'Heroic virtues' decree for Pius draws criticism
The surprise decision of Pope Benedict XVI to move Pope Pius XII closer to sainthood has drawn questions and criticism from Jewish leaders.
Pius was one of 17 Catholics found by Benedict on Saturday to have had "heroic virtues" in life. He is now "venerable," and is a candidate for beatification, the step before canonization.
Just what the World War II-era pontiff did and did not do in the face of the Holocaust have long been a source of contention among Catholics and between Catholics and Jews. A joint Vatican-Jewish commission has been studying the historical record -- which led some Jewish leaders to wonder why Benedict took this step now.
"As long as the archives of Pope Pius about the crucial period 1939 to 1945 remain closed, and until a consensus on his actions -- or inaction -- concerning the persecution of millions of Jews in the Holocaust is established, a beatification is inopportune and premature," World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder said in a statement.
"While it is entirely a matter for the Catholic Church to decide on whom religious honors are bestowed, there are strong concerns about Pope Pius XII's political role during World War II which should not be ignored."
Paddy Agnew describes the contoversy for The Irish Times: "For most of the last 60 years, many Jewish groups have argued that Pius, who was pope from 1939 to 1958, was guilty not only of not publicly condemning Hitler’s Nazi-Fascist regime but also of doing little or nothing to prevent the death of an estimated six million Jews in the Holocaust."
The Jerusalem Post sums up the position of the pontiff's defenders: "Vatican authorities, along with some Catholic and Jewish scholars, have claimed that precisely through his silence, Pius XII was able to work quietly to rescue as many Jews as possible. While he never publicly condemned the Nazi persecutions, many Catholic institutions, and many individual priests and nuns, opened their doors at personal risk to save Jewish lives. Doubtless, the pope was informed of this; the as yet unanswered question is whether he had given orders for this activity."
Agnew rounds up more reaction:
Pope Benedict’s announcement prompted immediate criticism from the worldwide Jewish community. In Italy, the president of the Association of Italian Rabbis, Giuseppe Laras, said the decision “is a sad one because I cannot help but think of what happened during the Shoah. The figure of this pope is a controversial one because he did not shout out loud his outrage and his opposition to the Shoah and against the extermination of people whose only crime was that of being Jewish.”
In a joint note, three other senior figures in the Italian Jewish community, Riccardo Di Segni, Renzo Gattegna and Riccardo Pacifici argued the decision might be premature, since a joint Vatican-Jewish Commission of historians was still considering Pope Pius’s record, adding: “The joint commission ... still has to get full access to the archives. Let us not forget the deportation of Jews from Italy, in particular train 1021 on October 16th, 1943, which took Italian Jews to Auschwitz from Rome, in face of the silence of Pius XII."
Abraham Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League in the US said: “We are saddened . . . that the pontiff would feel compelled to fast-track pope Pius at a point where the issue of the record – the history and the coming to a judgment – is still wide open.”
Comments
As you may know I disagree with the church's idea of making heroes out of human beings. It discourages us from looking at God as the Hero. I would just as soon see Austin Powers lifted up as I would a man who may have ignored the Holocaust. In spite of his sexual misconduct, at least Austin makes me laugh.
Posted by: Clay | December 21, 2009 3:03 PM
Clay - There is nothing wrong with having heroes of faith. We can learn from their examples. People whose lives we can study and look at to show us what living our faith means. What we need to do is simply remember that they are only heroes and examples and not place any more significance on them then that I see nothing wrong. That being said I’m not entirely sure that Pius XII falls into that category.
Posted by: ravensfan | December 21, 2009 3:26 PM
I suppose it is like what Mother Teresa said when she was asked how she expected to be successful with all the poor and poverty around her. She replied, "God didnt call me to be successful. He called me to be faithful." I dont see her as wanting to be seen as some kind of saint. If she did, she wouldnt have been as faithful or successful. Thanks.
Posted by: Clay | December 21, 2009 4:30 PM
Clay - I agree I doubt Mother Teresa would want to be see as anything more than a humble person of faith in God doing His will.
Posted by: ravensfan | December 21, 2009 4:57 PM
Pius XII becoming a saint will be just another blight on the Catholic Church. What is Benedict thinking?
Posted by: Ace | December 22, 2009 9:55 AM
Benedict has not been thinking for a long time--remember the inflammatory remark he made about Islam being a militaristic religion bereft of a gentle and forgiving lord and how many times he fudged afterward --said that he was merely quoting an ancient text on the subject. Then remember when he reincorporated and rehabilitated the Holocaust denying breakaway Catholic sect--Lefebvre's Society of Pope Pius X with Bishop Williamson, their staunchest member against "6 million Jews slaughtered"--into the mainstream Catholic Church and earned the ire of the Jews for this? Several Catholics rose to defend him then and cast aspersions on Jews in general to take their Pope's side--yes, the Jews were slaughtered they said, but not 6 million--that is a lie. Now this--the current Pope is addlepated and is a publicity disaster for the Vatican. If he did not later apologize for his actions or give convoluted explanations for his rationale or lack thereof, it wouldn't be so bad--but he always does, making matters worse, clearly indicating he doesn't have an inkling why he is up to these shenanigans.
Ravensfan Anon
Posted by: Anonymous | December 23, 2009 12:51 PM
I certainly have said a lot here about the Muslim religion and how it was created to be a thorn in the side to the Jews. However, if any Pope is making an attempt to defame Jews, it certainly isnt what the bible is teaching them, and in a sense they are being like Muslims. If satan has crept into the Catholic church or any church then pray for those churches. Have a good one.
Posted by: Clay | December 23, 2009 2:28 PM