The sheer wickedness of myths about 'Nazi' popes

A few years ago, the Catholic writer John Cornwell published a book entitled Hitler's Pope, about the relationship between Pius XII and the Nazis. Cornwell insisted that the Pope's silence on the subject of the Jews during the Second World War did more harm than good.
Many of the book's arguments were carefully nuanced, yet the title was a disgrace and an enduring stain on Cornwell's reputation. Not only were the facts of the case too complicated to justify such a crude insult; it also served to reinforce the notion that totalitarian National Socialism and hierarchical Catholicism were historical first cousins. It is true, alas, that there was an overlap between Catholic anti-Jewish sentiment and the "scientific" anti-Semitism of the Nazis. In essence, however, classical Christianity — that is, the Magisterium of the Church, with its universal embrace of the weak — is utterly antithetical to racist nationalism. Of all non-Jewish religious organisations, Hitler most despised the true Church.
We should hardly be surprised to discover, then, that the young Joseph Ratzinger, nurtured by the traditions of the Bavarian Counter-Reformation, was an extremely unenthusiastic member of the Hitler Youth, and that his devout family did everything in its power to save him from its clutches. As we report this week, the German historian Volker Laube has uncovered documentary evidence that Ratzinger was officially an "unwilling" participant in the Hitlerjugend, and, as such, was discriminated against.
It is — to put it mildly — highly unlikely that the singer Charlotte Church, who has branded the Pope a "Nazi", will absorb this information. But it should encourage Catholics in their fight against the defamatory suggestion that Benedict XVI is tainted by the unavoidable experiences of his adolescence.
We would add a note of caution, however. We also report this week that the Vatican appears to be promoting the Cause of Pope Pius XII. However repugnant Cornwell's jibe, the Church must recognise that Pius's beatification would damage relations with the Jewish community. That is not an insurmountable obstacle, if evidence of sanctity is overwhelming; but it is a reason to reform Rome's saint-making procedures, so that — as used to happen before the abolition of the Devil's Advocate — both sides of the argument receive a thorough airing. Pope Pius deserves nothing less.