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 THE BOOK that proves for a new
generation that Pope Pius XII was the archenemy of Adolf Hitler.
A closely reasoned and scholarly study of the conflict between Pope Pius
XII and Hitler, this work dispels the fog surrounding this issue that first
crept out in the early sixties with Rolf Hochhuth's imaginary play, The
Deputy, and more recently with the now discredited Hitler's Pope
of John Cornwell.
Rabbi
David Dalin,
former professor at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, in The
Weekly Standard:
“...Hitler, the War, and the Pope
[is] the best and most careful of the recent works, an elegant tome of
serious, critical scholarship.”
Prof.
Robert George,
McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence, Princeton University:
“Rychlak has buried the myth under an
avalanche of facts .... [He] has done more than anyone else to set the
record straight.”
Did you
know that —
- Pius XII saved more Jews than Oskar Schindler? Read more.
- Hitler was so furious at the Pope that he was about to send the SS to
arrest the Pope and destroy the Vatican? Read more.
- Israeli diplomat Pinchas Lapide stated: “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.
This figure exceeds by far those saved by all other churches and
rescue organizations combined.” (Three Popes and the Jews, New York: Hawthorn Publishers, 1967.)
- Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir said of Pius XII, "During the 10 years of
Nazi terror, when our people went through the horrors of martyrdom,
the Pope raised his voice to condemn the persecutors and to
commiserate with their victims."
- Nahum Goldman, President
of the World Jewish Congress, said, "With special gratitude we
remember all he has done for the persecuted Jews during one of the
darkest periods of their entire history."
- Time
Magazine
reported December 23, 1940, that Albert Einstein said, "Only the
Church stood squarely across the path of Hitler's campaign for
suppressing truth." Read more.
- The New York Times, on Christmas Day, 1942, said of Pius XII, “This Christmas,
more than ever he is a lonely voice crying
out of the silence of a continent.”
Read more.
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BOOK NOW
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Our
Sunday Visitor
The Buzz About the Book See what
people are saying about Hitler, the War, and the Pope.
An Interview with Rabbi Dalin Historian Rabbi
David Dalin of New York comes down on the side of Pius XII.
Reviews A sampling of reviews by law
journals and other sources.
60 Minutes on Pius XII Prof. Rychlak
handily dismantles CBS TV's 60 Minutes' inequitable presentation.
The Holy See vs. The Third Reich An article by
Prof. Rychlak appearing in the Oct. 1998 issue of the New Oxford Review.
An Interview With Prof. Ron Rychlak An April, 2001,
inter-view with ZENIT, the International News Agency.
Hitler's Plan to Arrest Pius XII and Destroy the
Vatican A replay of "Is Paris burning?"
Pius XII Rehabilitated by Jewish Historian
Prof.
Richard Breitman of American University in Washington weighs in on the
issue.
Cornwell's Errors A point-for-point
devastation of John Cornwell's Hitler's Pope: The Secret History of Pius
XII.
The Morphing of a Book Cover The cover photo
of John Cornwell's Hitler's Pope changes in the American edition.
A Text Without A Context Cornwell
mixes and matches to come up with a citation.
Not Hitler's Pope A review by Rev.
Vincent A. Lapomarda, S.J., Coordinator of the Holocaust Collection at the
College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts. Appeared Oct. 2000
in the New Oxford Review.
Goldhagen vs. Pius XII An article
by Prof. Rychlak refuting Goldhagen's error-riddled article in the New
Republic. Appeared in the June/July 2002 issue of First Things.
A Question of Judgment: Pius XII & the Jews, by Dr.
Joseph L. Lichten. A reflection appearing in the Jewish Virtual
Library.
Resources Links to other
Internet sources of information on this topic.
|
 ESTABLISHES ONCE AND FOR ALL
that the Catholic Church under Pius XII was dedicated to saving Jews
from the Nazis at all costs.
The fruit of
this concern was the rescue of over half a million Jews from the death
camps. Rychlak lays to rest the “black legend” of the Church
during World War II, showing that Pius XII and the selfless Catholics he
led deserve the title “righteous gentiles.”
The
Washington Times (Shelley Widhalm):
Pius XII “should be recognized as a
‘righteous gentile’ at Israel's most important Holocaust
memorial, said scholar Ronald J. Rychlak... in his book Righteous
Gentiles: How Pius XII and the Catholic Church Saved Half a Million Jews
from the Nazis.... Rychlak took a lawyerly approach as he examined each
of the charges against the pope, researched church archives, including a
confidential Vatican report on Pius, and documented what he did to help the
Jews.”
Publishers Weekly:
“Given access to closed Vatican
archives, Rychlak amasses evidence to exonerate Pius, uncovering instances
where the pope not only spoke out against Hitler but also acted in various
ways to save Jews. . . . He presents evidence systematically and thoroughly.
.. .”
Edwin
Smith (University
Services):
“The documents noted in Rychlak’s book not only exonerate Pius – uncovering
instances where he spoke out against Hitler –
but show
he also acted in various ways to save Jews.... Cross examiners, beware.”
