A Dispute between Archbishop Sheen and Francis Cardinal Spellman

Repost from September 13, 2011:

A Dispute between Archbishop Sheen and Francis Cardinal Spellman

From Vidimus Dominum:

(By: Paul I Murphy, La Popessa)

In 1957 Francis Cardinal Spellman, the powerful Archbishop of New York, insisted that Archbishop Fulton Sheen’s Society for the Propagation of the Faith owed the Archdiocese of New York one million dollars for supplies that the Society had distributed to impoverished people around the world. This dispute eventually made its way into the Pope’s office, and was settled when Pope Pius XII learned via a phone call to President Eisenhower that the surplus aid had been donated by the U.S. government to the Church free of charge. Not wishing to humble a longtime friend before another prelate of a lesser rank, the Pope reminded the two bishops that forgiveness was Divine and they should go in peace. He then gave them his blessing.

Once outside the Pope’s office an enraged Cardinal Spellman turned to Archbishop Sheen and shouted angrily, “I will get even with you!” Unmoved, the Archbishop replied while looking squarely at the Cardinal with his penetrating dark eyes, “Jealousy is the tribute mediocrity pays to genius!”

Unfortunately for Archbishop Sheen, Cardinal Spellman made good his threat. His much watched television series was not renewed despite its increasing popularity, and the Archbishop was transferred to a small diocese in Upstate New York, which Cardinal Spellman and other prelates referred to as an “ecclesiastical Siberia.”

Link:

• From History: A Dispute between Archbishop Sheen and Francis Cardinal Spellman

Related:

• Catholic Diocese of Peoria:  Additional Clarifications Regarding Suspension of Archbishop Sheen Cause
• Bishop Sheen Cause Suspended, Call for Prayer
• Body Wars: Inside Info about Fulton Sheen Controversy (w/ New York's Response)
• (2010) Holy Fulton: Amid Dispute Over Resting Place, Peoria Halts Sheen Sainthood
• Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
• Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
• Investigation concludes on alleged Fulton Sheen miracle
• New Beginnings: RealCatholicTV Moves Studio, Changes Name
• Archbishop Fulton Sheen and the Faith - The Vortex With Michael Voris From RealCatholicTV
• Diocese Takes Next Step for Sainthood for Sheen
• Militant vs. Nice
• Archbishop Sheen's cause for beatification 'on track'
• How did Bishop Sheen get to Rochester?
• Archbishop Fulton Sheen and the Faith - The Vortex With Michael Voris From RealCatholicTV
• Remembrance, and Maybe Sainthood, for Bishop Fulton J. Sheen
• Bishop Sheen Quote
• What Are The Seven Last Words of Christ?
• 30 Years Later
• EWTN: Mass to Remember Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
• Man and Woman
• What's my Line? Bishop Fulton J. Sheen
• The Annunciation: When Freedom and Love Were One
• Archbishop Sheen's cause for beatification 'on track'
• The Crisis Must Come
• Diocese Takes Next Step for Sainthood for Sheen
• The Mass
• Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Discusses Angels
• Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen on Loneliness

Latin

From Verbatim via J.P. Sonnen

Links:

• Verbatim
• The Way It Is by Pio XII Magnus

Strike the Shepherd! Behind the Campaign to Smear the Pope

From Fr. Gordon J. MacRae at These Stone Walls:

...WHY SMEAR TACTICS WORK

A little over three years ago, I wrote an article for Catalyst, the Catholic League Journal, entitled “Due Process for Accused Priests.” The article was in part about a phenomenon called “Availability Bias” and how it influences justice when Catholic priests are falsely accused. The concept has crept into all aspects of the media, not just in the reporting of news, but in marketing and advertising as well. The science behind it was formulated and dissected by psychologist, Daniel Kahneman with amazing results.

In 2002 the Catholic priesthood sex abuse scandal was the focus of The Boston Globe Spotlight Team which then spread the “pedophile priest” scare and sound bite to virtually every diocese in the United States. Also in 2002, and ironically, Daniel Kahneman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for his work on “Availability Bias.” It was described in a 2007 lead editorial in The Wall Street Journal (“The Science of Gore’s Nobel,” Dec. 5, 2007) as “the human propensity to judge the validity of a proposition by how easily it comes to mind.”

Kahneman’s research examined how marketing and the media have exploited human suggestibility through “Availability Bias” which he analyzed using two studied phenomena. The first he called “Availability Cascade,” described as “the way a proposition can become irresistible simply by the media repeating it.”

The best example is the smear, “Hitler’s Pope” which comes almost immediately to mind for many at the mere mention of the name of Pope Pius XII. As described in my post referenced above, the smear was widely believed, and still is despite massive evidence to the contrary, simply because the media has repeated it for decades. Its origin is not in the news media, however, but in the propaganda of a repressive Totalitarian regime. The news media was just its all-too-willing microphone.

Daniel Kahneman’s second studied phenomenon in support of “Availability Bias” was what he called “Informational Cascade,” described as “the propensity of humans to abandon or replace their beliefs in favor of the crowd’s beliefs.” I used a famous example in my Holy Week post, “Pope Francis, the Pride of Mockery, and the Mockery of Pride.” One of the criminals crucified with Jesus adopted the mockery of Jesus from the very crowd that had placed that man on his cross. The ability of a crowd to modify our views and beliefs and positions is powerful. Pontius Pilate himself modified his stance about the innocence of Jesus simply through the force of a mob chanting, “Crucify him!”

