On May 8, 2007, members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints voted unanimously to recommend that Pope Benedict XVI formerly declare Pope Pius XII "Venerable." Hopefully this recognition that Pope Pius XII lived the Christian virtues in a heroic manner will bring an end to the controversy over whether he did enough in defense of the Jews and other victims of the Nazis. The thirty cardinals and bishops from Italy, Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Japan, and the USA studied six volumes of documents comprising more than 3,000 pages.
However, soon after the announcement, Abraham H. Foxman, National Anti-Defamation League Director and a Holocaust survivor, urged Pope Benedict XVI to suspend the action taken by the Vatican Congregation regarding Pius XII's "heroic virtues" until all Pius XII documents in the Vatican Archives are made available.
Ever since the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958, every pope from John XXIII to Benedict XVI noted his sanctity. In fact, in his first Christmas message, John XXIII said his predecessor was worthy of canonization and called him, "Supreme doctor, light of holy mother Church, lover of the divine law." Pope John Paul II at the start of his 1987 visit to the United States, defended Pius XII during a meeting with Jewish leaders, recalling "how deeply he felt about the tragedy of the Jewish people, and how hard and effectively he worked to assist them during the Second World War."
It was Pope Pius XII who authorized false baptismal certificates to save Jewish lives. He also distributed visas for Jews to enter other countries, and ordered the superiors of convents and monasteries to open their doors and hide Jews and other victims of the Nazis and Fascists. Angelo Roncalli (Pope John XXIII), who also distributed many certifcates, stated that all he was doing was following the Pope's directives.
Almost fifty years have passed since Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, then Apostolic Nuncio in Istanbul, wrote in his Diary about an audience with Pope Pius XII on October 10, 1941. He declared that the Pope's statements were "prudent."
It is interesting to note that when news of Pius XII's death on October 9, 1958, was flashed around the world, an editorial, "Fighter for Peace," in the Los Angeles Examiner expressed the sentiments of Catholics and non-Catholics, and declared that this Fighter for Peace was the Pope of Peace. Of those mourning the pope's death, Jews — who credited him with being one of their greatest benefactors — were in the forefront.
Did Pope Pius XII help the Jews? Indeed he did. Nor can one claim he was "silent." Rather one must speak of his "prudence." In his Christmas radio messages of '41, '42, and '43, Pope Pius XII denounced theories that attribute rights to "a particular race." He revealed that "hundreds of thousands of people, through no fault of theirs, sometimes only because of nationality or race, were destined to die."
Professor William Moynihan wrote to me: "Your little new book, Did Pope Pius XII Help the Jews? (Paulist Press, 2007), is simple, direct, clear, convincing, timely and beautiful. It could not be more informative. Hope Paulist Press pushes it very hard. It deserves to be read." To that quote I'd like to add that the 100-page book for $5.95, will also enlighten members of the Anti-Defamation League!
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