Vatican planned to move to Portugal if Nazis captured wartime Pope

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.

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Connecticut rabbi: No one ‘did more to rescue Jews than Pius’

Connecticut rabbi: No one ‘did more to rescue Jews than Pius’
November 26, 2008

In comments that appear in the latest edition of Connecticut’s weekly Jewish newspaper, Rabbi Eric Silver of Temple Beth David in Cheshire, CT defended Pope Pius XII’s wartime actions. Following a recent Pave the Way Foundation symposium in Rome, Rabbi Silver said, ‘We studied the documents in the Vatican's archives and had eye-witness interviews, and what we learned was truly world-shaking. There is nobody who did more to rescue Jews than Pius.’ Silver added that Holocaust architect Adolf Eichmann ‘in his diary records that his efforts are being frustrated by the pope; he just can’t prove it.’

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New historical evidence supports Pope Pius XII

New historical evidence supports Pope Pius XII

Jan. 14, 2008 (CWNews.com) - An organization devoted to inter-religious understanding has uncovered a large amount evidence to rebut the charge that Pope Pius XII was indifferent to Jewish suffering during the Holocaust.

The Pave the Way Foundation has announced discovery of a large quantity of evidence showing that Pope Pius XII actually worked to save the lives of Jews. Gary Krupp, the group's president, says that most of this evidence is already "available publicly but simply not known."

More Here

Hitler's Plot to Kidnap the Pope

Ronald J. Rychlak has written a review of Dan Kurzman's book A Special Mission: Hitler's Secret Plot to Seize the Vatican and Kidnap Pope Pius XII. I did buy this a few months ago, but like most of the books I buy I haven't had a chance to read this one yet. Reading this overview of the book though has rekindled my interest. This in particular sent my brain into motion...

According to sworn testimony that Wolff gave in 1972, Hitler summoned him shortly after the troops moved into Rome. Hitler said:

Now, Wolff, I have a special mission for you, with significance for the whole world. . . . I want you and your troops . . . to occupy as soon as possible the Vatican and Vatican City, secure the archives and the art treasures, which have a unique value, and transfer the pope, together with the Curia, for their protection, so that they cannot fall into the hands of the Allies and exert a political influence.

Hitler wanted to "destroy the Vatican's power, capture the pope, and say that we are protecting him."

The kidnapping never took place, but Wolff drew up the plan. It called for German soldiers disguised in Italian uniforms to invade the Vatican, kill all members of the curia, and take the pope prisoner. Other soldiers would then storm the Vatican to "rescue" the pontiff. They would kill the disguised troops, and if the pope tried to escape he would also be shot. Hitler felt it could be explained because tragic things happen during wars. Besides, the world would consider the Italians culpable.

The review goes on to criticize some other aspects of the book, but I am not particularly interested in reading more about this plot. I can't imagine what the Church would look like today if the plan had succeeded.

New book details Hitler plot to kidnap pope, foiled by Nazi general

New book details Hitler plot to kidnap pope, foiled by Nazi general

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- An SS general close to Adolf Hitler foiled a plot to kidnap Pope Pius XII during World War II and to put the Vatican and its treasures under Nazi control, according to a new book. The book, "A Special Mission" by Dan Kurzman, refutes arguments that Pope Pius XII maintained a public silence about Nazi actions during World War II because he was anti-Semitic or because he was sympathetic toward Hitler. "They were bitter, bitter enemies. They despised each other," said Kurzman of the pontiff and the fuhrer in a May 31 telephone interview with Catholic News Service. The pope hated Hitler "not only for his inhumanity but because he threatened the whole church structure." Hitler, for his part, "saw the pope as his greatest enemy" and as someone with whom he was "competing for the minds and souls that he wanted to control," the author added. Kurzman also said he found no evidence that Pope Pius was anti-Semitic, noting that one of his closest childhood friends was a Jewish boy with whom he remained in contact throughout his life. The book, published June 1 by Da Capo Press in Cambridge, Mass., is subtitled "Hitler's Secret Plot to Seize the Vatican and Kidnap Pope Pius XII." It details the actions of SS Gen. Karl Wolff, chief of staff to SS Chief Heinrich Himmler, in the months after the overthrow of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini in July 1943.

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Saints Meme

Esther did a neat little Saints Meme, and I can't let her have all the fun. The rules of the meme are as follows: you have to list 4 of your favorite saints, one blessed, and one person you think should be a saint.

Martin de Porres



Also known as
Martin of Charity; the Saint of the Broom (for his devotion to his work, no matter how menial)

The illegitimate son of a Spanish nobleman, Juan, and a young freed black slave, Anna Velasquez, Martin grew up in poverty. He spent part of his youth with a surgeon-barber from whom he learned some medicine and care of the sick.

At age 11 he became a servant in the Holy Rosary Dominican priory in Lima, Peru. Promoted to almoner, he begged more than $2,000 a week from the rich to support the poor and sick of Lima. Placed in charge of the Dominican's infirmary; known for his tender care of the sick and for his spectacular cures. His superiors dropped the stipulation that "no black person may be received to the holy habit or profession of our order" and Martin took vows as a Dominican brother in 1603.

