Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Pius XII was Pope from 1939 to 1958

Pope Francis has said the Roman Catholic Church will open up its archives on Pius XII, who was Pope during World War Two.

Pius, who was Pope from 1939 to 1958, has been accused of tolerating the rise of Nazi Germany and of not doing enough to protect Jews during the Holocaust.

The Vatican says he worked behind the scenes to try to protect Jews.

Jewish groups, which have been calling for full access to the archives for years, have welcomed the move.

Pope Francis said the archives would be opened in March next year, adding that Pius's legacy had been treated with "some prejudice and exaggeration".

He said it included "moments of grave difficulties, tormented decisions of human and Christian prudence, that to some could appear as reticence".

The prefect of the Vatican's Secret Archive said the opening would allow a more profound evaluation of a figure who had been subject to what he called "superficial criticism".

Ending decades of debate?

James Reynolds, BBC News, Rome

"The Church is not afraid of history," the Pope told a meeting of Vatican researchers.

The pontiff's decision to open up the Vatican's secret archives on Pope Pius XII may be his attempt to end decades of debate about his predecessor's role in World War Two - and to prove that today's Church is not suppressing argument.

Preparing the archives for scrutiny has been a lengthy process. For the past 13 years, 20 members of the Vatican's archives department have worked to organise Pius XII's files, including his official correspondence.

Researchers will now have the chance to sift through an estimated 16 million pages of documents.

What Jewish reaction has there been?

The Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial commended the decision and expressed expectation that "researchers will be granted full access to all the documents stored in the archives".

The American Jewish Committee (AJC) said it had called for this move for over 30 years.

"It is particularly important that experts from the leading Holocaust memorial institutes in Israel and the US objectively evaluate as best as possible the historical record of that most terrible of times, to acknowledge both the failures as well as the valiant efforts made during the period of the Shoah [Holocaust]," said Rabbi David Rosen, the AJC's International Director of Interreligious Affairs.

Israel's foreign ministry also expressed hopes that there would be "free access to all relevant archives".

How much access has been allowed previously?

Vatican archivists had already started preparing the documents for consultation back in 2006, at the request of Benedict XVI.

That year, the Vatican opened its archives to allow historians to access documents from 1922 to 1939.

But at the time, key records potentially contained in the archive remained closed despite requests from rabbis and Jewish historians when Pope Benedict XVI was elected in 2005.

Historians have sought greater access to the Vatican's secret archives to clarify the role of the Church in the run-up to World War Two.

The archives contain records of all Papal decrees, encyclicals and Vatican diplomatic correspondence.

Who was Pius XII?

Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli was pontiff from 1939 to 1958 and although the Vatican has begun his beatification process he has not been canonised.

His actions will be scrutinised as part of current efforts to decide whether he should be declared a saint.

He has been criticised by Jewish groups for not speaking out against the Nazis, who killed six million Jews.

He did not sign an Allied declaration in December 1942 condemning the Nazi extermination of Jews and did not protest publicly at the deportations from Rome to Auschwitz.

But in 2014 Pope Francis said Pius XII was "a great defender of Jews" and had ordered the Church to hide Jews in the convents of Rome and other Italian cities, as well as the papal residence at Castel Gandolfo.

"One needs to see his role in the context of the time," he said. "For example, was it better for him not to speak so that more Jews would not be killed or for him to speak?"

Yad Vashem, the Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, updated its text on Pius and the Vatican in 2012 to reflect more recent research on the wartime Pope.

Pius XII's reaction to the Holocaust "is a matter of controversy among scholars", it said, and until all material was made available, the topic would remain open to further inquiry.</s>The announcement was made during an audience for managers and staff of the Vatican Secret Archives, which took place on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the election of Pius XII as Bishop of Rome.

By Christopher Wells

Reflecting on the reign of “the Servant of God Pius XII, of venerable memory”, Pope Francis said that he “guided the Barque of Peter in one of the saddest and darkest moments of the twentieth century”. The figure of Pius XII, he said, “has already been investigated and studied”, and widely discussed and even criticized – at times in a prejudiced or exaggerated manner. Today, he said, the pontificate of Pius XII is being re-evaluated, in the hopes that a more balanced historical judgement might emerge.



To further those efforts, the Pope said that Vatican archival materials pertaining to Pius’ pontificate (1939-1958) will be accessible to scholars beginning on 2 March 2020.

