I am amazed that some still refer to Pacelli as "the Pope who never smiled" or use words to describe him such as aloof,serious,aristocratic, cold. They have obviously never seen, or do not want to acknowledge, the mass of photographic evidence of his warmth, friendliness, gentleness, but as the saying goes - there are none so blind as they who do not want to see. Sad!Long before JPII we had a pope who loved people, who loved to be among people, to be in among the people.
I've been reading "Hitler, the War, and the Pope" by Ronald Rychlak, what an excellent book for anyone looking to defend the character and wartime pontificate of Ven. Pius XII. It's full of detailed information with numerous citations of reliable sources. A very compelling read and I must say addicting read. Undoubtedly one will gain a greater appreciation for Ven. Pius XII through this book, I know I have come to think of him as my favorite 20th century Pope.
to Anonymous's comment at 11:01 AM, and there's certainly nothing bad about being being an aristocrat either as Pius XII was one and he wasn't ashamed of it. He gave a number of allocutions teaching about the importance of nobility and traditional elites for creating a well ordered community. Here is a link to an article with some quotes from those allocutions and commentary on them: http://americaneedsfatima.blogspot.com.au/2009/03/pius-xii-and-universal-scope-of.html
In the same book that I mentioned, Pope Pius XII was very witty and said something to the effect that "laughter is a gift from God." A most gentle soul!
I am amazed that some still refer to Pacelli as "the Pope who never smiled" or use words to describe him such as aloof,serious,aristocratic, cold. They have obviously never seen, or do not want to acknowledge, the mass of photographic evidence of his warmth, friendliness, gentleness, but as the saying goes - there are none so blind as they who do not want to see. Sad!Long before JPII we had a pope who loved people, who loved to be among people, to be in among the people.
ReplyDeleteI've been reading "Hitler, the War, and the Pope" by Ronald Rychlak, what an excellent book for anyone looking to defend the character and wartime pontificate of Ven. Pius XII. It's full of detailed information with numerous citations of reliable sources. A very compelling read and I must say addicting read. Undoubtedly one will gain a greater appreciation for Ven. Pius XII through this book, I know I have come to think of him as my favorite 20th century Pope.
ReplyDeleteto Anonymous's comment at 11:01 AM, and there's certainly nothing bad about being being an aristocrat either as Pius XII was one and he wasn't ashamed of it. He gave a number of allocutions teaching about the importance of nobility and traditional elites for creating a well ordered community. Here is a link to an article with some quotes from those allocutions and commentary on them: http://americaneedsfatima.blogspot.com.au/2009/03/pius-xii-and-universal-scope-of.html
ReplyDeleteIn the same book that I mentioned, Pope Pius XII was very witty and said something to the effect that "laughter is a gift from God." A most gentle soul!
ReplyDelete