Established an orphanage and children's hospital for the poor children of the slums. Set up a shelter for the stray cats and dogs and nursed them back to health. Lived in self-imposed austerity, never ate meat, fasted continuously, and spent much time in prayer and meditation with a great devotion to the Holy Eucharist. Friend of Saint John de Massias.


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St. Michael the Archangel



Archangel. Leader of the army of God during the Lucifer uprising. Devotion is common to Muslims, Christians and Jews with writings about him in all three cultures. Considered the guardian angel of Israel.

The feast of the Apparition of Saint Michael commemorates the 6th century appearance of the archangel on Mount Gargano near Manfredonia in southern Italy. Michael requested a church built in his honor at the site. If you find medals or holy cards with 'relics' of Michael, they are probably rock chips from the cave, or pieces of cloth that have touched it.

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Padre Pio



Born to a southern Italian farm family, the son of Grazio, a shepherd. At age 15 he entered the novitiate of the Capuchin friars in Morcone, and joined the order at age 19. Suffered several health problems, and at one point his family thought he had tuberculosis. Ordained at age 22 on 10 August 1910.

While praying before a cross, he received the stigmata on 20 September 1918, the first priest ever to be so blessed. As word spread, especially after American soldiers brought home stories of Padre Pio following WWII, the priest himself became a point of pilgrimage for both the pious and the curious. He would hear confessions by the hour, reportedly able to read the consciences of those who held back. Reportedly able to bilocate, levitate, and heal by touch. Founded the House for the Relief of Suffering in 1956, a hospital that serves 60,000 a year. In the 1920's he started a series of prayer groups that continue today with over 400,000 members worldwide.


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Don Bosco



Son of Venerable Margaret Bosco. John's father died when the boy was 2 years old, and as soon as he was old enough to do odd jobs, he did so for extra money for his family. Bosco would go to circuses, fairs and carnivals, practice the tricks he saw magicians perform, and then present one-boy shows. After his performance, while he still had an audience of boys, he would repeat the homily he had heard earlier in church.

Worked as a tailor, baker, shoemaker, and carpenter while attending college and the seminary. Ordained in 1841. Teacher. Worked with youth, finding places where they could meet, play and pray, teaching catechism to orphans and apprentices. Chaplain in a hospice for girls. Wrote short treatises aimed at explaining the faith to children, and then taught children how to print them. Friend of Saint Joseph Cafasso, whose biography he wrote, and confessor to Blessed Joseph Allamano. Founded the Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB) in 1859, priests who work with and educate boys, under the protection of Our Lady, Help of Chistians, and Saint Francis de Sales. Founded the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians in 1872, and Union of Cooperator Salesians in 1875.

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Blessed Margaret of Castello



Born a blind, lame, deformed, hunchback midget. When she was six years old, her noble parents walled her up beside a chapel; she could not get out, but could attend Mass and receive the Sacraments. After 14 years of imprisonment, her parents took her to a shrine to pray for a cure. When none occurred, they abandoned her. She became a lay Dominican, and spent her life in prayer and charity. When she died, the townspeople thronged her funeral, and demanded she be buried in a tomb inside the church. The priest protested, but a crippled girl was miraculously cured at the funeral, and he consented.

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Someone I believe will one day be a Saint...

Pope Pius XII

Directive from Pius XII ordered shelter for Rome's Jews

Directive from Pius XII ordered shelter for Rome's Jews

Apr. 19, 2007 (CWNews.com) - The Vatican has confirmed the existence of a directive from Pope Pius XII, asking Catholic clergy and religious to shelter Jews from the Holocaust.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone (bio - news), the Vatican Secretary of State, acknowledged in short April 19 announcement that Pope Pius XII issued instructions for all religious institutions to open their doors to Jewish people. The catacombs of Rome were also made available for shelter.

The Pope's directive was issued on October 25, 1943. Just over a week earlier, on October 16 of that year, more than 1,000 Jews in Rome's ghetto had been arrested and deported to Germany.

The Vatican memo-- the latest evidence that the wartime Pontiff took action to save Jewish lives-- was acknowledged at a time when the debate about the actions of Pope Pius XII has been revived, particularly in Israel. Archbishop Antonio Franco, the papal nuncio in the Holy Land, last week threatened to boycott a remembrance ceremony at Yad Vashem, the Jerusalem memorial to Holocaust victims, because the Yad Vashem museum contains an exhibit claiming that Pius XII was indifferent to the suffering of the Jews.

The Italian Catholic monthly, 30 Giorni, recently published pages from the anonymous diary of an Augustinian nun from the Santi Quattro Coronati convent in Rome, referring to the October 1943 order from the Pope. The nun wrote, "In these sad days, the Holy Father wishes to save his children, also the Jews, and orders that monasteries give shelter to those persecuted. Convents must adhere to the desire of the Supreme Pontiff."

