Vatican to release pre-war archives

The Vatican has set February 15 as the release date for archives documenting its relations with Germany leading up to the Second World War – part of its promised release intended to counter criticism of the papacy during the Holocaust.

But in a statement today, the Vatican noted that a chunk of the archive dating from 1931-1934 was “nearly completely destroyed or dispersed” during the wartime bombing of Berlin in 1945 and a fire at the apostolic nuncio’s palace.

The release is the Vatican’s response to demands by Jewish groups for access to the archives dealing with Pope Pius XII, the Second World War pope. Critics of the pope charge that he failed to raise his voice and use his position to head off the extermination of European Jews by the Nazis.

Supporters of the pope insist he made every effort possible to help Jews and other victims, using quiet diplomacy.

The documents scheduled for release don’t involve the papacy of Pius XII, but cover the years 1922-1939, when he was a Vatican diplomat in Germany and later secretary of state.

Specifically, they cover the Vatican diplomatic missions in Berlin and Munich, and include a series of documents relating to the rise of “National Socialism” - the Nazi ideology – and the “condemnation of racism,” a statement from papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said.

The documents will not be released to the general public, but will be made available to scholars who request access, the statement said.

The Vatican announced last February that it would open up its Germany-related archives ahead of schedule to help put an end to what it called the “unjust and ungrateful speculation” surrounding Pius XII’s wartime actions.

At the time, the Vatican was under fresh criticism from Jewish groups after a panel of Catholic and Jewish scholars looking into the Vatican’s wartime record announced it was suspending its work because the Vatican hadn’t released all its wartime archives.

Jewish groups at the time urged the Vatican put on hold its plans to beatify Pius XII, pope from 1939 to 1958, until the record was straight.

In October, the Vatican announced the documents would be released in January, but earlier this month, the head of the Vatican archives, the Rev. Sergio Pagano, told The Associated Press the date would be missed by a few weeks because of the huge mass of material involved.

The Vatican has said the documents, including files on wartime prisoners, would show historians “the great works of charity and assistance” undertaken by Pius XII for prisoners and other victims regardless of nation, religion or race