Pope Pius XII: Architect for Peace [Paperback]

Margherita Marchione (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 2000

Although the subject of much controversy among Christians and Jews alike, Pius XII was not insensitive to the plight of the Jews in World War II, but on the contrary did much in his own way to save them. This is the thrust of Dr. Marchione's book, continuing the painstaking research she began in Yours Is a Precious Witness. That was an oral history from Jewish survivors who credit Pius XII with saving them from the Nazis. This new book taps wartime Vatican documents--long available and long ignored--to provide persuasive evidence that the "silent Pope" was working for peace. Her fascinating book makes available for the first time English translations of Vatican documents and wartime correspondence, revealing the Vatican's little-known wartime campaign that saved almost a million Jews. Dr. Marchione incorporates expert analyses and commentaries on the subject, and dozens of photos, appendices, and notes--all to balance what has been till now a very one-sided look at events. Because of its documentary value, this title is must reading by anyone who has an opinion on Pius XII, although each side may find further argument in it. It's also critically important for Church historians, Church leaders, Holocaust scholars, and anyone involved in the Jewish-Christian dialogue.

Editorial Reviews

Review

A spirited defense. -- Review for Religious

A treasury of historical material. -- The Irish Catholic

Hers is an important study of the role of Pius XII, in defense of the Jews before the Third Reich. -- Reverend Monsignor Stephen M. DiGiovanni, Pastor, St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church, Stamford, CT.

It is a delight to welcome a full-length study of falsification directed against the great Pope. -- The Catholic Historical Review

The most inestimable contribution made is the more than 100 pages of documents from the era under study. -- The Catholic Advocate and The Beacon (Fr. Peter Stravinskas)

About the Author

Margherita Marchione, Ph.D., is an internationally known author of 35 books and over 90 articles, the recipient of such honors as Columbia University Garibaldi Scholar, Fulbright Scholar, Star of Solidarity of the Republic of Italy, UNICO National Rizzuto and George Washington Medals, and has been inducted in the New Jersey Literary Hall of Fame. Her books include Yours Is a Precious Witness: Memoirs of Jews and Catholics in Wartime Italy, Americans of Italian Heritage, Philip Mazzei: World Citizen, and Twentieth Century Italian Poetry. A member of the Religious Teachers Filippini, she is professor emerita of Italian language and literature at Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Paulist Press (April 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 080913912X
• ISBN-13: 978-0809139125
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #820,910 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #82 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Catholicism > Popes

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Fact-Based Book, June 16, 2000

By 

"chris_parker" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pope Pius XII: Architect for Peace (Paperback)

This book provides an excellent resource for anyone interested in a true scholarly study of actual documents and articles from the time of the war. Ms. Marchione also provides a wealth of quotes from prominent Jewish leaders and rabbis in support of the constant efforts of the Pope. It is especially telling when the Rabbi in Rome talks about how he personally, along with many others he was with, was saved from deportation and likely death by the Pope hiding him in the Vatican and Church properties.

Most people agree with the saying "Actions speak louder than words". This book provides documentary evidence from first hand sources and articles from the time of the Popes constant efforts to ease the suffering of the Jews and all those persecuted by the Nazis.

The later chapters also provide some insight into the pressure the Pope was receiving from POLITICAL leaders to speak out and why he chose his words as carefully as he did- to save more lives. It also documents how other organizations such as the International Red Cross also consciously and explicitly chose not to speak out in direct terms about Jews specifically because they knew this would result in the Nazis cutting off their access to those in concentration camps who they were able to help. The Pope never waivered in defense of the dignity of life and all persons and the Nazis considered him an enemy for his statements. The Allies wanted the Pope as a political tool regardless of how it would increase the suffering of Jews. This part of the book is especially insightful on these key points about the Pope's "silence".

One of the strongest merits of this book is that it relies first and foremost on facts, quotes and articles and provides the source so one can check facts. Other books written against this Pope rely heavily on assumptions about why Pius XII did or did not do things. That is a very dangerous approach and has less to do with recording history than with advancing an agenda, essentially editorializing.

Anyone interested in the truth as heard from the Jewish people of the time and, traditionally anti-Catholic media such as the NYT and Washington Post, should read this book. Trust the people who lived through this frightening and sad time to portray events accurately rather than contemporary "historians" interested more in sensationalism and false scandals.