Archival work cultivates memory

Pope Francis thanked the Vatican archivists for the hard work they have undertaken since 2006 to make a careful inventory of the materials on Pope Pius XII, and to prepare to make them available for consultation. Archival work “cultivates memory”, he said. “In a certain sense… it could be compared to the cultivation of a majestic tree, whose branches reach to the heavens, but whose roots are solidly anchored in the earth”. If the Church is like the tree, the archivists work to keep its historical roots alive, so that “even the greenest and youngest branches can draw from them good sap for further growth”.

In announcing the opening of the archives for the pontificate of Pius XII, Pope Francis said he made the decision “with a serene and confident soul, certain that serious and objective historical research will be able to evaluate it in its proper light.” “The Church is not afraid of history,” Pope Francis said. “On the contrary, she loves it, and desires to love it more and better, as God loves it”.</s>VATICAN CITY — Declaring that the Catholic Church is unafraid of history, Pope Francis announced that documents in the Vatican Secret Archives relating to the wartime pontificate of Pope Pius XII will be open to scholars in 2020.

Researchers, particularly those interested in Catholic-Jewish relations, have pressed the Vatican to open the archives and allow a full study of Pope Pius’ actions during the war, including what he did or failed to do for Jews during the Holocaust.

“The church is not afraid of history, on the contrary, she loves it and would like to love it more and better, just as she loves God. Therefore, with the same confidence as my predecessors, I open and entrust to researchers” this wealth of documents, Pope Francis said.

The pope met March 4 with supervisors, staff members and assistants working at the Vatican Secret Archives during an audience to mark the 80th anniversary of Pope Pius XII’s election March 2, 1939.

Staff at the Vatican Secret Archives, which holds the bulk of the documents related to the wartime pope, have been working for the past 13 years to get the material organized, catalogued and accessible to researchers.

Bishop Sergio Pagano, prefect of the archives, said the years of work were necessary to pull together and catalogue material previously held in a variety of Vatican offices; this includes documents from the Vatican Secretariat of State, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, records from Vatican nunciatures around the world and thousands of notes regarding Pope Pius’ charitable activity in Italy and abroad.

Pope Pius, who guided the universal church during World War II, already has been a subject of intense study and discussion, “even criticized — one could say with some bias or exaggeration,” Pope Francis said.

While a small portion of some material produced during the pontificate of Pope Pius has been made available, all documents in the archives from his election in 1939 to his death in 1958 will be made available to researchers starting March 2, 2020.

Pope Francis said he made the decision in consultation with trusted advisers and was confident that “serious and objective historical research will know how to evaluate in the right light, with suitable criticism, moments of praise of that pope and, without doubt, also moments of serious difficulties, tormented decisions, of human and Christian prudence, which to some could look like reticence.”

Instead those moments of prudence were attempts — at times tormented attempts — to keep, “during periods of the greatest darkness and cruelty, the small flame lit of humanitarian initiatives, of hidden but active diplomacy, of the hopes of the possible positive opening of hearts,” he said.

The pope thanked the staff for their work, their assistance to the world’s researchers and for the future publication of important sources related to the late pope.

The normal Vatican practice is to catalog and open all the archival material from an entire pontificate at the same time. In 2006 Pope Benedict XVI authorized the archives to make available to researchers all the documentation from the pre-World War II pontificate of Pope Pius XI up until 1939.

In 1965 St. Paul VI ordered the scholars to search the archives for evidence to rebut claims about his predecessor’s allegedly negligent conduct during the war. The claims were made by Rolf Hochhuth, a German and author of a 1963 play called “The Deputy,” in which Pope Pius was depicted as a coward who did not stand up to Adolf Hitler.

The scholars, working from 1965 to 1981, gathered documents that were published in 12 volumes under the title “Acts and Documents of the Holy See Relating to the Second World War.”

The volumes were digitized with the help of the Pave the Way Foundation, whose president, Gary Krupp, seeks to redress what he says are serious misunderstandings about Pope Pius’ role during the war. Krupp says the documents show that the pope did much to help Jews, acting often quietly behind the scenes to avoid reprisals by the Nazis against Jews.</s>Pope: Vatican next year to open archives on wartime Pius XII

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis says he has decided to open up the Vatican archives on World War II-era Pope Pius XII, who has been accused by Jews of staying silent on the Holocaust.

Declaring that "the church isn't afraid of history," Francis told employees of the Vatican Secret Archives on Monday that the archives spanning the 1939-1958 pontificate would be open to researchers on March 2, 2020.

The Vatican usually waits 70 years after the end of a pontificate to open archives. It has been pressure to make the Pius XII documentation available sooner, while Holocaust survivors are still alive. The Vatican has defended Pius, saying he used behind-the-scenes diplomacy to try to save lives.

