Vatican City, Jan 22, 2015 / 05:44 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- An Italian historian has found evidence that Venerable Pius XII’s order to open the doors to Jewish refugees was delivered to two enclosed monasteries in Rome, “L’Osservatore Romano” wrote on Wednesday. In its Jan. 21 issue, the Vatican newspaper mentioned the latest paper of the historian Antonello Carvigiani published in the magazine “Storia Contemporanea.” As no written order from Pius XII to Roman churches and convents to welcome those persecuted for political or racial reasons has been found, Carvigiani maintains that he had found “evidence of a written or oral order, though written with a standard formula, that was delivered to all religious houses in Rome, as well as to all parishes and ecclesiastical structures.” This order should be Pius XII's letter that Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, then Secretary of State, mentioned on Apr. 17, 2007, speaking about of an order from the late Pope that “was never made public.” Pius XII's beatification cause has been challenged in some Jewish quarters, which charge that he was silent about the Holocaust and did not do enough to resist the Germans. When Bl. Paul VI started the beatification process in 1967, nine years after Pius XII’s death, he formed a committee of historians to conduct an in-depth study of his predecessor’s life and behavior, giving particular attention to the events of World War II. The committee was made up of four Jesuits: Fathers Pierre Blet (France), Angelo Martini (Italy), Burkhart Schneider (Germany), and Robert A. Graham (United States). Their work led to the publication of “Actes et Documents du Saint Siège relatifs à la Seconde Guerre Mondiale” (Acts and Documents of the Holy See related to the Second World War), an 11-volume collection of documents from the Vatican’s Secret Archive about Pius XII’s papacy during the war. The completed catalogue will include approximately 16 million documents from Pius XII's papacy, which lasted from 1939 to 1958. Benedict XVI initially decided to postpone Pius XII's cause for sainthood, and advocated waiting until the archives would be open for researchers in 2014. But Benedict changed his mind and declared Pius XII Venerable on Dec. 19, 2009, based on the recommendation of the committee investigating his cause. Pacelli's cause has not moved forward since, but Carvigiani's discoveries may be decisive to move the cause forward. Carvigiani looked into the unpublished chronicles of the cloistered Roman monasteries Santi Quattro and Santa Susanna. According to Carvigiani, the chronicles reveal “there is a very authoritative source who asked the monasteries to open the cloister and to hide all the people wanted by Nazis, especially the Jews.” “From the text, one may assume that this order comes from the Pope and is said in oral form to the two monasteries (of Santa Susanna and Santi Quattro Coronati), as well as one may assume that (this order) is delivered to all the religious institutions of Rome.” Hence, “it is possible to hypothesize that a written paper, delivered in hundreds of copies, was delivered to all the religious institutions in Rome.” Read more

Vatican City, Jan 22, 2015 / 09:32 am (CNA/EWTN News).- As massive crowds of pro-life advocates gathered for the March for Life in Washington, D.C., Pope Francis on Thursday tweeted a short message of support. “Every Life is a Gift,” he said Jan. 22, using the hashtag “#marchforlife.” The message went out to over 5.3 million Twitter followers on his English-language account “Pontifex.” Every Life is a Gift. #marchforlife — Pope Francis (@Pontifex) January 22, 2015 To his 7.8 million Spanish-language Twitter followers, he sent the same message: “Cada Vida es un Don.” As of noon Eastern Time Thursday, his English-language tweet had over 12,000 retweets and 17,000 favorites. His Spanish-language tweet had over 3,700 retweets and 3,800 favorites. Last year the Pope also tweeted a message in English and Spanish. “I join the March for Life in Washington with my prayers. May God help us respect all life, especially the most vulnerable,” he said in January 2014. The pro-life march in Washington, D.C. typically draws hundreds of thousands of attendees of all religious backgrounds, though Catholic participants are numerous. This year's event marks the 42nd anniversary of the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, which mandated legal abortion nationwide. Pope Francis made a surprise visit via popemobile to an April 2013 pro-life march in Rome. He is not the first pontiff to tweet to the March for Life. Pope Benedict XVI sent a message of support for U.S. pro-life advocates on Twitter in January 2013.   Read more

Vatican City, Jan 21, 2015 / 06:06 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Tommaso Di Ruzza was appointed Wednesday as the new director of the Vatican’s Authority for Financial Information, filling the post left vacant Nov. 19, when the previous director, René Bruelhart, was made president of the Authority’s board of directors. Di Ruzza's appointment indicates continuity in the advancement of financial reforms that have been carried on by the Vatican since 2009 under Benedict XVI. A respected international juridical expert who studied at the universities of Siena, Rome, and Oxford, Di Ruzza has served as a juridical advisor to the Holy See since 2005. After having served at the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Di Ruzza was entrusted with following the operational, juridical, and international issues of the Authority for Financial Information since its establishment in 2011. In this capacity, Di Ruzza had a prominent role in the negotiations with the Council of Europe’s Moneyval committee regarding its 2012 evaluation of the Holy See's financial system. Di Ruzza also negotiated in 2013 the inclusion of the Authority of Financial Information in the Egmont Group, which gathers the world's financial intelligence units, as well as the several memoranda of understanding the Authority has signed with its counterpart in several countries, the most noteworthy being those with the US, UK, Italy, and Germany. Vatican insiders explained to CNA that Di Ruzza has been one of the main supporters of the Vatican's path toward reform and the consolidation of Holy See and Vatican City State anti- money laundering programs. Di Ruzza’s appointment concludes the Authority's transition to a new governance. The transition began after the new Vatican anti-money laundering law was issued in August 2013, and confirmed in October 2013 – a law that Di Ruzza had considerably contributed to drafting – and the consequent November 2013 issuance of the new statutes of the Authority for Financial Information. The new statutes also entrusted the Authority for Financial Information with the functions of prudential supervision. The first regulation of prudential supervision came into effect Jan. 13, and is published on the Authority’s website. This prudential supervision is exercised over the Vatican offices that professionally handle financial activities, including the Institute for Religious Works, or 'Vatican bank'. The new regulations introduce a legal framework in terms of organization and management of the offices. A source who works in Vatican finances explained to CNA Jan. 21 that “the text adheres to international standards, but also fits with the Holy See's peculiar and juridical framework.” This means – the source concluded – that “the Holy See is committed to a long term and sustainable path to fulfill international standards for financial transparency.” Read more