimination at the hands of the Nazis be given adequate help.”[103] The pope elsewhere encouraged “Catholics to cleave to the humane principles of their religion,” and sent messages to bishops to do everything in their power to help those victimized by the Third Reich.[104] Both of these directions were indirect commands to aid the Jews as well as others who were under persecution by the Nazis.

       When accepting Israel’s Holocaust Memorial for hiding Italian Jews, Cardinal Pietro Palazzini claimed that “the merit is entirely Pius XII’s, who ordered us to do whatever we could to save the Jews from persecution.”[105] Some Catholic laity who also hid Jews persistently cited Pius as their inspiration.[106]

13 Interventions

       In 1942, when Jews were deported from the French-occupied zone to parts of Russia and Silesia, French bishops attacked this practice in pastoral letters.[107] “Pius sent his nuncio to protest to the Vichy government against ‘the inhuman arrests and deportations of Jews.’ ” [108] The pastoral letters from the French bishops were commented on Vatican Radio “six days in a row—at a time when listening to Vatican Radio was a crime in Germany and Poland for which some were put to death.”[109] The Vatican Radio also told the people of France in late June of 1943, “He who makes a distinction between Jews and other men is unfaithful to God and is in conflict with God’s commands.”[110] The New York Times’ headline August 6 of that summer read “Pope Is Said to Plead for Jews Listed for Removal from France” and three weeks later the Times reported “Vichy Seizes Jews; Pope Pius Ignored.”[111] In the fall, the Third Reich “distributed ten million copies of a pamphlet naming Pius XII as the ‘pro-Jewish pope’ ” and explicitly cited the interventions of Pius in

France.”[112]

       “From June 9th to July 9th, 1944, more than 437,000 Hungarian Jews were deported to Auschwitz.”[113] On the 25th of June, the pope wired Regent Admiral Miklos Horthy, requesting that he use his power “to save many unfortunate people from further pain and sorrow,” who suffered “on account of their national or racial origin.”[114] Almost immediately, Horthy ended deportations.[115] The Nazis imprisoned the regent on October 15th.[116] 

       “Some maintain that the Holy See looked on in silence while Roman Jews were deported on October 16,1943,” however this is false.[117] Once the pope discovered what was happening, “he immediately had German Ambassador von Weizsäcker called and ordered State Secretary Luigi Maglione” to passionately object, requesting that actions similar to this to end.[118] The pope threatened to denounce these actions publicly.[119] Pius sent a letter protesting the deportations “through Bishop Alois Hudal to the military commander in Rome, General Rainer Stahel, requesting that the persecution of Jews cease immediately.”[120] Because of these protests the deportations and arrests were interrupted at precisely 2 P.M. that very day.[121] “Instead of the 8,000 Jews Hitler requested, 1,259 were arrested.”[122] The proceeding day, 259 Jews were released.[123] “Those who were arrested were betrayed by collaborators.”[124] Clearly, Pope Pius XII’s interventions helped save thousands of Jews.

14 Assisted Jewish Leaders

       Jewish leaders from around the world requested the pope’s help.[125]  Two examples of are Chief Rabbi Isaac Herzog of Jerusalem and Rabbi Safran of Romania.[126] Pius recommended to Rabbi Herzog Archbishop Angelo Roncalli—the apostolic delegate in Istanbul to assist Rabbi Herzog’s Jewish Aid Fund in rescuing Balkan Jews.[127] This operation with the future Pope John XXIII was a success.[128] To help Rabbi Safran, the Holy Father sent Archbishop Cassulo, the papal nuncio of Romania, to improve conditions in the Romanian concentration camps.[129] Cassulo accomplished this by distributing donations from Pius and interceding before a government official.[130] Rabbi Safran notified the Vatican the significant advancement of concentration camps conditions.[131]  Why would Jewish leaders from around the world come to the pope if they did not expect him to help them? They must have been aware of his opposition to the Nazi treatment of the Jews.

