c. 1999 Religion News Service

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Catholic magazine says beatifying Pope Pius XII would be”inopportune” (RNS) Beatifying Pope Pius XII, who headed the Roman Catholic Church during World War II, would be”inopportune”at this time, says America, a Catholic weekly magazine.

Instead, the magazine called for establishment of an international commission of Catholic and Jewish historians to review Pius’ actions during World War II, the subject of a new book titled”Hitler’s Pope: The Secret History of Pius XII.” An editorial in the national magazine’s Oct. 23 issue declares that the book, in which author John Cornwell says that Pius could have done more to limit the killing of Jews during the Holocaust,”fails as a work of historical scholarship.”The magazine says the ongoing debate about Pius needs to be addressed in another manner.”Pius was not Hitler’s pope,”the magazine states.”He despised Hitler and Nazism. Certainly he loved Germans and German culture, but this is no sin. On the other hand, today, in hindsight we wish he had been more outspoken.” The magazine urges that steps be taken to prevent an erosion of Catholic-Jewish relations, which have progressed in recent years.”Many in the Jewish community (as well as in the Catholic community) are clearly alarmed by efforts to canonize Pius,”the editorial reads.”In fact, his beatification at this time would be inopportune.” The magazine stated that professional historians rather than”head-line seekers”should judge Pius.”The church needs honestly and bravely to face questions about the alleged silence of Pius XII on the extermination of the Jews during the war,”the editorial reads.

The magazine suggests that a commission of historians be created to review published and unpublished Vatican documents related to Pius.”Such a joint study, first suggested by Cardinal Joseph Bernardin in 1992, would probably find that Pius was a good but flawed man trying to do the best he could in a terrible situation,”the magazine states.”He was forced to make decisions under horrendous circumstances, and some were wrong but not necessarily evil.” The editorial says that some of Pius’ defenders have cited reasons for why the pope was not more vocal in opposition to the Holocaust.”Those who think the Holocaust and the war would have ended at his word overrate the power of the papacy and underrate the evil of Hitler,”the magazine states.

Some of those who have defended Pius have said his words might have endangered the lives of Catholics and others in Nazi-occupied territory, and Jews hidden in Italian religious houses and on Vatican property.”Are these reasons historically accurate and morally valid?”the magazine asks.”These questions are legitimate issues for historians and will be debated for many years to come.”(The following paragraphs are embargoed until 3 a.m. EST Oct. 19)

In a separate but related matter, the Vatican’s Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews and the International Jewish Committee for Interreligious Consultations (IJCIC) have agreed to appoint a joint team of Catholic and Jewish scholars to review 11 volumes of previously published Vatican archival material relating to the church’s role during World War II.

Three Catholic and three Jewish scholars will serve on the team, which will study documents published between 1965 and 1981. Announcement of the review was scheduled to be made Tuesday (Oct. 19) by the Vatican.

In a statement in advance of the announcement issued by IJCIC, Cardinal Edward Cassidy, president of the Holy See’s Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, and Seymour Reich, IJCIC chairman, said they hoped the review will resolve”any questions and differences that may exist”between the two sides.

Jews have pressed for the release of all Vatican archives relating to the war to clear up their concerns over Pius’ and the church’s decisions. Reich called the review of the already published material a”useful first step.”

European Catholic bishops draft 40 proposals to meet church crisis

(RNS) European bishops meeting at the Vatican have drafted 40 proposals on issues ranging from the role of women to relations with Muslims and Jews to help the Roman Catholic Church meet the continent’s crisis of faith.

Opening the third and last week of the Second Special Assembly for Europe of the Synod of Bishops Monday (Oct. 18), the bishops listened to Cardinal Antonio Rouco Varela, the general relator of the synod, read in Latin a compilation of their recommendations for ways to restore Europe’s faith in Christianity’s third millennium.

The bishops will present their ideas to Pope John Paul II, who will use them as the basis of an exhortation that he will deliver in late 2000 to formally close the synod. The pope called the synod to follow up on a 1991 meeting that examined the effects of the fall of communism and to propose an agenda for the year 2000 and beyond.

The bishops also heard Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi of Genoa, Italy, present the first draft of a message of hope to the Catholics of Europe.

Neither of the texts was made public, but a press officer present at the meeting said the message-in marked contrast to the bishops’ earlier warnings that Europe is succumbing to consumerism, nihilism and paganism-is”very positive. It is about spreading the Good News, about hope.” One of the longest and most detailed proposals concerned the role of women in the church and society, recognizing for the first time the contribution to the faith of women who are neither wives nor nuns, said press officer Mary T. Curtin of Irish radio.”Women whether single, wives, mothers or leading the consecrated life have a great deal to offer,”the bishops said. They said access to public offices in the church for which ordination is not necessary should be open to all laity, including women, she added.

Warning that motherhood and the institution of the family are under threat today, the bishops agreed with the pope’s suggestion that there should be some form of payment for women who work in the home.

They also urged the church to uphold the dignity of women by fighting prostitution and portrayals of women as sex objects in the communications media.

The bishops looked to fuller church education to support Catholics in their dialogue with Muslims, who are increasingly present in Europe. They took a tough stand on reciprocity, demanding the same right to build churches in hard-line Islamic countries such as Saudi Arabia that Muslims have in Europe.

To help improve relations with Jews, the bishops proposed that the entire church establish an annual day of Catholic-Jewish dialogue just before the week of Christian Unity celebrated in January. Italy already has such a day.