For “Informational Cascade” to work – for beliefs to be abandoned or replaced in favor of the crowd’s beliefs – one ingredient is necessary: a crowd, shaken or stirred, or at least the appearance of one. Some readers may have noticed a campaign of vile comments about Pope Francis posted at some websites and blogs that are popular among traditional Catholics. Many of the comments were an effort to sow suspicion and discouragement. Naturally, tradition-minded Catholics hold out hopes for how any new pope will address their concerns. I share those hopes.

But when the Vatican announced that Pope Francis would offer the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord’s Supper in a Rome juvenile prison instead of in Saint Peter’s Basilica or the Basilica of St. John Lateran, it stirred concern about the Pope’s sensitivities toward tradition. When the news media captured Pope Francis washing the feet of 12 prisoners – including two women, one of whom was Muslim – that concern for tradition took on a sort of frenzy.

Was he making a statement about his views toward Islam? Was he making a statement about the ordination of women? After all, the Apostles were all men, and Jesus washed their feet – and theirs alone – at the Last Supper. Theologically – and this is a perspective supported by the Church’s tradition – the washing of the feet is not a statement about the recipients of the action of Jesus, but about Jesus himself, and the humility he wished to convey in the model for spiritual leadership it implied. The identity of the recipients is immaterial. As the Vicar of Christ, Pope Francis was well within theological tradition to make this statement of Christ-like humility. There is no evidence for believing it was anything else.

MANIPULATING THE MOB

Intermixed with the crowd’s already stirred concern, however, was some carefully choreographed mob manipulation. As Pope Francis washed the feet of twelve young offenders, some critics posted vile comments accusing the Holy Father of “grooming” behaviors suggestive of dark and nefarious agendas right before the world’s eyes.

I am not at all concerned for the many comments posted about the emotion regarding tradition that Pope Francis has stirred. These concerns are natural, and I believe they should be raised and will have answers that are clearer to us all in time. However, when tradition-minded blogs also post vile comments attacking without just cause the character and morals of the Holy Father, a line of justice and decency has been crossed, and those blogs and bloggers have diminished themselves and their credibility. You would never see such comments on These Stone Walls. Never! It is because we take very seriously the responsibility for justice and truth that are essential parts of the stewardship of a Catholic blog... (continued)

Click Here to Read the Rest of the Article

Link:

• Strike the Shepherd! Behind the Campaign to Smear the Pope

Related:

• Fr. Gordon MacRae: Federal Court to Hear Oral Arguments in Habeas Corpus Appeal

Hitler’s Pope, Nazi Crimes, and The New York Times

By Father Gordon J. MacRae

New evidence unmasks a myth that Pope Pius XII was “Hitler’s Pope:’ and a shocking failure of The New York Times to tell the world of the Holocaust.

These Stone Walls might seem a strange place to be reading this story, but in a way it might make sense. Too many Catholic writers today seem to fear The New York Times and the rest of the mainstream news media.

It’s a subtle fear that I laid out in “The Catholic Press Needs to Get Over Its Father Maciel Syndrome.” There are courageous exceptions, of course, and notable among them are Bill Donohue of The Catholic League and David F. Pierre of The Media Report. Both have repeatedly and forcefully called The New York Times to task for its distortions of news pertaining to the Catholic Church. Nowhere have these distortions been more evident than in the Catholic sex abuse scandal, a drama I have lived every day for the last 18 years. It’s also a drama that leads the late 20th Century litany of anti-Catholic agendas in the news. I gave several examples in a post entitled “Catholic Scandal and the News Media.”

Running a close second in that litany is the story of Pope Pius XII during the Holocaust. You have all read or heard the claims that Pope Pius XII was silent, at best, during the Holocaust, and at worst secured an accommodation with the Third Reich that saved the Catholic Church at the expense of the Jews. It’s not at all true, but the truth has had an uphill climb against the pervasive story, told again and again, that Pope Pius XII failed to confront Hitler during his systematic genocide of over six million European Jews and millions of others. You’ve heard the story of this supposed silence in a slanderous media sound bite that Pope Pius XII was “Hitler’s Pope.” Next to the “pedophile priest” propaganda, it is probably the most often used and abused modern anti-Catholic slur. But simply put, it is a lie.

Newly emerging evidence reveals that the entire story was the result of an organized propaganda effort sponsored by the Soviet KGB to discredit Pope Pius XII and the Catholic Church. It’s a shocking story, the stuff of Tom Clancy novels and wild conspiracy theories, but it’s also true, and I’ll unravel that truth in a few moments... (continued)

Read More at These Stone Walls

Link:

• Hitler’s Pope, Nazi Crimes, and The New York Times

Is the Higgs Boson the “God Particle?”

By Father Gordon J. MacRae

...If ever you bristle about the typical anti-Catholic mythology that religion attempts to hold back science, remember that the originator of all the science behind this model of creation was a Catholic priest, and many of the great scientists of his time did everything they could to suppress his ideas. They failed because they could not successfully refute either his faith or his science. In the end, even Einstein bowed to Father Lemaitre declaring that his model “was the most satisfactory explanation of creation I have ever heard.” If you have not read “A Day Without Yesterday,” please do.

