An expert on Pope Pius XII expressed support for an Israeli
ambassador who faces controversy after publicly praising the World War
II pontiff for helping save Jews during the Holocaust.
Israeli ambassador to the Vatican Mordechai Lewy said on June 27 that
his positive comments about late Pope were historically “premature,”
after he was criticized by Jewish groups.
However, author William Doino commended the ambassador for “opening
up healthy and productive discussion” and supports his stance in favor
of Pope Pius XII– who is often accused of turning a blind eye to the
Holocaust.
Ambassador Lewy sparked the debate at a June 23 ceremony
honoring World War II Italian priest Fr. Gaetano Piccini, when he
recalled how convents and monasteries opened their doors to save Jews
after the Nazis persecuted Rome's Ghetto in 1943.
“There is reason to believe that this happened under the supervision
of the highest Vatican officials, who were informed about what was going
on,” Lewy said during his address.
“So it would be a mistake to say
that the Catholic Church, the Vatican and the Pope himself opposed
actions to save the Jews.”
“To the contrary, the opposite is true,” he said.
Days later, after Jewish leaders claimed his remarks were
historically inaccurate and insensitive to Holocaust survivors, Lewy
explained that his comments “were embedded in a larger historical
context” which is “still under the subject of ongoing and future
research.”
Passing “my personal historical judgment on it,” he added, “was premature.”
While Lewy faces criticism over his remarks, he's also gained support
from those like Doino, an expert on the late Pope who contributed
extensively to an anthology titled “The Pius War: Responses to the
Critics of Pius XII” (Lexington Books).
“Having read his original statements, the responses to them, and his clarification, I believe it is all for the good, because it demonstrates how prominent officials in Israel are beginning to express greater openness toward Pius XII,” Doino said to CNA on June 27.
“Having read his original statements, the responses to them, and his clarification, I believe it is all for the good, because it demonstrates how prominent officials in Israel are beginning to express greater openness toward Pius XII,” Doino said to CNA on June 27.
Despite media reports claiming that Lewy has now backtracked on his
original comments, Doino said “the Ambassador did not deny what he said
may well be true.”
Rather, he only said it's too early “to make
definitive, all-encompasing statements.”
Doino also noted that research is showing how the popular cultural
perception that Pius XII ignored the plight of the Jews during World War
II is false.
“I believe there is an increasing amount of evidence, independent of
the Vatican archives, and impossible to ignore by anyone interested in
this subject – through first-hand testimonies, diaries, and other
primary documents – demonstrating that Pius XII did indeed 'speak out,'
in ways clearly understood by Catholic rescuers, and that he did indeed
help rescue persecuted Jews.”
Doino recalled how the Nazis were “furious” about Pius XII’s public
addresses and conduct and denounced him as a “mouthpiece of the Jewish
war criminals.”
He added that early in his pontificate, Pius XII approved a plot to
overthrow Hitler and was commended by many leaders of the anti-Nazi
Resistance.
“These are documented facts, which cannot be erased, and will remain
part of the larger discussion, whatever else is said, and whatever more
comes out of the Vatican archives,” Doino said.