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Name:
Pope Pius XII
Born: Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli
Preceded by: Pius XI (1922 - 1939)
Succeeded by: Blessed John XXIII (1958 - 1963)
Roman Catholic Pope #261
Dates:
Born: March 2, 1876 (Rome, Italy)
Died: October 9, 1958
Pope: March 2, 1939 - October 9, 1958 (19 years, 7 months)
Biography:
Pius XII was pope during the period of World War II, forcing him to address issues
and problems which few popes have had to deal with. Although he did make some
efforts to halt the coming hostilities (by calling for a peace conference, for example),
many believe that his appeasement of Hitler before the war only helped to encourage
Hitler's efforts. Even during the war, he refrained from condemning German atrocities
directly and in unequivocal terms.
Pius XII was the first pope to address the world at large through television and radio, something which helped him to develop a generally positive reputation. His addresses were aided by his impressive ability to learn languages - he could speak Latin, Italian, French, German, English, Spanish, Portugese, Dutch, Slovak, and Hungarian. It is even reported that he was able to learn enough Portugese in just a few weeks to allow him to address the Brazilian parliament.
Pius also played an important role in the continuing development of Catholic devotion to Mary. He declared 1950 to be a "Marian Year" and helped define the nature of the "Assumption" (the belief that Mary was taken bodily up into heaven). In doing so, he invoked the doctrine of papal infallability to underscore the importance of this particular belief. This was the last time, so far, that papal infallibility has been used.
On the one hand, Pius adopted a moderate attitude with regards to the Church's relationship with modernity in general. But, on the other hand, he did not take seriously any efforts to develop better, more ecumenical relationships with non-Catholics. New theological ideas which incorporated greater engagement with the modern world were either ignored or condemned outright.
Also Known As: none
Alternate Spellings: none
Common Misspellings: none
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