The Life & Pontificate of Pope Pius XII: Between History & Controversy

by Frank J. Coppa

“Focuses not just on . . . the pope’s response to the Holocaust, but on [his] life and papacy . . . as a whole . . . A refreshingly balanced approach” (Catholic Courier).   Written by one of the foremost historians of Pius XII, this present biographical study—unlike the greater part of the vast and growing historiography of Pope Pius XII—is a balanced and nonreactive account of his life and times. Its focus is not on the pope’s silence during the Holocaust, though it does address the issue in a historical and objective framework. This is a biography of the man before and during his papacy. It probes the roots of his traditionalism and legalism, his approach to modernity and reformism in Church and society, and the influences behind his policies and actions.   “This book adds a great deal to what we currently know about this most written about pope. The author introduces a number of principles which need to be discussed by experts and also by biographers of this pope, most importantly the concepts of papal impartiality and anti-Judaism as related to Pope Pius XII.” —Charles R. Gallagher, S.J., assistant professor of history, Boston College   “It sets up a closer examination and better understanding of Pius XII’s decisions and behaviors dealing with three distinct historically important the Holocaust, the question of Palestine and Israel after World War II, and the Cold War.” —Catholic Books Review   “Tries to move away from the controversy and toward a greater and broader focus on the entire life of Pacelli—his formative influences, personal interests, and papacy after the war.” —New Oxford Review

336 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 4, 2013

About the author

A specialist in the history of modern Italy and the Roman Catholic Church, Frank J. Coppa taught at St. John's University in Queens, New York, from 1965 until his retirement in 2010. He earned his B.A. from Brooklyn College in 1960, and his M.A. (1962) and Ph.D. (1966) from the Catholic University of America.

Reviews

[Phillip Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coppa presents a well researched and insightful book on Pius XII who was pope from 1939-1958. In these years of turmoil, this well trained, scholarly, and introverted pope brought his diplomatic caution and discretion to defending the Church. He relied on diplomatic agreements and a careful and vague criticism to avoid having the Church being destroyed by the Nazis. Surrounded by fascists on his doorstep with rumors swirling of their desire to eliminate the Church, his words were designed to prevent a provocation. He hid Jews but never committed to a direct and full scale denouncement of the Nazis. Why? It does not appear to be anti-semitism. But he was not a big supporter of the Jews either even when the threat of teh Nazis ws eliminated. Was it his staunch anti-communism that prevented his caution in denouncing Germany. Was it his love of the German nation? His motives are complex and at times so opaque that they remain a mystery. This book, which struggles with Pius's lack of a written record, etc. provides some tentative explanations. In the end Pius still seems a bit of an enigma.

[Justin Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Something of a missed opportunity hear, in many ways. Coppa suggests that he's writing an impartial biography of Pius XII, which won't be obsessed with the whole 'Hitler's Pope, or nope?' question--and will thus help us reach a better understanding of that question. Perhaps that's a fools errand; Pius XII is interesting because of that very question, and Coppa does return to it over and over again. He also isn't impartial, which is fine. He's writing a biography, he's sympathetic, and he tries to exonerate Pius XII of the worst charges against him. That said, this is more impartial than the hysterics, half of whom think Pius XII was roughly three degrees worse than Hitler himself, and the other half of whom think he's St. Francis.

I, at least, learned one important thing from this book: the attempt to explain Pius XII's *motives* is far less important than his actions themselves. The 'Hitler's Pope' thing is understood to be damning because it suggests that Pius was anti-semitic, and that this motivated his (at best) ambivalent reaction to the holocaust. Coppa shows fairly convincingly that Pius was no great anti-semite; instead, he was a diplomat and radical anti-communist. Combine those two things together, and you have the motivation for his failure to speak out more strongly. In a sense, then, Coppa succeeds, because he refutes the hysterics who think Pius was anti-semitic. This doesn't make his actions in the second world war any more excusable, though. It just means a different set of motivations led to the unpleasant actions. On the evidence of this book, European Jews (and everyone else) would have been much better off if Pius XI had hung on for another decade.

The writing is usually solid, and the few mistakes seem to be the result of awful, awful editing. Sentences start in one syntactical direction and end in another; more amusingly, there are routine mis-spellings. Parcelli, it seems, cannot be accused of anti-semetism. Just as well, for The Word is nothing if not a sign.

On a totally unrelated note, I was reading this book when my daughter was born. Welcome to the world, Persy!