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Pius XII and St. Vladimir

So lately I've been doing the ebay thing. Most of the time I get outbid, which most of the time is ok with me. I want to buy stuff, but generally not for too much, so if someone wants to pay more than me God bless them (well thats not usually what I'm thinking when I'm outbid but thats how I try to look at it).

Ebay has a lot of Catholic stuff out there. Some of it is sad to see like old things from a church being sold off or relics, but there are also a lot of medals on there. I bought one of Pius XII (I put a bid on another one a little while ago, we'll have to see if I win or not). This is the one I already have though.



Then to my surprise I actually found something for my Dad. He's coming into the church tomorrow night at the Easter Vigil mass. He chose as his name Vladimir, which not surprisingly cuts down on the gift opportunities with that name. But I found this a week ago. Its a St. Vladimir icon. It came with a little card in the back, but its all in Russian so I haven't a clue what it says. But either way I'm glad I was able to get it on ebay.

'Nazi' Pope helped Jews flee Holocaust

'Nazi' Pope helped Jews flee Holocaust

By Malcolm Moore in Rome
Last Updated: 1:51am BST 31/03/2007

Pius XII, the wartime pontiff often condemned as "Hitler's Pope", was actually considered an enemy by the Third Reich, according to newly discovered documents.

Several letters and memos unearthed at a depot used by the Stasi, the East-German secret police, show that Nazi spies within the Vatican were concerned at Pius's efforts to help displaced Poles and Jews.

In one, the head of Berlin's police force tells Joachim von Ribbentropp, the Third Reich's foreign minister, that the Catholic Church was providing assistance to Jews "both in terms of people and financially".

A report from a spy at work in the Vatican states: "Our source was told to his face by Father Robert Leibner [one of Pius's secretaries] that the greatest hope of the Church is that the Nazi system would be obliterated by the war."

La Repubblica, the newspaper that discovered the papers, said they were sent to the heads of the Stasi, after the Second World War.

The revelations they contain will help to clear the name of Pius XII, Eugenio Pacelli, who has long been criticised for turning a blind eye to the Holocaust. During the war, the British Foreign Office even described him as the "greatest moral coward of our age".

In 1999, John Cornwell's Hitler's Pope suggested that Pius XII, who had been the papal envoy to Germany before the war, was sympathetic to the Nazis.

In addition, an international Catholic-Jewish historical commission, set up by the Vatican, said it was clear that Pius knew of widespread anti-Jewish persecution. However, the commission was forced to disband before it finished its work, and one member said it had run up "against a brick wall" from the Holy See.

In his defence, the Pope always maintained he did not speak out further against the Nazis for fear of putting more people in danger.

Over the years more documents have come to light as the Vatican has opened its secret archives to scholars in an attempt to clear what it sees as a communist-funded smear on Pius's name.

Giovanni Sale, the author of Hitler, The Holy See and the Jews, said Moscow had deliberately funded operations to discredit the Vatican after the war. "I have said for 10 years that the Church fought the Nazis on all fronts," he added.

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Moscow’s Assault on the Vatican

If you're interested in Pius XII you have to read this column by Ion Mihai Pacepa, Moscow’s Assault on the Vatican.

Cardinal Bertone emphasizes the efforts of Pope Pius XII

Cardinal Bertone emphasizes the efforts of Pope Pius XII to save Jews during the Holocaust

Vatican City, Jan 25, 2007 / 04:06 pm (CNA).- During the presentation of a new book chronicling the “anonymous heroes” who worked against the Holocaust during World War II, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Vatican Secretary of State, recalled the exemplary role of Pope Pius XII in the fight against the Nazi’s and in the effort to help those in need, especially the Jews.

According to Vatican Radio the Cardinal said on Wednesday that independent historical research has now proven that Pope Pius and those around him sought to help all who were in need during the war.

Read the whole article

Pius XII Photo

I saw this photo in a post about Pius XII at Unam Sanctam. In a lull in the conversation I ended up sending it to a friend on AIM. She's not a religious person, but I think by now my friends expect these sort of random things from me. I sort of thought she might like it because she has a bird. She commented that she thought he looked young in this picture and so I went out on a search for a caption to the picture so I could find out when it was taken. Since he was Pope from 1939 - 1958 the picture could have been taken at any time. I never did find out when the picture was taken, but I found a site where the picture had a little paragraph with it.



Though as Pope he would usually eat his meals alone, that changed somewhat one day after the papal gardener found a helpless bird, which had been injured in the garden. Knowing the Pontiff's love for nature, the gardener brought the bird to his apartment. Pacelli was fascinated, helped nurse the bird back to health and decided to keep it in his apartment. He named her Gretel. As soon as she was fully recovered, she was given several companions. While the Pope ate, the birds were released from their cages. Twittering, the birds would perch on his shoulder or on the table where they had their own small dishes of seeds. Thereafter at mealtime he was vicariously back in the natural world he knew in the summers of his youth.