Book Review: The Pope and the Holocaust by Michael Hesemann

The Pope and the Holocaust: Pius XII and the Vatican Secret Archives by Michael Hesemann

Gaining access to thousands of records released in the early 2000s in the Vatican Secret Archives (now renamed the Vatican Apostolic Archives), Michael Hesemann sets the record straight about Pope Pius XII and actions or seeming inactions during World War II. Just after the war, Pius was lionized by the Jewish community for his efforts to protect European Jews from the wrath of the Nazis. In 1963, the German play The Deputy accused Pius XII of indifference toward the genocide perpetrated by the Nazis. Even though the play was discredited, the myth grew up that the pope did nothing for Jews during the Holocaust.

This book is a meticulous reconstruction of what happened during World War II as the Vatican was under the lesser thumb of Mussolini, and then occupied by the Germans in the last year of the war. The records corroborate the initial post-war impression of what Pius did--he worked hard, but often behind the scenes, to keep Jews from being deported to Eastern Europe, even before the Final Solution became known outside of Nazi circles. Kristallnacht and other pogroms in various countries showed the Nazis were ready, willing, and able to oppress and remove Jews from society by any means they dared to use. While German troops were successful on the battlefield, Hitler had more or less carte blanche to do what he wanted in the homeland and the occupied territories. The Pope used delicate tactics to condemn their racist actions without increasing their furor and potentially making the situation worse. An outright denunciation could be depicted by the Nazis as wartime propaganda. The pope was in touch with several German military leaders who were interested in a coup if they could get support in ending the war. The pope was an ostensibly neutral figure who could communicate with both sides and help bring about peace. In the meantime, Pius asked various countries to provide asylum for Jews willing to leave. He also asked various religious houses (monasteries, convents, schools, etc.) to provide hiding places for Jews who could not escape. In addition to the 8000 Jews living in Rome, many refugees from other European countries had come to Italy where Mussolini did not enforce the "racial purity" laws that Hitler demanded. The overall situation was complicated, with many different facets that needed attention.

While scholarly, this book reads more like a narrative of what happened than an extended argument. The author provides photographs of many documents from the Archive along with translations and explanations of their impact on the situation. I learned a lot from the book and recommend it for a look at the Vatican's actions (and the Catholic Church in general) during World War II.

Highly recommended.

Movie Review: Pius XII: Under the Roman Sun (2010)

Pius XII: Under the Roman Sun (2010) directed by Christian Duguay

This 200-minute made-for-TV movie (in two parts) depicts Pope Pius XII during World War II. He lives in Vatican City surrounded by Axis-controlled Rome. As the movie starts, the Germans are moving in since Mussolini is faltering and the Allies have landed on Italy. Part of the German's program is to deport Italian Jews to the German concentration camps. So both the war and the Holocaust loom over the city. The story isn't just about Pius XII. At least half the story follows three Jews who live in the Jewish Ghetto--two guys and a gal. At the beginning they have a love triangle--intellectual and supporter of the resistance Marco is the "nice guy" while black market profiteer Davide is the "bad guy." He's not so bad, though. He helps out people when he can. The girl is Miriam, whose father owns a bookshop with a secret printing press in the basement. In addition to producing propaganda, they can forge travel documents. As the Nazis clamp down, they are forced to flee, though our trio can't make it out of the city and have to hide in local monasteries and convents (which has been allowed by a direct order from Pius XII). The story goes on until the liberation of Rome by American troops in 1944.

James Cromwell (from Babe and L. A. Confidential) plays Pius XII and does a fine job showing both his inner conflict and his integrity. The three actors in the love triangle (which is fairly chaste and the romantic part resolves about half way through, leaving them to suffer under the German threats) are okay but their storyline is cliche and less interesting than the actual historical events. The Nazis characters run the gamut from fairly interesting to one-dimensional and wooden.

The history is accurate but occasional bits (like the flashback describing how a papal encyclical denouncing the Nazi government was distributed and received in 1930s Germany) feel more like an infomercial than good storytelling. At one point in the movie the Nazis plot to kidnap Pius XII but nothing interesting ever comes of it. The movie looks like it is trying to balance historical accuracy with an interesting story but overall doesn't hit the mark.

Surely this accurate depiction of Pius XII's actions to protect Jews during World War II is important but the movie isn't as satisfying as it could be.