In supporting ecumenical dialogue, the bishops noted that there are more than 20 different rites among the Eastern churches in communion with Rome and called this a model of unity in diversity that should prove useful for the church.

The bishops also urged local churches to join efforts to fight unemployment and called on the European Union to become”a community of values,”supporting social justice, helping people seeking asylum and acting to improve the quality of life of economic migrants.

Within the church, the bishops addressed the problem of falling vocations for the priesthood and religious orders. While welcoming the vitality of new lay movements, they emphasized that these groups must integrate themselves into parish life and accept the authority of the bishops.

Update: New violence, verbal jousting in Nazareth mosque dispute

(RNS) The Holy Land’s highest ranking Roman Catholic official has blasted plans to build a mosque near Nazareth’s Basilica of the Annunciation, calling it”a grave historical mistake”and discrimination against Christians.

The comments by Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah follows an attack on Nazareth’s Christian mayor, apparently by Muslims. Mayor Ramez Jaraisi was attacked on the street following a meeting Saturday (Oct. 16), leaving him with a slight wound on one arm, according to Agence France Presse news service.

Israeli police detained two persons in the attack, but declined to reveal their names and religion after Jaraisi said he did not want to file a complaint.

However, the mayor blamed the attack on the local leadership of the Islamic Movement and said”the brother”of the movement’s deputy leader in Nazareth was among the attackers.

The incident marked the second time Jaraisi has been attacked during the current dispute between Muslims and Christians in Nazareth. Muslims, who constitute the majority in Nazareth, have demanded construction of a mosque on open land next to the basilica, which covers the spot tradition says is where the Virgin Mary was told by the Angel Gabriel she would give birth to Jesus.

The Israeli government has offered a compromise plan that would limit the mosque to a third of the half-acre plot. However, Christians want the entire plot for a plaza area in advance of the large numbers of pilgrims expected to visit Nazareth and other Holy Land cities during the millennium year 2000.

Writing, to Israeli President Ezer Weizman on behalf of Christian leaders in Jerusalem, Sabah dismissed the Israeli plan, which the Vatican has said could endanger a planned visit to Nazareth by Pope John Paul II.”We deplore this decision. It is the legitimization and approbation of all threats, insults and attacks against Christians carried out to date by the Islamic group leading the campaign to build a mosque,”Sabah said, the Associated Press reported.

Is the pope headed to the wrong Ur?

(RNS) Pope John Paul II has said he hopes to visit the traditional birthplace of Ur, in present day Iraq, as part of his trips to the Middle East to mark the end of Christianity’s second millennium.

The United States has urged John Paul to not visit Ur, maintaining that doing so will provide Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein with undeserved positive attention. Now, a leading editor of scholarly journals on the biblical era says he doesn’t think John Paul should visit Ur either-at least not the Ur he’s planning on visiting.

Hershel Shanks, the editor of Biblical Archaeology Review and Bible Review magazines, says it appears the pope is heading for the wrong Ur.”In ancient times, there were a number of Urs, and the one John Paul intends to visit in southern Iraq, near the Persian Gulf, is one of the less likely candidates for Abraham’s Ur,”Shanks wrote Monday (Oct. 18) in the Los Angeles Times.

When God, as the Bible says, called upon Abraham to leave Ur for Canaan, the patriarch first went to Haran.”Virtually all scholars agree on the location of Haran,”Shanks said.”It is in Turkey, about 10 miles north of the Syrian border.” The Ur in southern Iraq is some 1,000 miles southeast of Haran, and, said Shanks”no one would go north all the way to Haran”on a journey to Canaan, which is southwest of Iraq’s Ur.

Instead, Shanks said, ancient cuneiform records refer to”an Ur (or several Urs) that appear to be in the vicinity of Haran. It is very likely that Abraham started out from one of these, not the Iraqi Ur.” Shanks also noted that Urfa, in southern Turkey, has local traditions that say it is Abraham’s birthplace. And Jacob, Abraham’s grandson, is said in the Bible to have crossed the Euphrates River when returning to Canaan from Abraham’s homeland after spending 20 years working to gain the hands of Rachel and Leah. However, said Shanks, there is no need to cross the river when traveling from the Iraqi Ur to Canaan, although that is required when traveling from Urfa.

Glen Payne, lead vocalist for The Cathedrals, dies

(RNS) Glen Payne, the lead vocalist of the Southern gospel group The Cathedrals, died Friday (Oct. 15).

Payne, 72, was diagnosed with cancer six weeks ago.

During his nearly 60 years in gospel music, Payne’s group won numerous awards. The Cathedrals also were nominated for 11 Grammys.

His work was honored by the Gospel Music Association’s Hall of Fame, the Southern Gospel Music Association’s Hall of Fame, the Radio Music Hall of Fame and the Texas Music Hall of Fame, the Associated Press reported.

In 1963, Payne formed a trio to perform at evangelist Rex Humbard’s Cathedral of Tomorrow in Akron, Ohio. After George Younce joined the trio, it changed its name to the Cathedral Quartet.

Quote of the Day: The Rev. John R. Hutchinson of McLean, Va., Presbyterian Church

(RNS)”What the church needs more of is the Holy Spirit. The real problem with the church today is we got too many theologians.” -The Rev. John R. Hutchinson, pastor of McLean Presbyterian Church in McLean, Va., a Presbyterian Church in America congregation, from his Sunday (Oct. 17) sermon as published in the Washington Times.

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