Pius' actions will be scrutinized as part of efforts to decide if he should be a saint.</s>VETICAN CITY, Holy See - Pope Francis announced Monday that the Vatican will open the secret archives of Pius XII in March next year, which could shed light on his actions during World War II.

Researchers have long sought to examine the archives to discover why Pius XII (1939-1958) did not intervene more against the Holocaust perpetrated by the German Nazis, an attitude denounced by Jewish groups as a form of passive complicity.

"I have decided that the opening of the Vatican Archives for the Pontificate of Pius XII will take place on 2 March 2020," the pope said. The date is the 81st anniversary of the election of Eugenio Pacelli to the papacy.

"The Church is not afraid of history," added Francis, recalling that Pius XII found himself as head of the Roman Catholic Church "at one of the saddest and darkest moments of the 20th century".

Francis said he made the decision confident that serious historical research would evaluate "in the proper light and with appropriate criticism, the praiseworthy moments of the Pontiff and, without any doubt, also moments of serious difficulties, of tormented decisions...".

For many historians, Pope Pius XII could have condemned more forcefully the massacre of Jews by the Nazis, but failed to do so out of diplomatic caution and to avoid putting Catholics in danger in occupied Europe.</s>Vatican City – Declaring that the church “isn’t afraid of history,” Pope Francis said Monday he has decided to open up the Vatican archives on World War II-era Pope Pius XII, who has been criticized by Jews of staying silent on the Holocaust.

Francis told officials and personnel of the Vatican Secret Archives that the archive would be open to researchers starting March 2, 2020.

Pius was elected pontiff on March 2, 1939, six months before World War II erupted in Europe. Pius died on Oct. 9, 1958, at the Vatican summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, near Rome.

The Vatican usually waits 70 years after the end of a pontificate to open up the relevant archives. But the Holy See has been under pressure to make the Pius XII documentation available sooner and while Holocaust survivors are still alive.

Vatican archivists had already started preparing the documentation for consultation back in 2006, at the behest of Francis’ German-born predecessor, Benedict XVI.

The Vatican has defended Pius, saying he used behind-the-scenes diplomacy to try to save lives. Francis indicated he, too, embraced that interpretation.

Pius’ actions will be scrutinized as part of efforts underway to decide if he should be declared a saint. Francis indicated that the church was confident that the papacy would withstand the findings by historians’ studying the archives, saying Pius was “criticized, one can say, with some prejudice and exaggeration.”

“The church isn’t afraid of history, on the contrary, it loves it, and would like to love it even more, like it loves God,” Francis told staff at the archive.

“Thus, with the same trust of my predecessors, I open, and entrust to researchers, this patrimony of documentation.”

Francis expressed certainty that historical research would properly evaluate Pius’ legacy “with appropriate criticism.”

He said the Pius papacy included “moments of grave difficulties, tormented decisions of human and Christian prudence, that to some could appear as reticence.” Instead, he said they could be seen as attempts “to keep lit, in the darkest and cruelest periods, the flame of humanitarian initiatives, of hidden but active diplomacy” aimed at possibly “opening hearts.”</s>Luigi Felici ./ ASSOCIATED PRESS Pope Pius XII praying in a private chapel at Castel Gandolfo, about 17 miles south of Rome, in 1958.

For decades, Jewish leaders have wondered whether Pope Pius XII, who was elected six months before the outbreak of World War II, truly did everything he could to save lives during the Holocaust.

Now historians will be able to dig through Vatican archives to determine for themselves whether the former pontiff did enough to resist the Nazis’ persecution of Jewish people.

Pope Francis announced Monday that he will open up the Vatican’s secret archives on Pius starting March 2, 2020 ― the 81st anniversary of Pius’ election. Francis said he’s opening the records “with a serene and confident mind,” The New York Times reports.

The storehouse of the Vatican Secret Archives, in a photo distributed by the Vatican on Feb. 29, 2012. Pope Francis announced on Feb. 4 that he will open up the archives on Pius next year.

The World War II–era papacy included “moments of grave difficulties, tormented decisions of human and Christian prudence, that to some could appear as reticence,” Francis said, according to AP. But they could also be seen as attempts “to keep lit, in the darkest and cruelest periods, the flame of humanitarian initiatives, of hidden but active diplomacy” aimed at possibly “opening hearts.”

