VATICAN STATEMENT ON
POPE PIUS XII
Translated from
the Italian service of
December 23, 2009
Fr. Federico Lombardi, Vatican press director, released this statement today in response to hostile reactions from Jewish circles to Benedict XVI's decision to promulgate the heroic virtues of Pius XII:
The signing by Pope Benedict XVI of the decree on the heroic virtues of Pius XII has drawn a number of reactions in the Jewish world, probably because it has to do with an act whose significance is clear to the Catholic world and those who are familiar with it, but requires some explanatios for the greater public, particularly those Jews who are understandably very sensitive to everything that has to do with the historical period of the Second World War and the Holocaust.
When the Pope signs a decree on the heroic virtues of a Servant of God - namely, a person for whom a cause for beatification has been introduced - he confirms the positive valuation that the Congregation for the Causes of Saints has voted, after careful examination of all the person's writings and testimonies about him, to approve the fact that the candidate has lived the Christian virtues eminently and has shown his faith, his hope and his charity in a manner superior to what is normally expected of the faithful.
Therefore, he may be proposed as a model of Christian life to the People of God.
Naturally the evaluation takes into account the circumstances in which the person lived, and therefore this also requires a historical examination. But the overall evaluation is concerned essentially with the testimony of Christian life that the candidate showed - his intense relationship with God and the continuous quest for evangelical perfection,- as Pope Benedict XVI said last Saturday in his address to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints - not the evaluation of the historical weight of all his operative choices.
Even an eventual beatification is framed in the same context, namely to propose to the People of God - with the further comfort of a sign of extraordinary grace given by God through the intercession of the Servant of God - a model of eminent Christian life.
On the occasion of the beatification rites for John XXIII and Pius IX, John Paul II stated: "Sainthood is lived within history, and no saint is exempt from the limitationss and conditioning inherent to our humanity. In beatifying one of her children, the Church does not celebrate the specific historical choices he has carried out, but rather proposes him to be imitated and venerated for his virtues in praise of the divine grace that shines in him" (March 9, 200).
Therefore, this (decree) is not intended to limit the discussion on concrete choices made by Pius XII in the (historical) situation that he was.
For her part, the Church affirms that such choices were made with the pure intention of carrying out as best as possible the Pontiff's service of supremely dramatic responsibility.
In every way, the attention and concern of Pius XII for the fate of the Jews - something that was certainly relevant in evaluating his virtues - have been largely testified to, and acknowledged event by many Jews.
Therefore, the research and evaluation of historians in their own field remains open. In this case, the request to open up all the possibilities for research on [Vatican] documents is understandable.
Previously, Paul VI wished to facilitate such a research with the publication of the (twelve) volumes of Acts and Documents. The complete opening of the Archives - it has been said several times - requires the ordering and cataloguing of an enormous mass of documents, a technical task that still requires a few years. [Five more years, Lombardi said last Saturday.]
As for the fact that the decrees on the heroic virtues of Pope John Paul II and Pius XII were promulgated on the same day, it does not mean that the two causes are 'coupled' from hereon. The two causes are completely independent, and each will follow its own course. There is no reason, therefore, to hypothesize an eventual contemporaneous beatification.
Finally, Pope Benedict XVI's great friendship and respect for the Jewish people have been manifested many times and find irrefutable testimony even in his theological work.
It is therefore clear that his recent signing of the Decree on Pius XII must not be read in any way as a hostile act against the Jewish people, and it is hoped that it will not be considered an obstacle to the dialog between Judaism and the Catholic Church.
Rather, it is hoped that the Pope's coming visit to the Synagogue of Rome may be an occasion to reaffirm and reinforce, with great cordiality, these bonds of friendship and esteem.
Vatican defends move
on Pope Pius XII
VATICAN CITY, Dec. 23 (AP) – The Vatican said Tuesday that moving Pope Pius XII closer to sainthood is not a hostile act against Jews, even though the wartime Pontiff has been criticized for not speaking out enough against the Holocaust.
A Vatican statement said Tuesday that the move should not be an obstacle to dialogue between Jews and the Catholic Church, and insisted Pope Benedict XVI has sentiments of "great friendship and respect" for the Jews.
The statement sought to quell the outrage sparked among many Jewish groups after Benedict signed a decree on Pius's virtues. The decree means that Pius can be beatified — the first major step toward sainthood — once a miracle attributed to his intercession has been recognized.
The Vatican reaffirmed what it said was Pius' "attention and preoccupation" with the fate of Jews, saying that this is well established and recognized even by many Jews.
But it said the process toward beatification was not intended to limit historical discussion on the pontiff, as the decree concerns Pius's faith and Christian virtues.
The Pope signed the decree Saturday along with a similar decree recognizing the virtues of his immediate predecessor, John Paul II. This led many to believe the two causes would proceed together — and caused further outcry since John Paul was admired by many Jews.
The statement said there was no reason to believe that any possible beatification would take place at the same time.
Some Jews and historians have argued Pius should have done more to prevent the deaths of 6 million Jews at the hands of the Nazis and their collaborators during World War II.
The Vatican insists Pius used quiet diplomacy to try to save Jews and that speaking out more forcefully would have resulted in more deaths.
Pius, a Vatican diplomat in Germany and the Vatican's secretary of state before being elected Pope, did denounce in general terms the extermination of people based on race and opened Vatican City to refugees, including Jews, after Hitler occupied Rome in 1943.
But he didn't issue public indictments of Jewish deportations, and some historians say he cared more about bilateral relations with Nazi Germany, and the rights of the Catholic church there, than saving Jewish lives.
Today, Tempi published this as an Opinion article, not under Mastroianni's personal rubric. It confirms my admiration for him as a master of brevity and a congenial mind.
The heroism of Pius XII and
Benedict XVI's friendship for the Jews
by Bruno Mastroianni
Dec. 23, 2009
The recognition of Pius XII's heroic virtues cannot be reduced to a move that is tinged in any way with anti-Jewish sentiment.
The entire career of Joseph Ratzinger should immediately sweep away any such suggestions, especially in the media, as he was always in the forefront of dialog with the Jews.
Think alone of
the support that he provided for the gestures of John Paul II in elaborating a veritable doctrine of Christian reconciliation with the People of Israel.
His theological awareness has made him say countless times, "The faith testified to in the Bible of the Jews is not another religion, but the foundation of our faith".
And think of all his efforts as Pope in the journey to reciprocal comprehension.
In fact,
his decision in behalf of Pius XII reflects that preoccupation with the truth that has guided Joseph Ratzinger's actions.
His very attention to this case shows it: The decree on the late Pope's heroic virtues was approved some time ago (May 2007), but this Pope orderd a supplementary investigation to exclude any doubts [about Pius's wartime record].
His promulgation of the decree on Saturday was unpleasant only to those puffballs of political expediency predictably blown up by the media.
But there is nothing to fear: Pius XII's heroic virtues - ascertained by all the required investigations with full respect for the truth - should not compromise the Jewish-Catholic dialog nor should it influence the historical debate.
If anything, they should help to cast out a false bugbear of the 20th century that has created division for too long. And every effort to research and investigate the true Eugenio Pacelli can only contribute to this.
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 23/12/2009 16:03]