Pope Pius XII applauded Father Lemaitre’s discovery of The Big Bang because it challenged the acceptable science of the time which claimed that the Universe was not created, but always existed and is eternal. Einstein later acknowledged that this “Cosmological Constant” was his greatest error...

On July fourth, physicists announced they had a momentary glimpse of the elusive Higgs boson, the subatomic particle long theorized to exist, and without which matter itself would not exist. The physicists who reported that they only found “evidence” of the Higgs boson are just being careful scientists. The discovery has a 99.9999% rate of certainty. There is no doubt left. The Higgs boson does indeed exist.

SO, IS IT “THE GOD PARTICLE?”

The short answer is “no.” Imagine for a moment that you’re on an archeological dig on the outskirts of Rome. Standing in your carefully excavated hole, your spade strikes a metal box. Inside you discover a small, worn chisel, and a note written in 16th Century Italian: “Herein lies my favorite chisel.” The note is signed, “Michelangelo Buonarroti.”

Well, if you’re an art historian, what you now hold might be priceless. If you’re also a person of faith who has viewed the magnificence of Michelangelo’s Pieta, you may treasure this forever as one of the tools used to create a work of artistic genius. Your discovery might land on a shelf with your name on it in the Vatican Museum. There will be no doubt that what you discovered is a tool used to create an inspired work of art, but it is not itself the art’s creator.

What does the discovery of the Higgs boson mean for faith in a Universe created by God? Absolutely nothing. To say that the Higgs boson and gravity are responsible for the creation of our Universe is sort of like saying that Michelangelo did not sculpt the Pieta, his chisel did... (continued)

Read More at These Stone Walls

Pope Benedict XVI Thumps Protestants

"Growing religious pluralism is a factor that calls for serious consideration. The ever more active presence of Pentecostal and Evangelical communities, not only in Colombia, but also in many regions of Latin America, cannot be ignored or underestimated." - Pope Benedict XVI

Militant vs. Nice

"Our Lord was crucified by the nice people who held that religion was all right in its place, so long as its place was not here, where it might demand of them a change of heart.  The gravest error of the nice people in all ages is the denial of sin."


- Archbishop Fulton Sheen

ROMAN MARTYROLOGY - JUNE 7

From Timwhit:

Martyrology-June 7th

Roman Martyrology-June 7th- on this date in various years-

For 2012 The Feast of the most Sacred Body of Christ.

At Constantinople, the birthday of St. Paul, bishop of that city. For the Catholic faith, he was often driven out of his see by the Arians, but restored to it by the Roman Pontiff, St. Julius I. Finally the Arian emperor Constantius banished him to Cucusum, a small town of Cappadocia. There, by the intrigue of the Arians, he was barbarously strangled, and thus departed for the heavenly kingdom. His body was taken to Constantinople with the greatest honour during the reign of Emperor Theodosius.

At Cordova in Spain, the holy martyrs Peter, a priest, Wallabonsus, a deacon, Sabinianus, Wistremund, Habentius, and Jeremias, all of whom were monks. Their throats were cut at the time of the Arab persecution because they had confessed Christ.

At Hermopolis in Egypt, St. Licarion, martyr, who had his body lacerated, was scourged with heated iron rods, and endured other horrible torments, after which his martyrdom was completed by beheading.

At Placentia, St. Anthony Mary Gianelli, bishop of Bobbio, and founder of the Congregation of Sisters of our Lady of the Garden. Pope Pius XII numbered him among the saints of heaven.

In England, St. Robert, an abbot of the Cistercian Order.

And elsewhere in divers places, many other holy martyrs, confessors, and holy virgins.

R. Thanks be to God.

Link:

• ROMAN MARTYROLOGY - JUNE 7

A transitional papacy?

By Marco Tosatti

(La Stampa) I am curious, in a way that might come across as slightly malicious, about one thing. I wonder how many of those who voted for Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in April 2005 expected the Bavarian Pope to still be here among us seven years on. Despite his brisk baby steps which are made all the more uncertain by the problems he has with his hip and his right knee, Benedict XVI is still here and retains his eagerness to do things. Unfortunately it is a difficult question to ask let alone respond to sincerely. What many cardinals expected to be a transitional papacy is in fact turning into something quite different. It is turning into a foundational kingdom, created by someone who seeks to work silently, persistently and deeply.

How? Not many are aware of the fact that a great deal of Benedict XVI’s time and effort is spent on mysterious work which does not and should not attract the media’s attention but is fundamental to Church life: this is in order to prevent giving the media any negative reasons to start focusing on it any time soon.

Benedict XVI is adamant that the strength - and weakness - of the Church is found first and foremost in the dioceses, in local Churches. During John Paul II’s pontificate, the choice of bishops was often left to presidents of Episcopal Conferences, to nuncios and to other components of the central and local Churches. If what is told to us is true, - and we have no reason to doubt it is so - the Pope has, in recent years, been reluctant to sign anything. John Paul II delegated; he trusted those he worked with, sometimes unsuccessfully, as history has shown us.