Pius became pope on March 2, 1939, and remained in that role until his death on Oct. 9, 1958. During World War II, the Vatican tried to remain neutral and did not officially denounce Nazism, The Washington Post reports.

Bishop Sergio Pagano, the official currently in charge of the archives, wrote in the Vatican’s official newspaper Monday that Pius has often been “too superficially judged and criticized.”

Pagano said he hopes the former pontiff’s archives will show researchers “an almost superhuman work of Christian ‘humanism’ that was active in the stormy disorder of those events that in the mid-twentieth century seemed determined to annihilate the very notion of human civilization.”

Francis’ announcement means Pius’ archives will be opened about eight years ahead of schedule. The Vatican typically waits 70 years after the end of a papacy to open a pope’s records to researchers, the AP reports.

But Jewish groups have long been pushing the Vatican to release its archives on Pius while Holocaust survivors are still alive. Criticism of his legacy ramped up when the Vatican put Pius on the path toward sainthood.

A Spanish soldier kissing Pius' ring on Jun 13, 1939, during a special audience with 3,200 Spanish troops visiting Italy. Jewish groups have long been pushing the Vatican to release its archives on him.

“For years, Yad Vashem has called for the opening of these archives, which will enable objective and open research as well as comprehensive discourse on issues related to the conduct of the Vatican in particular, and the Catholic Church in general, during the Holocaust,” the museum stated.

The Vatican’s secret archives contain records of the Roman Catholic Church that date back to the eighth century, according to its website. The Holy See first opened its archives to scholars in 1881.

“Since the end of World War II, scholars, Holocaust survivors, and others have asked important questions about the role of the Vatican and Pope Pius XII during the Holocaust,” she said in a statement. “It is long overdue for speculation to be replaced by rigorous scholarship, which is only possible once scholars have full access to all of these records. This is important for the sake of historical truth, but there is moral urgency too: we owe this to the survivor generation, which is rapidly diminishing.”</s>Pope: Vatican next year to open archives on wartime Pius XII

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Declaring that the church "isn't afraid of history," Pope Francis said Monday he has decided to open up the Vatican archives on World War II-era Pope Pius XII, who has been criticized by Jews of staying silent on the Holocaust.

Francis told officials and personnel of the Vatican Secret Archives that the archive would be open to researchers starting March 2, 2020.

Pius was elected pontiff on March 2, 1939, six months before World War II erupted in Europe. Pius died on Oct. 9, 1958, at the Vatican summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, near Rome.

The Vatican usually waits 70 years after the end of a pontificate to open up the relevant archives. But the Holy See has been under pressure to make the Pius XII documentation available sooner and while Holocaust survivors are still alive.

Vatican archivists had already started preparing the documentation for consultation back in 2006, at the behest of Francis' German-born predecessor, Benedict XVI.

The Vatican has defended Pius, saying he used behind-the-scenes diplomacy to try to save lives. Francis indicated he, too, embraced that interpretation.

Pius' actions will be scrutinized as part of efforts underway to decide if he should be declared a saint. Francis indicated that the church was confident that the papacy would withstand the findings by historians' studying the archives, saying Pius was "criticized, one can say, with some prejudice and exaggeration."

In Jerusalem, the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial commended the decision and expressed the expectation that "researchers will be granted full access to all the documents stored in the archives."

It noted that it had for years called for the opening of the archives, saying that will "enable objective and open research as well as comprehensive discourse on issues related to the conduct of the Vatican in particular, and the Catholic church in general, during the Holocaust."

Israel's foreign ministry also expressed hopes that there would be "free access to all relevant archives."

Francis expressed confidence it was the right move.

"The church isn't afraid of history, on the contrary, it loves it, and would like to love it even more, like it loves God," Francis told staff at the archive.

"Thus, with the same trust of my predecessors, I open, and entrust to researchers, this patrimony of documentation."

Francis expressed certainty that historical research would properly evaluate Pius' legacy "with appropriate criticism."

He said the Pius papacy included "moments of grave difficulties, tormented decisions of human and Christian prudence, that to some could appear as reticence." Instead, he said they could be seen as attempts "to keep lit, in the darkest and cruelest periods, the flame of humanitarian initiatives, of hidden but active diplomacy" aimed at possibly "opening hearts."

Monday's announcement followed decades of lobbying by Jewish advocates for access to the documentation to help answer the long-standing question of whether Pius did all he could to save lives during World War II.

In New York, Rabbi Rosen, the international director for interreligious affairs at the American Jewish Committee called Francis' decision "enormously important to Catholic-Jewish relations."

