Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Pope Recalls Holocaust Horrors, Forgets Jews

Benedict XVI has testy relationship with Jewish community

By Drew Nelles, Newser Staff

Posted Sep 6, 2009 5:12 PM CDT

(Newser) – Pope Benedict XVI recognized the 70th anniversary of the start of World War II today by paying tribute to Poles and the “tragedy of the Holocaust,” but did not mention its Jewish victims, the New York Times reports. The omission may further strain relations between Jewish leaders and the pope, who once served in the Hitler Youth and has revoked the excommunication of a Holocaust-denying bishop.

Benedict's words: “We cannot forget the major events that took place during one of the most terrible conflicts in history, that left tens of millions dead and provoked so much suffering for our beloved Polish people. It was conflict that saw the tragedy of the Holocaust and the extermination of so many other innocents.”

[Images (3)]

[Quotes (1)]

Pope Benedict XVI, in white, visits the Cathedral of St. Nicholas in Bagnoregio near Viterbo central Italy, Sunday Sept. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Carlo Ferraro, POOL)

Pope Benedict XVI marked the 70th anniversary of the start of World War II on Sunday by saying religion should promote peace and fight racism and totalitarianism. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Benedict XVI greets the faithful in Bagnoregio, part of his visit in Viterbo, central Italy, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

We cannot forget the major events that took place during one of the most terrible conflicts in history, that left tens of millions dead and provoked so much suffering for our beloved Polish people. - Pope Benedict XVI

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Rent Hitler's 'Wolf's Lair'

Underground Nazi HQ is available for $139,000 a year

(NEWSER) - Looking for a secluded vacation spot? For $139,000 a year, you can rent the bunker complex used by Hitler during World War II, reports the Telegraph . Known as the Wolf's Lair, the 32-acre site was built in a Polish forest and became the central headquarters of the Nazi dictator from 1941 to 1944. Drawback: Germany forces destroyed much of it as they fled. More»

Record 1.4M Visited Auschwitz Last Year

Increased number of visitors putting strain on structures

(NEWSER) - Auschwitz had a record number of visitors last year, with more than 1.4 million people visiting the onetime Nazi death camp. Most visitors were from Poland, but the site also saw many American, British, Italian, Israeli, German, and French tourists. Auschwitz-Birkenau is one of the most-visited Holocaust memorials in Europe, and increased tourism is a boon for Holocaust education—but it's hard on buildings already in disrepair after decades, the AP reports. More»

Paris Mosque Saved Jews From Nazis

New French film tells Holocaust story

(NEWSER) - A touching but little-known Holocaust story: Paris’ Grand Mosque rescued Jews from the Nazis by providing them with Muslim identities. It wasn’t a straightforward movement, the New York Times reports. Instead, Jews were helped case by case, and no one knows for sure how many were saved—figures range from dozens to 1,700. But a number of historical accounts confirm the story, and it’s the subject of a new French film. More»

Letter Baring Hitler's Jewish Hatred Goes on Display

Chillingly warns of 'removal' of Jews under 'strong' nation

(NEWSER) - A Jewish "hate letter" written by Adolf Hitler will go on public display for the first time ever in a Los Angeles museum. The four-page typed letter, written years before Hitler came to power and believed to be his first significant writing about Jews, expresses his disdain for Jews and warns of the "uncompromising removal of the Jews altogether," reports the Los Angeles Times. Such a goal can only be accomplished, he writes, "under a government of National strength and never under a government of National impotence." More»

Polish Monument to Massacre of Jews Vandalized

Vandals write 'they were flammable'

(NEWSER) - A horrifying story with a cruel twist: Vandals have graffitied a monument in Poland that marked the spot where as many as 400 Jews were burned alive in a barn during World War II. But in addition to defacing it with a spray-painted green swastika, they wrote the unthinkable: "They were flammable." Police in the town of Jedwabne discovered the crime yesterday and are searching for the perpetrators, reports the AP , which notes that the graffiti also included "SS" and "I don't apologize for Jedwabne." More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Pope Recalls Holocaust Horrors, Forgets Jews