Friday, May 28, 2010

Rabbi Shmuley and Gary Krupp Debate Pope Pius XII

—Righteous Saint or Moral Coward—
(See Video Highlight Here) 

On Wednesday evening, May 26th, a crowd of several hundred gathered at The Lincoln Square Synagogue on Amsterdam Ave to hear a riveting debate on the legacy of Pope Pius XII during World War II. The panel included “America’s Rabbi,” former spiritual advisor to the late Michael Jackson and Oprah’s former marriage, parenting and relationship expert, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, Jewish papal knight and founder of the Pave the Way foundation Gary Krupp and historian William Doino, author of The Pius Wars. The evening, which included questions and comments by the audience, was moderated by NY1 Anchor Jessica Abo.

Pope Pius XII, commonly referred to as “Hitler’s Pope,” has a contentious legacy for maintaining an indifferent and silent position on German atrocities against Jews. He refused pleas for help on the grounds of neutrality, making only broad statements condemning injustice in general. Religious scholars disagree on if his indifference was merely a veneer; privately, he allegedly sheltered a small number of Jews and spoke to a few select officials, encouraging them to help.

“If Pius is being falsely maligned as a pious fraud and moral coward who disgraced a great world religion, then why doesn’t the Vatican fix the error by opening its archives on his pontificate that would reveal his correspondence and actions during the war, rather than keeping them private?” says Rabbi Shmuley.

Rabbi Shmuley defended his position that the Vatican documents reveal Pius’ shortcomings, while Gary Krupp drew on the documents to demonstrate the Pope’s goodwill—including his assistance in building secret escape railways out of concentration camps.

Watch for details on upcoming lecture with Rabbi Shmuley and author and actress Lisa Oz on The Pain We Feel—The Escape We Pursue in June. For more information visit Shmuley.com