A Cross Too Heavy: Pope Pius XII and the Jews of Europe

275 Pages·2011·4.532 MB·English

by  Paul O’Shea (auth.)

A Cross Too Heavy
A Cross Too Heavy
Pope Pius XII and the Jews of Europe
Paul O’Shea
palgrave
macmillan
A CROSS TOO HEAVY
Copyright © Paul O’Shea, 2011.
All rights reserved.
First published in 2011 by
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN®
in the United States—a division of St. Martin’s Press LLC,
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Where this book is distributed in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world,
this is by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited,
registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke,
Hampshire RG21 6XS.
Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies
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Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States,
ISBN 978-0-230-11080-9 ISBN 978-0-230-11836-2 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9780230118362
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
O’Shea, Paul Damian.
A cross too heavy : Pope Pius XII and the Jews of Europe / by Paul
O’Shea.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. ).
1. Pius XII, Pope, 1876–1958—Relations with Jews. 2. Holocaust,
Jewish (1939–1945) 3. Judaism—Relations—Catholic Church. 4. Catholic
Church—Relations—Judaism. 5. Christianity and antisemitism—
History—20th century. 6. World War, 1939–1945—Religious aspects—
Catholic Church. 7. National socialism and religion. I. Title.
BX1378.O74 2010
282.092—dc22 2011000524
A catalogue record of the book is available from the British Library.
Design by Newgen Imaging Systems (P) Ltd., Chennai, India.
First edition: March 2011
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For Chris
C O N T E N T S
Acknowledgments ix
List of Abbreviations xi
Introduction: Pius XII, Catholics, Myths, and Realities 1
One Problems with Pacelli 13
Two Contempt as “Virtue” 27
Three Et in Unum Ecclesiam 53
Four Eugenio Pacelli 1876–1917 73
Five When Worlds Collide 91
Six His Master’s Voice 109
Seven Cardinal Pacelli, Jews, and Germany, 1933–1939 139
Eight Habemus Papam 169
Nine Blessed Eugenio? 207
Glossary of Terms 225
Notes 227
Bibliography 251
Index 265
A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S
This revised book grew out of research work undertaken for my doctoral
dissertation, but quickly assumed a life of its own as more material came
to light. Chief among the lessons I learned in writing this work is that I
stand on the shoulders of giants, men, and women who have written in
the field long before me and whose work has influenced, shaped, and cri-
tiqued my own.
Special thanks go to the library staff at the Catholic Institute of Sydney
in Strathfield, one of the best resourced theological and Catholic histor-
ical libraries in the Southern Hemisphere. I must also acknowledge the
help of the staff at Archivio di Stato di Roma, President Kennedy Library,
Boston, the Library staff at the Australian National Library, and Macquarie
University. Bishop Sergio Pagano and the staff at Archivio Segreta Vaticano
(ASV) deserve special thanks for their accommodation of my requests,
someone they have never met. The Internet has changed the way research
is done. All my dealings with the ASV have been done “online,” and I ac-
knowledge the professionalism and speed of the service rendered to me.
Over the years, I have engaged in conversation and correspondence
with many academics. In particular, I wish to acknowledge the assistance
given by Yehuda Bauer, Thomas Brechenmacher, John Conway, Deborah
Dwork, Amy-Jill Levine, Michael Phayer, Alessandro Portelli, Matteo Luigi
Napolitano, and Susan Zuccotti. Despite our agreements or disagreements
they have, in their own ways, helped clarify areas for me, offered valuable
advice and directed me to archives, documents, and other sources. It hardly
needs saying that any errors in the text are my own and do not reflect on the
caliber of the assistance so freely offered by a willing group of scholars.
Rabbi Eric Greenberg of the Anti-Defamation League helped open
doors and opportunities in New York. Eric has become a good friend; his
energy and encouragement have been a real mitzvah for me. Nothing is
ever too great a problem. Lynne Rabinoff, my literary agent, has been a
great support and I thank her for all she has done for me and for her cour-
age in taking on this unknown writer from Down Under.
Writing is often a solitary and idiosyncratic pursuit and I must offer my
gratitude and love to those closest to me who have endured more than
their share of solitude. To Chris and the rest of the family, my love and
thanks.
A B B R E V I A T I O N S
AAS Acta Apostolicae Sedis: Commentarium Officiale
ADB Akten Deutscher Bischöfe über die Lage der Kirche
1933–1945
ADSS Actes et Documents du Saint-Siège relatifs à la Seconde
Guerre mondiale
ASV AES Archivio Segreta Vaticano, Affari Ecclesiastici
Straordinari 1922–1939; followed by:
ANB Archivio Nunziatura Berlino
ANM Archivio Nunziatura Monaco
Baviera
Germania
Stati Ecclesiastici
AKF Akten Kardinal Michael von Faulhaber 1917–1945
Albrecht Der Notenwechsel zwischen dem Heiligen Stuhl und der
Deutschen Reichsregierung
Arad Documents on the Holocaust
CC Civiltà Cattolica
CM Catholic Mind
DBFP Documents on British Foreign Policy
DGFP Documents on German Foreign Policy
