On Pope Pius XII and Catholic-Jewish Relations

OUR HOLY FATHER PIUS XII, of blessed memory, must be concerned.

Concerned not about his legacy which shall forever stand on its own truth, but concerned about the controversy that consumes our beloved Mother Church as regards to him and the dark reality that consumed much of his papacy during World War II, an issue which now weigh heavily on the mind and heart of our Holy Father Benedict XVI.

The issue of Catholic-Jewish relations is an issue of peace. It is an issue of very significant bearing, extremely important to me personally in my own heart, and also professionally as a professing, confessing, Roman Catholic layman here in the third Christian millennium.

All honor proceeds from allegiance to the truth. Without allegiance to the truth, honor is naught but a pretense to pride, hurting more than restoring virtue in the self as well as in others by way of sin and scandal.

Let me make it clear here and now that by first principle, I blame the Nazis completely, Hitler above all, for all the atrocities that was raised from hell at their diabolic beck and call.

Now, having said that, the rest is simply healing and healing is all about justice and justice IS restoration; restoration to the truth.

The honor of our Holy Father Pius XII and the right hurt of our elder brethren and sisters, the Jewish people, are both matters that pertain to our shared humanity. I do not see where they clash where bridges have really been built in the name of peace, and peace which is not an appeasement, an illusion, an outright deception or a segmentation of the one whole, but peace as a paradigm whole - peace being truth as itself alone.

As a Roman Catholic, I have a right to speak out on this issue - and so I shall.

If there is animus, then we must turn away. For war can only be starved out and if met headlong as in a charge shall turn the force of our own intentions, however noble, however high, against itself.

Let us be ever mindful that only our LORD can completely liberate us from this ancient bondage.

That is why we should build on the ageless Rock of our LORD, because when we stand on the foundation of our LORD's truth, bearing in our joy, the hope of our Savior's peace, war itself shall not withstand us but if we recklessly venture out and step into the mire outside of our Love, if we respond to the relentless taunts of the ancient enemy of our God and break ranks, thinking to meet Satan and his hosts head on, we shall find ourselves everywhere scattered, sinking, overrun and then finally defeated by war and war's ambition.

I agree with our Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI when he called for a time of contemplation, for he has opened up the space of our hope to prayer and contemplation and thereby, made room for our LORD's grace to act on both sides of the one side of the peace.

If this animus persists, then let us let it presist, all the while trusting that it is better not to harm each other and leave the truth of the matter to God who alone owns all that is true.

I would rather have peace with our brethren and sister Jews as well as our brethren and sister Muslims - and all honorable religions - than see our Holy Father Pius XII receive an honor that I know he himself will flatly refuse in his own lifetime were he be given this choice to either save the peace of our relationship with our brethren and sister Jews or attain to the veneration of the Catholic faithful as a canonized Saint.

As Holy Father Francis' prayer reminds us, "it is better to understand than be understood."

Better the peace that prospers the life of our shared humanity than a million titles and honors.

Better to endure than to be endured.
---<--@

Prosper the Peace. Prosper the People.

Sancta Sanctis!

Glory to God in the highest
Adoration to Jesus Christ
Peace to men of good will.