Vatican tries to calm anger over Pope Pius XII

[moobu2]

23 Dec 2009 - Vatican tries to calm anger over Pope Pius XII
Vatican officials tried to patch up a growing dispute with Jewish leaders by saying the decision to move wartime Pope Pius XII closer to sainthood was based on his "piety" not his "politics".




Pope Pius XII has been condemned for not doing enough to prevent the Holocaust and his path to canonisation has sparked outcry.

Last week, Pope Benedict XVI signed a decree proclaiming the "heroic virtues" of Pope Pius – throwing the current Pontiff's planned visit to Rome's synagogue next month into doubt.

However in an attempt to dampen the row, the Vatican issued a statement which said it the decree should not be seen as a "hostile act".
It added: "We hope this will not be considered an obstacle on the path of dialogue between Judaism and the Catholic Church."
The Vatican said his virtues related to "his relationship with God and his Faith" rather than "an assessment of the political scope of all his operational choices".
The Vatican has always insisted that Pius "moved behind the scenes" during the Second World War and did as much as he could to speak out against Nazism.

<snip>

Last year Pope Benedict praised Pius XII and said that he had saved the "largest possible number of Jews" by acting in silence to "avert the worst".

LinK

[niyad]

1. so, as long as one is "pious", one can support, even condone, genocide?

[DCKit]

2. Who knew? A Republican Pope. n/t

[roguevalley]

11. they made it worse by their stupid remarks. Faith without works is

nothing. Pius should have gone to jail. He even looks like a cadaver.

[CatholicEdHead]

3. No valid reason to let this go until 2015

like the article mentions. It is another push towards the ultra-traditional wing and the SSPXer fringe wing. They go crazy with any pope with "Pius" in their name as they thrive off of orthodoxy. :crazy: The Vatican inner circle would rather throw an bone at those sects rather than delay until 2015-2020 when you can have an complete discussion.

[niyad]

4. I just read ratzi's comment--what an unbelievable bunch of BS--does he seriously

think any rational person is going to believe that crapola?

[FreakinDJ]

5. Their right - he didn't do enough to prevent genocide of Palistinians

who are they to comment

[jwirr]

6. He should never gain sainthood. In this disagreement I am squarely

on the Jewish side.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

7. The Vatican is cramming before 2012... can't say I blame them

but a better choice perhaps.....

[Sanity Claws]

10. Cramming before 2012?

Cramming for what? Why 2012?
I just don't get the reference.
BTW, that is a doozy of a picture. He looks like a real hard ass. I wouldn't want him to hear my confession; he'd give me more than five Hail Marys as my penance.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

13. Cramming to make as many saints as they can prior to the big one. n/t

[msongs]

8. he saved the vatican silverware from the nazis. sounds like a saint to me :-) nt

[no_hypocrisy]

9. Isn't there a conflict of interest with Pope Benedict advocating for the canonization of Pius XII?

Talk about a free pass.

[roguevalley]

12. a former nazi nominating a nazi sympathizer. sort of made in heaven

as it were.

[rd_kent]

14. Kick