He noted in a statement that he had raised the issue with Francis and his predecessors in meetings.

"It is particularly important that experts from the leading Holocaust memorial institutes in Israel and the United States objectively evaluate as best as possible the historical record of that most terrible of times — to acknowledge both the failures as well as the valiant efforts made during the period of the systematic murder of six million Jews," Rosen said.

Later this week, it said a delegation of the Committee's leadership will be given an audience with the pope at the Vatican. The organization has lobbied for more than 30 years for full access to the archives.

Frances D'Emilio is on twitter at a href='http://www.twitter'www.twitter/a.com/fdemilio</s>Pope: Vatican next year to open archives on wartime Pius XII

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Declaring that the church "isn't afraid of history," Pope Francis said Monday he has decided to open up the Vatican archives on World War II-era Pope Pius XII, who has been criticized by Jews of staying silent on the Holocaust.

Francis told officials and personnel of the Vatican Secret Archives that the archive would be open to researchers starting March 2, 2020.

Pius was elected pontiff on March 2, 1939, six months before World War II erupted in Europe. Pius died on Oct. 9, 1958, at the Vatican summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, near Rome.

The Vatican usually waits 70 years after the end of a pontificate to open up the relevant archives. But the Holy See has been under pressure to make the Pius XII documentation available sooner and while Holocaust survivors are still alive.

Vatican archivists had already started preparing the documentation for consultation back in 2006, at the behest of Francis' German-born predecessor, Benedict XVI.

The Vatican has defended Pius, saying he used behind-the-scenes diplomacy to try to save lives. Francis indicated he, too, embraced that interpretation.

Pius' actions will be scrutinized as part of efforts underway to decide if he should be declared a saint. Francis indicated that the church was confident that the papacy would withstand the findings by historians' studying the archives, saying Pius was "criticized, one can say, with some prejudice and exaggeration."

In Jerusalem, the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial commended the decision and expressed the expectation that "researchers will be granted full access to all the documents stored in the archives."

It noted that it had for years called for the opening of the archives, saying that will "enable objective and open research as well as comprehensive discourse on issues related to the conduct of the Vatican in particular, and the Catholic church in general, during the Holocaust."

Israel's foreign ministry also expressed hopes that there would be "free access to all relevant archives."

Francis expressed confidence it was the right move.

"The church isn't afraid of history, on the contrary, it loves it, and would like to love it even more, like it loves God," Francis told staff at the archive.

"Thus, with the same trust of my predecessors, I open, and entrust to researchers, this patrimony of documentation."

Francis expressed certainty that historical research would properly evaluate Pius' legacy "with appropriate criticism."

He said the Pius papacy included "moments of grave difficulties, tormented decisions of human and Christian prudence, that to some could appear as reticence." Instead, he said they could be seen as attempts "to keep lit, in the darkest and cruelest periods, the flame of humanitarian initiatives, of hidden but active diplomacy" aimed at possibly "opening hearts."

Frances D'Emilio is on twitter at a href='http://www.twitter'www.twitter/a.com/fdemilio</s>March 4 (UPI) -- Pope Francis announced Monday the Vatican will open a secret archive on Pope Pius XII, the controversial pontiff who critics say ignored the Jewish Holocaust during World War II.

Pope Francis said the church "isn't afraid of history" and Pope Pius XII's legacy has been treated with "some prejudice and exaggeration."

The documents will be released on March 2, 2020.

Eugenio Pacelli was confirmed as Pope Pius XII in 1939 and served until 1958. The Vatican typically waits 70 years after the end of a pope's term before opening the archives. Pope Francis has been pressured, however, to make the archives available sooner while Holocaust survivors are still alive.

"For more than 30 years, the [American Jewish Committee] has called for the full opening of the Holy See's Secret Archives from the period of World War II," said AJC inter-religious affairs director Rabbi David Rosen.

The documents will be scrutinized as Pope Pius is considered for sainthood.

The Vatican acknowledges that archived material on Pope Pius XII is in greater demand than previous popes.

"Archivists of the Vatican Secret Archives and their colleagues from other Vatican archives carried out patient work of sorting, annotating and inventorying the many fonds and documents," Bishop Sergio Pagano said.

He added that Pope Pius XII has been "too superficially judged and criticized for some aspects of his pontificate. The documents will allow researchers to learn about him "without prejudice ... in all the realistic scope and richness."
Pope Francis announces the Vatican's historical archives of Pope Pius XII's pontificate (1939–1958) will be accessible to scholars next year, effective 2 March 2020.