Benedict XVI’s has a different style. He studies every dossier prepared for the three candidates in each diocese, he examines the course of studies and professional experience of potential future bishops and finally takes a decision. Indeed, he often asks for other candidates to be presented to him if he is not satisfied by the individuals who have been shortlisted. It is a tedious and not particularly glamorous task, but one for which the Church of the next few decades will be very grateful to him.

This is Benedict XVI’s style and it remains unchanged since his cardinal days. It is a solitary one for sure; a part from the occasional visit to elderly German speaking cardinals, it is impossible to recall a time when Ratzinger showed a social streak during his time in the Curia, inviting and being invited to the homes of colleagues and friends.

The same solitude is perceived now that he is Pope. The progressive weakening of his Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone only emphasises this. Towards the end of his papacy, Pius XII had two reputable bulldog-like men, Tardini and Ottaviani, to watch out for him as he got old. Paul VI had Benelli to keep the Secretary of State and the Curia under control. But in Benedict XVI’s case, it is difficult to point with certainty to any figures that could be termed “the Pope’s men” beyond the Bronze Door. Except for Bertone, who nevertheless seems incapable of reacting in an efficient manner to the attacks that the various poison pen letter writers have been launching at him over the past few months. And no answer has come from the full blown “inquiries” into the Vatileaks scandal, involving leaked documents concerning the papal Apartment. Neither has any light been shed by the Vatican commission of cardinals, whose members and work remain a mystery, to the extent that many actually doubt it even exists.

During the seven years of his papacy, Benedict XVI has gradually carried out his role taking steps forward; trying to honour John Paul II’s often heavy and ambiguous legacy; to defend himself and the Church from a number of attacks and malevolence that have not been witnessed since the Cold War, often with inadequate or insufficient means. Above all, - to return to the beginning of this reflection - Benedict XVI has carried out his role with such resilience, including physical, which cannot fail to surprise and perhaps does surprise some, whilst leading others to believe that the current Pope is not so alone after all; perhaps he is in good Company. Ad multos annos.

• A transitional papacy? 

Pope Benedict XVI blesses bronze bust of Pope Pius XII

(Catholic Culture) Pope Benedict XVI blessed a bronze bust of his predecessor Venerable Pius XII at his June 2 general audience, according to a German-language Vatican Radio report. Pope Benedict also greeted Sister Margherita Marchione, the 88-year-old American historian and defender of Pius XII's wartime record.
Source(s): these links will take you to other sites, in a new window.

• Vatikan: Papst Benedikt XVI. segnet eine Bronzebüste von Pius XII (Vatican Radio)
• Sister Margherita Marchione

Original

Pope Pius Clock

Cathy of Alex received her Pope Pius Clock and has a review up:

Featuring Pius Popes - I-XIIhttp://www.cafepress.com/popepiusclock Click to order US, UK, CA, AU

 Detail of Pope Pius VII's portrait on the clock  
"For over 10 years I’ve had a kitchen clock that my good friend, Laura, bought for me years ago. It sings out a different bird at the top of the hour. You may have had one a decade ago; they were a “fad” around the same time as the dreaded “Billy Bass” phenomenon!

My Dad detests the clock. When I bought my house in 2001, he personally moved it over to my house and hung it in the kitchen. Before I bought the house I was living with my Dad. I’d moved in to help him care for my mother. After she died, I remained living there for a few years; Dad and I needed each other. Finally, I was ready to move on. Dad made sure I took that “dang bird clock” with me.

I’ve been pondering buying a new kitchen clock for a while. In these days of timepieces on nearly everthing; sometimes a clock seems unecessary. But, I’ve always thought a kitchen clock not only tells time but it makes a statement..."

Read More

• 12 Hours of Pius-A Product Review 
• Pope Pius Clock Store

Catholic group asks Pope to halt moves toward beatification of Pius XII

From Catholic World News:

A small group of Catholic scholars has written to Pope Benedict XVI urging him not to press forward with the cause for beatification of Pope Pius XII. Saying that the recent step to confer the title "venerable" on the wartime Pontiff "deeply troubles us," the signatories urge patience.

"Proceeding with the cause of Pope Pius XII without an exhaustive study of his actions during the Holocaust might harm Jewish-Catholic relations in a way that cannot be overcome in the foreseeable future," they argue.

The letter was signed by a group of American, German, and Australian scholars, including Father John Pawlikowski of the Catholic Theological Union and Dr. Eugene Fisher, who for years headed the staff of the US bishops' conference working on Catholic-Jewish relations. Their letter was sent not only to Pope Benedict but also the Cardinal Walter Kasper, the Vatican's chief liaison with world Jewish leaders, and Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York.

Source(s): these links will take you to other sites, in a new window.

• Catholic scholars urge pope to slow Pius sainthood (Reuters)

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• Catholic group asks Pope to halt moves toward beatification of Pius XII (Catholic World News)
• Scholars ask pope to slow Pius XII's canonization (National Catholic Reporter)
• Catholic scholars urge pope to slow Pius sainthood (Reuters)
• Catholic scholars ask pope to slow process of Pope Pius XII's cause (Catholic News Service)
• Yad Vashem Honor Sought for Pius XII (Zenit)
• Heroes: Columbus and Pius XII (Zenit)
• Events to Mark 50th Anniversary of Pius XII's Death
• Holocaust Survivors to Thank Pope (Zenit)

A Solemn Act of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Most Holy Virgin Mary, tender Mother of men, to fulfill the desires of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the request of the Vicar of Your Son on earth, we consecrate ourselves and our families to your Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart, O Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, and we recommend to You, all the people of our country and all the world.

