"In the darkest days of World War II, St. Peter's was shrouded in the shadow of the swastika. But even as the Führer surrounded him, the Pope was plotting a secret counter-offensive. Wartime Pontiff Pius XII has been derided for his public silence about the Holocaust. But evidence suggests his silence may have been subterfuge. And the man branded as 'Hitler's Pope' may actually have wanted to eliminate him" (http://sheencenter.org/shows/pope-vs-hitler/).
"Some things never go away....the wartime pope, who is now a step closer to beatification, has been accused of keeping silent during the Holocaust, of doing little or nothing to help the Jews, and even of collaborating with the Nazis...
"On behalf of Pope Pius XI, Cardinal Pacelli [the future Pope Pius XII] drafted an encyclical, entitled 'Mit brennender Sorge' ('With Burning Anxiety'), that condemned Nazi doctrines and persecution of the Catholic Church. The encyclical was smuggled into Germany and read from Catholic pulpits on March 21, 1937...
"After studying Pius XII's 1942 Christmas message, the Reich Central Security Office concluded: 'In a manner never known before the pope has repudiated the National Socialist New European Order ... Here he is virtually accusing the German people of injustice toward the Jews and makes himself the mouthpiece of the Jewish war criminals.' (Pick up any book that criticizes Pius XII, and you won't find any mention of this important report.)
"In early 1940, the pope acted as an intermediary between a group of German generals who wanted to overthrow Hitler and the British government. Although the conspiracy never went forward, Pius XII kept in close contact with the German resistance and heard about two other plots against Hitler....
"Throughout the war, the pope's deputies frequently ordered the Vatican's diplomatic representatives in many Nazi-occupied and Axis countries to intervene on behalf of endangered Jews. Up until Pius XII's death in 1958, many Jewish organizations, newspapers and leaders lauded his efforts" (Dmitri Cavalli, Haaretz.com, 1/22/10).
"Some things never go away....the wartime pope, who is now a step closer to beatification, has been accused of keeping silent during the Holocaust, of doing little or nothing to help the Jews, and even of collaborating with the Nazis...
"On behalf of Pope Pius XI, Cardinal Pacelli [the future Pope Pius XII] drafted an encyclical, entitled 'Mit brennender Sorge' ('With Burning Anxiety'), that condemned Nazi doctrines and persecution of the Catholic Church. The encyclical was smuggled into Germany and read from Catholic pulpits on March 21, 1937...
"After studying Pius XII's 1942 Christmas message, the Reich Central Security Office concluded: 'In a manner never known before the pope has repudiated the National Socialist New European Order ... Here he is virtually accusing the German people of injustice toward the Jews and makes himself the mouthpiece of the Jewish war criminals.' (Pick up any book that criticizes Pius XII, and you won't find any mention of this important report.)
"In early 1940, the pope acted as an intermediary between a group of German generals who wanted to overthrow Hitler and the British government. Although the conspiracy never went forward, Pius XII kept in close contact with the German resistance and heard about two other plots against Hitler....
"Throughout the war, the pope's deputies frequently ordered the Vatican's diplomatic representatives in many Nazi-occupied and Axis countries to intervene on behalf of endangered Jews. Up until Pius XII's death in 1958, many Jewish organizations, newspapers and leaders lauded his efforts" (Dmitri Cavalli, Haaretz.com, 1/22/10).
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