PIO XII’S COMPLAINTS AND PROSECUTORS, BETWEEN 1963 AND 1967: AN INTELECTUAL FRAUD?

Abstract

This article has the aim of presenting as concisely as possible criticism of Pope Pius XII’ s detractor authors, who accused him of indifference to the problems of the Hebrew and the atrocities committed by the Nazis during World War II. The fundamental problem of the Pope’s detractors –selecting those of the period from 1963 to 1967– is the lack of coherence between their accusations and the facts that they present in their work, this is, their work begins by blaming Pope Pacelli of negligence and ends exposing a series of actions that refute their previous claims. This situation had its origin in the psychodrama ‘The Deputy’ by German playwright Rolf Hochhuth (performed for the first time in February 1963), where the arguments presented were raised to the level of historical truths by the analysed authors- eventhough they never admited it. This proves that the Pope’s accusations previously mentioned constitute one of the most shocking intellectual fraude during the sixties.