Silence And Sainthood

By CHRISTOPHER JOHN FARLEY

The possible canonization of POPE PIUS XII, which the Vatican has been investigating for over 25 years, is drawing fire from a Jewish leader. Rabbi Marvin Hier, dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, says Pius XII (who reigned from 1939 to '58) was publicly silent during the Holocaust. Hier also says a letter he obtained from a Vatican official indicates that the nomination is moving forward. Father John Pawlikowski of the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago says outrage is premature: "The process is a long one, and any major decisions could be years away." Look for the issue to spark discussions between Catholics and Jews: the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, a wire service that goes to more than 100 Jewish publications worldwide, will release a story on the issue this week.