61 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Eye-Opener, May 31, 2000

By 

Wendy (Sacramento, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pope Pius XII: Architect for Peace (Paperback)

"This Christmas, more than ever, the Pope is a lonely voice crying out in the silence of a continent." --New York Times editorial, Dec. 25, 1942.

"Only the Church stood squarely across the path of Hitler's campaign for suppressing the truth." --Albert Einstein in Time magazine, Dec. 23, 1940.

"The Pope is virtually accusing the German people of injustice toward the Jews and makes himself the mouthpiece of Jewish war criminals." --Reaction of SS leader Reinhard Heydich to Pius XII's Christmas message of 1942.

If these words don't fit with what you've heard lately about Pius XII, this book will be an eye-opener. Marchione has compiled numerous references from journals, statesmen, ambassadors, and both Catholic and Jewish historians which refute recent claims that the Pope presiding during World War II was silent in the face of Nazi atrocities. She portrays instead a man who used his authority to render aid and alleviate the sufferings of all Hitler's victims.

While her defense is passionate, she avoids the criticism of bias by basing her statements on the abundance of documents that she brings to bear on the subject. In fact, the book is worth having for the footnotes and bibliography alone. At times touching--as this citation from Jeno Levai, Jewish Hungarian historian: "In the autumn of 1944 there was practically no Catholic Church institution in Budapest where persecuted Jews did not find refuge."*--and at times stunning--as this from Pinchas Lapide, Israeli Consul General in Milan: "The Catholic Church, under the pontificate of Pius XII, was instrumental in saving as many as 860,000 Jews from certain death at Nazi hands."** --the book is a good read as well as a good reference.

One weakness of the book to my mind is its cursory treatment of the Concordat made between Germany and the Vatican in 1933. As this political agreement is a point of controversy among those who interest themselves in Jewish-Catholic relations, I think it deserved more prime time.

In addition to the numerous footnotes and annotated bibliography, the book contains over 100 pages of selected documents from the Vatican Archives. The two essays by Graham and Blet, both editors of the Vatican archival documents relating to the war, are persuasive and powerful.

The Chief Rabbi of Israel, Isaac Herzog, declared in 1945 that "The people of Israel will never forget what His Holiness and his illustrious delegates ... are doing for our unfortunate brothers and sisters in the most tragic hour of our history...." Why should we read this book? So that we will never forget.

*Hungarian Jewry and the Papacy **Three Popes and the Jews

33 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Book! Based on facts, not innuendo & supposition., May 29, 2000

By 

"chris_parker" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pope Pius XII: Architect for Peace (Paperback)

This is a compelling, well written book which bases its conclusions on quotes from prominent Jewish leaders from the time of Pope Pius XII and Hitler and headlines from typically anti-Cathlolic sources such as the New York Times and Washington Post. When the Chief Rabbi of Rome was saved from death by being hidden in the Vatican and praises Pius XII for all he did to save thousands of Jews, it is difficult to believe than anyone today is "uncovering" the "real" story. Why should anyone believe John Cornwell or any other current day "researcher" when all one has to do is read what the Jews of the time were saying about this Pope? Does Cornwell who did not live through the holocaust have more authority and credibility than Jews who were saved from death by Pius XII?

Dr. Marchione does not rely on her own interpretation of Piux XII's motivations to build her case. She does an excellent job of dissecting the actual recorded historical events of the time and the reaction of prominent leaders around the world, especially Jewish leaders. She also traces back the origin of the criticism of this Pope to the FICTIONAL play "The Deputy". It is unfortunate that many critics of Pope Pius XII either will not take the time to review the facts of what Jewish leaders said about this Pope at the time or will not be honest about their agenda to discredit and tear down the Catholic Church regardless of whether their writings are based on lies and supposition.

The book also provides reprints of documents written by Pope Pius XII decrying Nazism and National Socialism. It also recounts Nazi reaction to some of the Pope's messages identifying him as clearly an enemy of the Nazi regime.

Whether you are Catholic, Jewish or from any other perspective, including atheist, this book provides facts which must be considered before anyone can come to their own conclusion about the actions of Pius XII. Anyone interested in making an informed judgement must include this book in their list of sources before making a judgement.

Great book! It really opened my eyes to a subject I knew little about and cleared up the sources of the attacks against this Pope and the Catholic Church in general.