The Policy of the Catholic Church Toward the Jews (1943)

Abstract

Abstract:Otto Kirchheimer's 1943 unpublished essay on the policy of the Catholic Church toward the Jews provides a historical overview of Catholic theological doctrines and political activities from medieval times through the modern period, concluding with the relationship between Pope Pius XII and Hitler's Germany. He emphasizes the rapid spread of antisemitic policies all over Europe after 1939 and the extent to which Catholicism helped lay the groundwork for these developments.