15 Historical Bias

       A great deal of historical distortion and bias is displayed towards Pope Pius XII.[132] Works such as Hitler’s Pope by John Cornwell and Under His Very Windows by Susan Zuccotti defame his name.[133] Any historian who claims otherwise is looked down upon both by readers and in academia.[134] Instead of seeing truth as objective, many people see it as simply being what people want to be true.[135] Historians must judge the people of history inside of their historical context instead of their own.[136] Catholics frustrated with Church teaching and those outside the Church are known to bring their own issues with the Church when evaluating Catholics in history.[137] Meanwhile there are those on the opposite extreme who are defensive about anyone questioning the actions of another Catholic who white-wash history.[138] In the end, it should not surprise us that there have been corrupt Catholics and still are today, however we must not assume the worst in Catholic figures.[139] Instead, we must evaluate them as they are.[140]

16 Solutions to Historical Bias

       When people act in derogatory or offensive ways, it is often because they have good intentions, but go about them the wrong way.[141] This is why historians who have issues with the Church are often biased in their research. We as Catholics can charitably dialogue with those who struggle with certain aspects of The Church. We can listen to their complaints, provide information for them on topics of conflict, and pray for them.

Conclusion

       Contrary to popular belief, Pope Pius XII certainly provided a great deal of help to the Jews during World War II. Unquestionably, “no one can claim that enough was done. To claim, however that nothing was done by the Pope and the Church—or that the failure to do more was the result of indifference, cynicism, or cowardice—is grave historical falsification.”[142] One can easily second-guess what could have or should have been done after the events have unfolded, however such knowledge may not have been available at the time.[143] Something significant to note, is that everyone who condemns him never took part in the war themselves, so they do not have a completely accurate picture of the historical context.[144] Pius handled the situation like a true Catholic. The actions of Pope Pius XII regarding the Jews during the time of the Third Reich serve as examples of Christian virtue because he spoke out against their discrimination and saved as many Jewish lives as possible through hiding them, secretly intervening on their behalf, and encouraged others to do so as well, displaying the cardinal virtues of justice, prudence, and fortitude.

 

[1] Margherita Marchione, Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII. (Mahwah, NJ. Paulist Press, 2002), 109.

[2] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed., 1803.

[3] Ibid., 1805.

[4] Ibid., 1807.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Catholic Church. “Gaudium et Spes: Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World.” Promulgated by Pope Paul VI. (Vatican, December 7, 1965), http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651207_gaudium-et-spes_en.html (accessed July 26, 2012). 29.

 

[7] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed., 2261.

[8] Ibid.

[9] New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2003 ed. s.v. “Pius XII, Pope.” 396.

[10] Robert A. Graham, Introduction to Papal Diplomacy in the Modern Age, (Westport, Connecticut: Praeger Publishers, 1994), 6.

 

[11] Margherita Marchione, Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII. (Mahwah, NJ. Paulist Press, 2002), 41.

[12] Ibid.

[13] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[14] Ibid., Parentheses added.

[15] Ibid.

[16] Sir Alec Randall, The Pope, the Jews, and the Nazis (London: Catholic Truth Society, 1963), 12.

[17] Ibid., 7.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Ibid., 10-11.

 

[20] Pope Pius XI, “Mit Brennender Sorge: On the Church and the German Reich” (encyclical, Vatican, March 14, 1937), http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xi/encyclicals/Documents/hf_p-xi_enc_14031937_mit-brennender-sorge_en.html (accessed May 24, 2012). 15, 17.

[21] Sir Alec Randall, The Pope, the Jews, and the Nazis (London: Catholic Truth Society, 1963), 10.

[22] Ibid., 11.

[23] Ibid.

[24] New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2003 ed. s.v. “Pius XII, Pope.” 396.

[25] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 107.

 

[26] Ibid.

[27] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 47.

[28] Ibid.

[29] Ibid.

[30] Ibid.

[31] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed., 1806.

[32] Ibid.

[33] Ibid.

[34] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 96.

[35] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 12-13.

[36] Ibid., 13-14.

[37] Margherita Marchione. Yours Is a Precious Witness: Memoirs of Jews and Catholics in Wartime Italy (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997), 178.

[38] Larry McNeil, interview by author, telephone interview, 29 July 2012.

[39] Ibid.

[40] Ibid.

[41] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 119.

[42] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[43] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 98.

[44] Ibid.

[45] Ibid., 114.

[46] Ibid., 98.

[47] Ibid., 99.

[48] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[49] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 100.

[50] Martin Gilbert. Never Again: a History of the Holocaust. (New York, NY: Universe, 2000), 94.

[51] Ibid., 126-127.

[52] José M. Sánchez. Pius XII and the Holocaust: Understanding the Controversy. (Washington, D.C. Catholic University of America Press, 2002), 40.

 

[53] Ibid.

[54] Ibid.

[55] Ibid.