Please accept our consecration, dearest Mother, and use us as You wish to accomplish Your designs in the world.

O Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, and Queen of the World, rule over us, together with the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ, Our King. Save us from the spreading flood of modern paganism; kindle in our hearts and homes the love of purity, the practice of a virtuous life, an ardent zeal for souls, and a desire to pray the Rosary more faithfully.

We come with confidence to You, O Throne of Grace and Mother of Fair Love. Inflame us with the same Divine Fire which has inflamed Your own Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart. Make our hearts and homes Your shrine, and through us, make the Heart of Jesus, together with your rule, triumph in every heart and home.

Amen.

--Venerable Pope Pius XII

Queenship of Mary

From Holy Cards For Your Inspiration:

"Because the virgin Mary was raised to such a lofty dignity as to be the mother of the King of kings,

it is deservedly and by every right that the Church has honored her with the title of 'Queen'."

St. Alphonsus Ligouri

On October 11, 1954, His Holiness, Pope Pius XII, in his encyclical letter, "Ad Caeli Reginam" decreed and instituted the feast of the Queenship of Mary to be celebrated throughout the world every year. Likewise, he decreed that on that feast "there be renewed the consecration of the human race to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary."

from: St. Joseph WEEKDAY MISSAL, volume 2

• Link

Yad Vashem Honor Sought for Pius XII

Foundation Announces Plan to Initiate Process

NEW YORK, JULY 2, 2009 (Zenit.org).- A foundation announced plans to nominate Pope Pius XII for the "Righteous Among the Nations" honor, traditionally given to non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust.

Gary Krupp, president of the New York-based Pave the Way Foundation, an organization that promotes interreligious dialogue, affirmed this Wednesday in a statement to ZENIT.

He reported that the foundation has the nomination guidelines from the Righteous Among the Nations Department of the Holocaust Museum Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, and will open the case soon.

Krupp stated that the foundation has "devoted years to gathering original documentation and video testimony on this controversial papacy and we believe we have uncovered enough pertinent material to now begin to seek the notarized written testimonies to officially begin this judicial procedure [with] Yad Vashem."

The president, himself a Jew, explained, "In most cases of those who have been honored as Righteous Among the Nations, the honoree has directly acted to save individual lives all while risking his or her own life to do so."

He continued: "The actions of Eugenio Pacelli [Pope Pius XII] do not fit this general description. However, we can establish the direct intercession of the Pope to act resulting in saving hundreds of thousands of Jewish lives.

"But obviously because of the nature of the high office he held, Pacelli would almost never have been in direct contact with those he saved."

Krupp reported one exception, when the Pontiff personally interceded "on behalf of his best friend Dr. Guido Mendes, an Orthodox Jewish boyhood friend," sending the family to Palestine in 1938.

The president added, "We can also establish that the life-saving actions of Pacelli were carried out under the threat of death."

He reported: "In an emergency meeting called by Pope Pius XII with the cardinals on Sept. 6, 1943, he informed [them] that he signed a letter of resignation placed in his desk and that he expected to be kidnapped at any time.

"The cardinals were to be packed and ready to instantly leave the Vatican for a neutral government where they were to elect a new Pope.

"This emergency meeting was a month before the Jews of Rome were rounded up and the Pope interceded immediately to save them. This actual document is not yet available, but we know it exists."

Krupp added that the foundation recently obtained from Germany "the affidavit from General Karl Wolff, deputy to Himmler and Commandant in Italy, that he was ordered by Hitler to plan the seizure of the Vatican and to kidnap the Pope."

Seeking truth

The statement expressed the hope that by initiating the case for honoring the Pontiff, Yad Vashem will begin its own investigation, "which is an internationally respected judicial process and will help to bring the historical truth to light."

The president noted that the foundation will be seeking "notarized original testimonies of individuals who, in many cases, were never aware that it was Pacelli who acted to save their lives."

He explained: "An example of this is the acceptance and transport of Jews into the Dominican Republic.

"We have the video testimony of 97-year-old Monsignor Giovanni Ferrofino, secretary to the nuncio in Port Au Prince, Haiti, during the war who, together with the nuncio, personally acted on the direct orders of Pius XII twice a year to obtain visas for Jews arriving from Portugal to the Dominican Republic.

"Monsignor Ferrofino traveled with the nuncio, [Archbishop Maurilio] Silvani, to get 800 visas per boat load twice a year from 1939-1945 and appealed directly to General Rafael Trujillo in the name of Pius XII."

"This action," Krupp noted, "saved over 10,000 Jews who were then routed into America with the help of Monsignor Ferrofino through Cuba, Mexico and Canada."

He expressed the hope that Yad Vashem "will act to verify the information we will be sending."

"The job is now locating many of these survivors or their relatives to get signed notarized statements," Krupp affirmed.

He stated that "we have located thousands of documents and could not locate one negative document in our search."

This "private investigative project" has been carried out in accordance with the foundation's mission, the president affirmed, with the hope of breaking "the 46-year-old academic log jam" and of eliminating "this obstacle which impacts over one billion people."

