Israel changes tack over Pius XII

ISRAEL’S ambassador to the Vatican on yesterday backed off on his praise of Pope Pius XII, the WWII-era pope blamed by some Jews and historians for having failed to speak out enough against the Holocaust.

Ambassador Mordechai Lewy said in a statement that his personal judgment about the role of Pius, the Vatican and Catholic Church during the war had been “premature” since the issue is still being researched.

Lewy made headlines last week when he praised Pius and the Catholic Church in general for having given refuge to Roman Jews during the Nazi occupation of the Italian capital. The Vatican newspaper ran his speech on the front page, giving the brief but significant remarks high visibility.