[56] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

 

[57] José M. Sánchez. Pius XII and the Holocaust: Understanding the Controversy. (Washington, D.C. Catholic University of America Press, 2002), 116.

[58] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[59] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed., 1808.

[60] Ibid.

[61] José M. Sánchez. Pius XII and the Holocaust: Understanding the Controversy. (Washington, D.C. Catholic University of America Press, 2002), 77.

[62] Ibid., 77 and 78.

[63] Ibid., 78.

[64] Ibid.

[65] Ibid., 77.

[66] Pope Pius XII, “Summi Pontificatus: On the Unity of Human Society” (encyclical, Castel Gandolfo, Italy, 1939), http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xii/encyclicals/documents/hf_pxii_enc_20101939_

summipontificatus _en. html(accessed May 24, 2012).

 

[67] Ibid., 35.

[68] Ibid., 36.

[69] Ibid.

[70] Ibid., 37.

[71] Ibid., 38.

[72] Ibid., 43.

[73] Ibid., 47.

[74] Ibid., 48.

[75] Ibid.

[76] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 48.

[77] Ibid.

[78] Pope Pius XII, “The Internal Order of States and People” (Christmas Message, Vatican, December 25, 1942), http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Pius12/P12CH42.HTM (accessed May 24, 2012).

 

[79] Ibid., 5.

[80] Ibid.

[81] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[82] Ibid.

[83] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 123.

[84] Ibid.

[85] Ibid.

[86] New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2003 ed. s.v. “Pius XII, Pope.” 398.

[87] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 122.

[88] Ibid., 123.

[89] Ibid.

[90] Ibid., 123-124.

[91] New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2003 ed. s.v. “Pius XII, Pope.” 398.

[92] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 124.

[93] Ibid., 120.

[94] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 58.

[95] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 126.

[96] Margherita Marchione. Yours Is a Precious Witness: Memoirs of Jews and Catholics in Wartime Italy (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997), 140.

[97] Ibid.

[98] Ibid.

[99] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 121.

[100] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 24.

[101] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 121.

[102] Ibid., 103.

[103] Ibid.

[104] Ibid., 114.

[105] Ibid.

[106] Ibid.

[107] Ibid.

[108] Ibid.

[109] Ibid.

[110] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 114-115.

[111] David G. Dalin, “Pius Xii and the Jews,” Books and Arts, February 26, 2001, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/dalin.html (accessed July 20, 2012).

[112] Ibid.

[113] Margherita Marchione. Yours Is a Precious Witness: Memoirs of Jews and Catholics in Wartime Italy (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997), 147.

[114] Ibid., 55 and 147.

[115] Ibid., 55.

[116] Ibid.

[117] Margherita Marchione. Consensus & Controversy: Defending Pope Pius XII (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2002), 63.

[118] Ibid.

[119] Ibid.

[120] Ibid.

[121] Ibid.

[122] Ibid.

[123] Ibid., 64.

[124] Ibid.

[125] Joseph L. Lichten, “A Question of Judgment: Pius XII and the Jews” In Pius XII and the Holocaust: A Reader, (National Catholic Welfare Conference, 1963), 127.

[126] Ibid., 127 and 128.

[127] Ibid., 127-128.

[128] Ibid., 128.

[129] Ibid.

[130] Ibid.., 110-111.

[131] Ibid., 111.

[132] Ibid.

 

[133] Ibid.

 

[134] Larry McNeil, interview by author, telephone interview, 29 July 2012.

 

[135] Ibid.

[136] Ibid.

[137] Ibid.

[138] Ibid.

[139] Ibid.

[140] Ibid.

[141] Gregory K. Popcak. God Help Me! These People Are Driving Me Nuts: Making Peace with Difficult People. (Chicago. Loyola Press, 2001), 40.

 

[142] Margherita Marchione. Yours Is a Precious Witness: Memoirs of Jews and Catholics in Wartime Italy (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997), 181.

 

[143]José M. Sánchez. Pius XII and the Holocaust: Understanding the Controversy. (Washington, D.C. Catholic University of America Press, 2002), 178.

[144] Larry McNeil, interview by author, telephone interview, 29 July 2012.

 

[truthfinder]

There's 200,000 archival boxes (archival boxes can have between a few and several thousand pages of documents).  That's an enormous number of files to go through.  We saw similar behaviour by historians when the Soviet archives opened: there's a mad dash to race in and try and find any thing that sounds important or sensational.  It will take numerous historians their entire careers to go through the documents properly, understanding the context in which each specific file entered the archive.