Expert On Pius Xii And Holocaust To Speak At Institute For Advanced Study

Robert S. Wistrich, Neuberger Professor of Modern European and Jewish History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, will speak on “Pope Pius XII and the Holocaust” on October 2 at 5:00 p.m. in Wolfensohn Hall on the campus of the Institute for Advanced Study. The talk is sponsored by the Institute’s School of Historical Studies.

Wistrich, who is also director of Hebrew University’s International Centre for the Study of Antisemitism, was one of six scholars selected by the Vatican to study the controversy over Pius XII, the Shoah, and the long-sealed Holy See archives on World War II.

In his lecture, Wistrich will present his findings. He examines when precisely the Vatican came to learn of the Holocaust, from which sources, and what it did with this information. He examines the motives, ideological background, and political considerations that influenced the Pope – the difficult choices he faced, and the criticism his relative silence on the Holocaust provoked.

Wistrich is author of more than 20 books, including Antisemitism: The Longest Hatred (1991), which won the Wingate nonfiction prize in the United Kingdom, and was the basis of a three-hour PBS/Thames Television Documentary.

Other recent books include Demonizing the Other (1999); Hitler and the Holocaust (2001); Muslim Antisemitism: A Clear and Present Danger (2002); and Nietzsche: Godfather of Fascism? (co-edited with J. Golomb), to be published in October.

Wistrich received his Ph.D. From the University of London, and has been on the faculty of Hebrew University since 1979. He has also taught at University College, London; the University of London; and the Ecole des Hautes Etudes in Paris.

A reception, to be held in the Common Room of Fuld Hall, will follow the lecture.