AAS 80 - La Santa Sede

752 Acta Apostolicae Sedis - Commentarium Officiale
witness of hope, of faith and of humanity under dehumanizing outrages,
the Church expériences ever more deeply her common bond with the
Jewish people and with their treasure of spiritual riches in the past
and in the présent.
It is also Atting to recali the strong, unequivocal efforts of the
Popes against antisemitism and Nazism at the height of the persécution
against the Jews. Back in 1938, Pius XI declared that "antisemitism
cannot be admitted", 8 and he declared the total opposition between
Christianity and Nazism by stating that the Nazi cross is an "enemy
of the Cross of Christ". 9 And I am convinced that history will reveal
ever more clearly and convincingly how deeply Pius XII feit the
tragedy of the Jewish people, and how hard and effecti vely he worked
to assist them during the Second World War.
Speaking in the name of humanity and Christian principies, the
Bishops' Conference of the United States denounced the atrocities
with a clear statement: "Since the murderous assault on Poland,
utterly devoid of every semblance of humanity, there has been a pre-
meditated and systematic extermination of the people of this nation.
The same satanic technique is being applied to many other peoples.
We feel a deep sense of revulsión against the cruel indignities fîeaped
upon the Jews in conquered countries and upon defenseless peoples
not of our faith". 10
We also remember many others, who, at risk of their own lives,
helped persecuted Jews, and are honored by the Jews with the title
of "Tzaddiqê 'ummôt ha-'olâm" (Righteous of the Nations).
5. The terrible tragedy of your people has led many Jewish thinkers
to reflect on the human condition with acute insights. Their vision
of man and the roots of this vision in the teachings of the Bible, which
we share in our common héritage of the Hebrew Scriptures, offer
Jewish and Catholic scholars much useful material for reflection and
dialogue. And I am thinking here above ali of the contribution of
Martin Buber and Emmanuel Lévinas.
In order to understand even more deeply the meaning of the
Shoah and the historical roots of antisemitism that are related to it,
joint collaboration and studies by Catholics and Jews on the Shoah
* 6 September 1938.
9 Christmas Allocution, 1938.
10 November 14, 1942.