Over 22,000 men and women from 45 countries have been awarded this title by the State of Israel, representing over 10,000 confirmed rescue stories.

Only a Jewish party can initiate a nomination, and must prove that the nominee gave assistance that was repeated or substantial, and without any expectation of compensation.

--- --- ---

On the Net:

Pave the Way Foundation: www.ptwf.org

• Link
  

Vatican planned to move to Portugal if Nazis captured wartime Pope

Secret plans were drawn up by the Vatican to elect a new Pope and flee to a friendly country should Hitler have carried out his threat to kidnap the wartime Pontiff, it was claimed yesterday.

By Nick Squires in Rome and Simon Caldwell
Last Updated: 3:25AM BST 22 Apr 2009

Pope Pius XII told senior bishops that should he be arrested by the Nazis, his resignation would become effective immediately, paving the way for a successor, according to documents in the Vatican's Secret Archives.

The bishops would then be expected to flee to a safe country – probably neutral Portugal – where they would re-establish the leadership of the Roman Catholic Church and appoint a new Pontiff.

That Hitler considered kidnapping the Pope has been documented before, but this is the first time that details have emerged of the Vatican's strategy should the Nazis carry out the plan.

"Pius said 'if they want to arrest me they will have to drag me from the Vatican'," said Peter Gumpel, the German Jesuit priest who is in charge of researching whether Pius should be made a saint, and therefore has access to secret Vatican archives.

Pius, who was Pope throughout the war, told his advisers "the person who would leave the under these conditions would not be Pius XII but Eugenio Pacelli" – his name before he was elected Pontiff – thus giving permission for a new Pope to be elected.

"It would have been disastrous if the Church had been left without an authoritative leader," said Father Gumpel.

"Pius wouldn't leave voluntarily. He had been invited repeatedly to go to Portugal or Spain or the United States but he felt he could not leave his diocese under these severe and tragic circumstances." Vatican documents, which still remain secret, are believed to show that Pius was aware of a plan formulated by Hitler in July 1943 to occupy the Vatican and arrest him and his senior cardinals...

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Pius Clock

Heroes: Columbus and Pius XII

Remembering the Truth of Their Faith and Courage

By Elizabeth Lev

ROME, OCT. 16, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Even the ancient Romans understood the importance of gratitude. Marcus Tullius Cicero, orator extraordinaire, extolled that "gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others."

Yet in our modern age we seem to have lost this virtue as revisionist history, cinema and popular literature have vilified those whose achievements have shaped the world we live in today.

This came to mind Sunday, Oct. 12, on what was once known as Columbus Day in commemoration of the day Christopher Columbus first sighted the New World.

This event, which opened the age of discovery, has been since renamed "Indigenous People Day" by some U.S. towns, thus casting into obscurity the courageous and visionary undertaking of the explorer and his patrons who equipped the mission.

Columbus himself has been recast as a greedy, social-climbing tyrant, and while his defects have been blown out of all proportion, his admirable qualities have been simply forgotten.

Ironically, Columbus, the first European man to set foot in America, was the first example of what would later be called "the American dream."

Born of poor parents in Genoa, he immigrated to Spain with only his hard-earned knowledge of seamanship, his desire to get ahead and his profound Catholic faith to sustain him.

Like the countless immigrants who would follow him, he had a dream and the drive to work hard and take risks to realize it.

Divine Providence decreed that he would find a sympathetic ear in the king and queen of Spain, and so Columbus fulfilled his life's ambition, did well for himself and paved the way for future generations to be able to excel through hard work and ingenuity.

A deeply devout man, Columbus was always grateful to God and dedicated his mission to the New World to the conversion of pagan peoples; like the apostles, he hoped to bring the Gospel to those who had never heard of Christ. Upon sighting land on Oct. 13, 1492, the entire crew prayed the Salve Regina.

Today, his contributions are masked by words like "exploitation" and "gold-hunger," but all those Americans who descend from families who hoped to live out their ambitions while freely practicing their faith, should be grateful to Christopher Columbus who was not only great navigator on the seas, but in life.

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Myth and Lies

Last Oct. 9, the Church offered a magisterial example of the virtue of gratitude while remembering the 50th anniversary of the death of Pope Pius XII, one of the unsung heroes of the 20th century.

The life of Pius XII seems to have certain parallels with this summer's blockbuster film "The Dark Knight." The hero, Batman, out of love for his fellow citizens, must sacrifice recognition for his relentless battle against evil and ultimately endure persecution by the very people he is protecting.

Pius XII, who reigned from 1939 to 1958, spanning the years of the Second World War, was universally lauded for his wartime efforts after the defeat of the Nazis. But revisionists of many stripes in the late 20th century have competed with one another to besmirch his name, culminating in the scandalous label -- or libel -- of John Cornwall's "Hitler's Pope."

Obscured by the flood of false accusations, from criminal silence regarding the fate of the Jews in Germany to active participation in their persecution, the brilliantly innovative aspects of this pontificate have been completely neglected.

But the tables recently turned for Pius XII as, in the words of Vatican reporter John Allen, Benedict XVI initiated a "full court press" to redeem the name of this great Pope and push forward the cause for his beatification.

An international symposium was held in Rome last September under the auspices of the Pave the Way foundation in order to shed light on the activities of Pius XII in favor of the Jews during World War II.

