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Books > Religion & Spirituality > General > Interfaith relations
This collaborative effort by a number of the world's leading
experts on the Holocaust examines the question: how should Vatican
policies during World War II be understood? Specifically, could
Pope Pius XII have curbed the Holocaust by vigorously condemning
the Nazi killing of Jews? Was Pius XII really 'Hitler's Pope', as
John Cornwell suggested? Or has he unfairly become a scapegoat when
he is really deserving of canonization as a saint? In Pope Pius XII
and the Holocaust, scholars including Michael Marrus, Michael
Phayer, Richard L. Rubenstein and Susan Zuccotti wrestle with these
questions. The book has four main themes: (1) Pope Pius XII must be
understood in his particular historical context. (2) Pope Pius XII
put the well-being of the Roman Catholic Church, as he understood
it, first and foremost. (3) In retrospect, Pope Pius XII's
priorities, understandable though they are, not only make him a
problematic Christian leader but also raise important questions
about post-Holocaust Christian identity. (4) Jewish and Christian
memories of the Holocaust will remain different, but reconciliation
can continue to grow. On all sides, relations between Christians
and Jews can be improved by an honest engagement with history and
by continuing reflection on what post-Holocaust Christian and
Jewish identities ought and ought not to mean.
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