FRUS Papers relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States
NARA National Archives and Records Administration
(Washington DC)
NYT The New York Times
Times The Times (London)
Introduction
Pius XII, Catholics, Myths, and Realities
At what point does an experience precipitate a change in consciousness?
Professor David Bankier, Yad Vashem (March 8, 2009)
The Battles over Pius XII
On December 19, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI signed the Decree of Heroic
Virtue for Pope Pius XII. The now “venerable” Pius XII was deemed to
have lived an exemplary Christian life—not a faultless one, but one that
was indicative of a close communion with God in his vocation as priest,
bishop, and pope. Responses varied from the triumphant to the tragic.
Most focused on the papal actions and reactions during the Second World
War in general, and on the Holocaust in particular. I suggest that the qual-
ity of many responses were indicative of deeper issues that lie beneath the
surface of contemporary Catholicism. And as is so often the case when
one peers beneath the surface, what is found is often unpleasant, challeng-
ing, and upsetting.
Benedict’s signature on the Decree of Heroic Virtue was, for many, the
latest in a series of Vatican public relations blunders that have stretched
the credibility factor to the limit In 2007 the pope gave unrestricted per-
mission for the use of the pre–Vatican II Latin Mass, which included the
Good Friday prayer for the conversion of the Jews. The ensuing “ker-
fuffle” led to Benedict composing a new prayer that left no one happy.
Lifting the excommunication of the anti–Vatican II Lefebvrist bishops in
January 2009 unleashed a storm of criticism over the splinter faction of
extreme conservatives, who reject, among other Vatican II reforms, the
idea of religious liberty, ecumenical and interfaith dialogue, especially
with Jews. The storm worsened when it was revealed that one of the
Lefebvrist bishops, Richard Williamson, was a known Holocaust denier.
An unprecedented papal letter of apology to the world’s Catholic bishops
did little to calm fears that a major “reform of the reform” was under
way. And then in November 2010 Benedict made a series of very public
2 A Cross Too Heavy
“private” statements declaring that Pius XII was a righteous man who
saved more Jews than anyone else. The familiar cycle of outrage, qualifi-
cation, rebuttal, and exasperation followed.1
At the heart of the nonhistorical argument about Pius XII is a battle
over authority and how it is exercised in contemporary Catholicism. I
believe that the case of Pius XII, for many fundamentalist Catholics and
their supporters, derives from a cultural shift within Western society over
authority and institutional religion that has been in process since the 1950s.
Institutional Catholicism has not been immune from this. It was felt quite
keenly at Vatican II when Pope Paul VI made two unprecedented inter-
ventions. The first, in 1964, forbade discussion of contraception; the sec-
ond, in 1965, forbade discussion of priestly celibacy. This was followed by
two encyclical letters of the same pope addressing both issues—Sacerdotalos
caelibatus (on priestly celibacy) on celibacy in 1967, and Humanae vitae (on
the regulation of birth) on birth control in 1968.2 The letter on celibacy
did not arouse much debate outside clerical circles, but Humanae vitae
unleashed a violent storm of protest across the whole Catholic world. The
pope was so stunned by the negative reaction that he never wrote another
encyclical.
For conservative, traditionalist Catholics, there arose a fear that if the
Church admitted or accepted that a pastoral measure or moral teaching
was no longer entirely positive and needed changing, other aspects of
Church teaching would also be challenged. Paul VI was often branded as
a “weak” pope by many of his critics in contrast to Pius XII, a “strong”
pre-Vatican II pope, and John Paul II, a “strong” post-Vatican II pope.
Fidelity to orthodox Catholic teaching as pronounced by the Roman
Magisterium was a hallmark of the long pontificate of John Paul. That
Church teaching has been challenged, often vigorously, in the wake of
the decade of clerical sex abuse scandals is an accepted fact. The Vatican’s
stubborn unwillingness to go beyond recognition of individual acts to an
examination of the institution that allowed such criminal activity to fester
remains a matter of serious concern.3
Is it too far fetched to suggest that questioning the responses of Pius XII
during the Second World War falls into the paradigm outlined above? If
it is admitted that the pope failed to speak and act clearly when he had
undeniable proof of the murder of European Jews, would this seriously
damage papal authority today? Would it not, in fact, bring a more irenic
spirit to the study of the man because it was accepted that he made mis-
takes, sometimes serious omissions, and so allow a measure of “closure”
for that period and, at the same time, show the Church as willing to admit
its past and learn from it? Unfortunately, such thinking remains purely
personal and hypothetical.
It is no surprise that the heated exchanges among various neoconserva-
tive Catholic groups can usually be reduced to black-and-white questions
about “loyalty to the Holy Father.” Acceptance of Pius XII as the veritable
savior of Europe’s Jews is proof of fidelity to the Church, the pope, and