This organization was founded by an American Jew, Gary Krupp, who believes that in order to create a fruitful dialogue among religions, the accusations regarding Pius XII, a source "of friction between people," must be laid to rest through the discovery of the truth.

Among the findings of the conference was that those who "lived through the brutality of the Nazis and were saved by the church's actions" had a high opinion of the Pope. The Israeli Philharmonic orchestra asked to play for Pope Pius in 1955, and at his death Israeli Foreign Minister Golda Meir mourned "a great servant of peace."

Krupp noted that it has been the "subsequent generations born into the safety of the defeat of the Nazi regime" who have bought into the myth of the Pius XII as a Nazi collaborator.

During the three-day conference, the meticulous research of Sister Margherita Marchione, Rabbi David Dalin, Andrea Tornielli, Ronald Rychlak and many others was presented, refuting the spurious accusations against the Pope and demonstrating his tremendous role in saving Jewish lives.

Paolo Mieli, director of Italy's leading newspaper, "Corriere della Sera," who happens to be a secular Jew, added another interesting point in an interview published in L'Osservatore Romano when he noted that the hostility toward Pius XII did not originate among the Jews.

It was an Eastern European playwright, Rolf Hochhuth, apparently backed by the KGB, who started the ripple that turned into an earthquake with his six-hour play "The Deputy," in which the playwright accused the Pius XII of culpable silence regarding the persecution of the Jews.

The theatrical piece was quickly picked up by leftist promoters in Paris and London and soon enough, Anglo-Saxon "scholars" hopped on the bandwagon with bestselling books like "Hitler's Pope," "Papal Sin" and "Under His Very Windows."

But when Pope Paul VI announced the opening of the beatification process of both John XXIII and Pius XII in 1965, there were no objections. The Pope's decision to jointly open the two processes was a message of continuity within the Church.

The lies regarding Pius XII were welcomed and even abetted, however, by those who wanted to create a division in the 20th-century Church by drawing a line between the "good" John XXIII and the "bad" Pius XII, and between the "old" Church and the "new" Church of the Second Vatican Council.

But in this wonderful week, as Benedict XVI celebrated a Mass in honor of his esteemed predecessor in a packed St. Peter's Basilica, a giant step was taken toward putting to rest the fictitious legend and honoring the great contributions of Pius XII.

Earlier in the day, the Pope's secretary of state Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone wrote in L'Osservatore Romano of Pius XII's material assistance to the Jews. He said that if Pius XII "had intervened publicly, he would have endangered the lives of thousands of Jews who, at his request, were hidden in the 155 convents and monasteries in the city of Rome alone."

During his homily, Benedict XVI offered a refreshing new view of Pius XII indicating "a great multitude of speeches, addresses and messages delivered to scientists, doctors, and representatives of the most varied categories of workers, some of which even today still possess an extraordinary relevance and continue to be a concrete point of reference."

The current Pontiff concluded with the thought: "As we pray the process of beatification of servant of God Pius XII proceeds happily, it is well to recall that holiness was his ideal, an ideal that he constantly urged for all."

At last, a hero's welcome for Pope Pius XII.

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Elizabeth Lev teaches Christian art and architecture at Duquesne University's Italian campus. She can be reached at lizlev@zenit.org.

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Events to Mark 50th Anniversary of Pius XII's Death

Show Pope of "Great Stature"

VATICAN CITY, JUNE 17, 2008 (Zenit.org).- A conference and exhibition on the near 20-year pontificate of Pope Pius XII and the years leading up to his election to the See of Peter will mark the 50th anniversary of the Servant of God's death.

Today in the Vatican press office, the two commemorative initiatives were presented. Pius XII served as Pope from 1939-1958.

Bishop Salvatore Fisichella, rector of the Pontifical Lateran University, spoke of the Pontiff's "great stature, especially in spiritual terms, but also intellectually and diplomatically."

It fell to Pius XII to lead the Church during various significant historical situations, the bishop recalled, including "the genocide of the Jews, the communist occupation of various Christian nations, the Cold War, new advances of science, and the innovations of certain schools of theology."

Bishop Fisichella further pointed out that "what remains largely unknown is Pius XII's influence on Vatican Council II."

In this context, he mentioned the 43 encyclicals "that marked his pontificate, and the many discourses in which he examined the most controversial questions of his time."

The rector suggested that certain traits are particularly characteristic of Pius XII's magisterium. He summarized them in three points: "Firstly the promotion of doctrine, the definition of the dogma of the Assumption in 1950 being particularly memorable; [...] secondly defending doctrine and indicating errors," such as in the encyclical "Humani generis" of 1950 where Pius XII examines "the serious problem of theological relativism. [...] Finally, Pius XII never failed to make his voice heard clearly and explicitly when circumstances required it."

Alma mater

The conference on Pius XII's magisterium is scheduled for November and will be held at two universities where the future Pope studied, the Gregorian and Lateran Universities. (The Lateran University at the time was the Roman Seminary of Sant'Apollinare.)

Jesuit Father Gianfranco Ghirlanda, rector of the Pontifical Gregorian University, spoke of the itinerary of the conference.