St. Louis Review (Michael J. Houser):
“In the constant barrage of literature
that has come out on Pius XII and the Holocaust... Catholics like me may
sometimes feel at a loss where to begin to sort through it.... We’re not sure where to turn for a definitive
rebuttal. Ronald J. Rychlak’s Righteous
Gentiles is a welcome reference for such Catholics. Here is a
thorough review of the charges made against Pius XII and an exhaustingly
thorough rebuttal. Rychlak is by trade not a professional historian
but a lawyer, which he turns to his advantage. The opening chapter of
the book, ‘Due Process,’ explains rules
of evidence used to ensure due process in criminal trials, and suggests
that Pius’ critics wouldn’t have a leg to stand on in
most courts.... The book is well researched and copiously referenced, with
more than 80 pages of endnotes and an 18-page bibliography.”
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BOOK NOW
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More Acclaim for the
Book
Avery
Cardinal Dulles:
“Of
all the books that have come to my attention this is the one that most
effectively refutes the false charges that have been heaped on Pius XII.”
Fr. Peter Gumpel (the Vatican’s judge in Pius XII’s
sainthood cause):
“The most extensive and well-documented book in the field.”
Fr. Richard John Neuhaus:
“Devastatingly debunk[s] the scurrilous attacks that have appeared
in the past seven years by the likes of John Cornwell (Hitler’s
Pope), James Carroll (Constantine’s Sword), Garry Wills (Papal
Sin), and Daniel Goldhangen (A Moral Reckoning). Rychlak,
who is a professor of law and knows all the forensic ins and outs, is
especially effective in a point-by-point rebuttal of the reckless charges
that have been made against Pius....
If [Pius XII] is beatified, the vindication will be in significant part due
to the efforts of people like... Rychlak.”
First Things (William Doino):
“Rychlak...[has become] America’s leading authority on Pius
XII.... The documentation provided here—in 400 pages of
carefully-argued text and footnotes—is overwhelming; Rychlak’s
command of the relevant literature undeniable. So too is his intellectual
honesty and dispassionate evaluation of the evidence. Just as Rychlak never
allows a false accusation to go unchallenged, he is the first to
acknowledge true wrongdoing, where it occurred. His conclusion that the
Catholic Church under Pius XII was imperfect (and therefore open to
criticism) but nonetheless heroic--saving at least 500,000 Jews from
certain deaths at Nazi hands—is likely to advance the cause of Pius
XII, and bring historical justice to a topic often devoid of it. By
restraining his anger and sticking closely to the facts, Rychlak has
produced a powerful and impeccable work of scholarship: the finest single
study on Pius XII and the wartime Catholic Church extant. ”
Literary Review (Michael Burleigh)
“Using his forensic talents to great advantage, Rychlak picks up,
examines, and rejects every charge against Pius. The second part of his
book concentrates on the agendas and deficiencies of individual critics, whose
work (and dubious modi operandi) Rychlak exposes on every page. This is no
small feat, since critics routinely use a scattergun approach; no sooner
has the evidence cleared Pius of one charge, than another bobs up....
Rychlak is in enviable command of both old and more recently released
sources, ingeniously using The Tablet for written traces of what was
broadcast on Vatican Radio, or the Osservatore Romano for repeated
papal condemnations of anti-Semitism.... Rychlak patiently goes through
every shifting charge and smear against Pius, highlighting his consistency
in condemning Nazism as a form of neo-pagan state worship, and the terrible
dilemmas he faced during the war.... [An] excellent book.”
Drew L. Kershen (Earl Sneed Centennial Professor of Law, University
of Oklahoma):
“a first rate history with meticulous research and a well-balanced presentation
of the historical evidence.”
Catholic World Report (Mark Ruff):
“One chapter, Illogical Arguments and Manufactured Evidence, is
devoted entirely to exposing the improper uses of evidence by papal
critics.... [Rychlak] clearly does the job in reclaiming ground from papal
antagonists.”
Catholic Educators’ Resource Center (J. Fraser Field):
“Ronald Rychlak has written the most thorough and scholarly book....
It is a remarkably thorough and brilliant examination and weighing of all
the evidence on both sides and includes much new material never before
seen. As the expert in legal and court procedure that he is, Rychlak uses
standards of evidence and argument that would be expected in any American
courtroom. All the major arguments against Pius XII are reviewed. The book
is brilliant.”
The Intercollegiate Review (John Zmirak):
“Rychlak investigates the assertions of Pius’s more scholarly
detractors... and reveals the bias that predetermines their
conclusions. In a devastating analysis, he shows that [Susan] Zuccotti
willfully ignores hundreds of eyewitnesses and survivors’ testimonies,
insisting that nothing short of a ‘written order’ on the part of
Pius XII would constitute proof of his intent to rescue Jews. Rychlak
rightly points out there here Zuccotti emulates Holocaust deniers such as
the discredited David Irving....”
Mindszenty Report (Cardinal Mindszenty Foundation)
“Rychlak’s thorough and documented account establishes once and
for all that the Catholic Church under Pius XII, far from being indifferent
to the Jews, was dedicated to saving them from the Jews at all
costs.... Rychlak lays to rest the ‘black legend’ of the
Church during World War II, showing that Pius XII and those he directed deserve
the title ‘righteous gentiles.’ The book is well recommended.”
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