"The first day will be dedicated to four introductory lectures on the general views of Pius XII and the cultural and historical context in which that great Pontiff developed his magisterium," Father Ghirlanda explained. The themes will include: the development of biblical studies, evangelization, religious freedom and Church-state relations, and the social communications media.

The morning of the second day will focus on "Pius XII's teaching in the fields of ecclesiology, liturgy and the role of the laity. The afternoon will be dedicated to his vision of relations between the Church and the world, Mariology, medicine and morals and, finally, questions of canon law," he added.

Man and Pope

Monsignor Walter Brandmuller, president of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences, presented the other commemorative event: a photographic exhibition titled "Pius XII: the Man and the Pontificate."

The exhibit "will illustrate the life of this great and exceptional Pontiff who was already an object of admiration among his contemporaries," Monsignor Brandmuller noted. "It has been sought to reconstruct Eugenio Pacelli's life from boyhood to death, using images -- many of them unpublished -- as well as documents, personal objects, gifts and clothes: his formation at the Pontifical Roman Athenaeums, his training for a diplomatic career at the Secretariat of State; his mission to Germany -- first in Bavaria then in Berlin; his return to the Vatican as secretary of state and, finally, his election to the pontifical throne."

Giovanni Morello, president of the Foundation for the Artistic Patrimony and Activity of the Church, noted that the exhibition will follow the Pontiff's life "through contemporary photographs, many of them supplied by the photographic service of L'Osservatore Romano, documents and personal effects, loaned both by the Pacelli family and by the 'Famiglia Spirituale Opera.'"

The exhibition will be on display in the Charlemagne Wing off St. Peter's Square from Oct. 21 to Jan. 6.

"[It] begins with the birth of the future Pope -- in Rome on March 2, 1876 -- and follows his youthful and scholastic activities up to the moment of his priestly ordination on April 2, 1899," Morello explained.

Young Father Pacelli soon entered the service of the Holy See; he was consecrated a bishop by Pope Benedict XV in the Sistine Chapel in 1917, then appointed as nuncio, first in Bavaria (1917-1924) and subsequently in Berlin (1925-1929), at a crucial moment in German history.

On Dec. 16, 1929, Pius XI named him a cardinal and soon afterward appointed him as secretary of state.

The young cardinal thus became the Pope's main collaborator, Morello said, noting as proof "the corrections and notes Cardinal Pacelli made in preparing some of the most important documents, including the famous encyclical 'Mit brennender Sorge,'" written in 1937 on the German Reich.

"During this period, Cardinal Pacelli made many journeys abroad; he was the first secretary of state, after many centuries, to travel as papal legate," Morello mentioned. Among the countries he visited were Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, the United States and France.

An art lover

The exhibition will also cover the events of Pius XII's pontificate, particularly the Second World War, and the Holy See's humanitarian efforts in support of individuals and peoples, including the people of Rome.

"The exhibition, apart from its historical and documentary aspects," Morello continued, "is also of great artistic interest. Indeed, not everyone is aware that the first nucleus of the modern art collection in the Vatican Museums, later expanded during the pontificate of Paul VI, dates back to an initiative of Pius XII. [...] Ten works from this original nucleus will be on display, including paintings by Carra, De Chirico, De Pisis, Morandi, Rouault, Sironi and Utrillo, as well as a number of sketches presented for the competition for the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica for the Holy Year 1950."

"The artistic side of the exhibition is enriched by the presence of various valuable 'gifts' given to Pius XII during his pontificate, such as the 'Peace' offered by Luigi Einaudi, president of Italy; the precious desk service by Giovanni Valadier, a gift from the city authorities in 1956, and a small table clock given to the Pope by the first personal representative of the U.S. president," Morello added. "All these items used to be kept by the Vatican Apostolic Library and are now held in the Vatican Museums. [...] They will be on display with the vestments and other objects used by Pius XII, which today are conserved in the Pontifical Liturgical Treasury."

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Holocaust Survivors to Thank Pope

Foundation Events Aim to Shine Light on Historical Facts

NEW YORK, JUNE 9, 2008 (Zenit.org).- A New York-based organization will bring a group of Jewish Holocaust survivors to visit Benedict XVI next week. They want to personally thank the Pope for the Church's intervention in saving their lives during the war.

The Pave the Way foundation is bringing the group to visit the German Pontiff on June 18. It is just one initiative the foundation has undertaken to clear up misunderstandings about the Church and its role during the Holocaust.

Another initiative is a September symposium on the papacy of Pope Pius XII.

The Pave the Way foundation partnered with TV News Agency Rome Reports to videotape eye witness testimony. They uncovered secret activities of the Pope and members of the papal household to save the lives of Jews during the war.

The foundation consulted various experts who will be panelists at the symposium. The audience will be over 100 mostly Jewish religious, educational and community leaders from around the world.

The participants will be presented with historical newspaper accounts, documents and eye witness testimony from those who are still alive.

The purpose of the symposium will be to analyze what is known to date, while Vatican archivists continue to prepare thousands of documents to be opened.

The foundation clarified that the symposium does not aim to give a scholarly review of archived manuscripts.

"This event will be almost like a jury, where events of the day and actual witnesses can help the group reach a reasonable conclusion today, which will be subject to historical confirmation when the archives have been opened," a statement from the foundation explained.

The symposium participants will also get a chance to visit Benedict XVI.

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