Visit our website: HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK --------------------------------------------- Marrus and scholars suspend Vatican, Second World War probe Access to unpublished archives has been hindered ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- by Jane Stirling July 25, 2001 -- Dean Michael Marrus of the School of Graduate Studies and five prominent international historians have suspended their study into the Vatican's activities during the Holocaust and Second World War. They cite a "lack of positive response" from the Vatican to an appeal for additional documentation. Marrus said he is disappointed the Catholic Church has not been more forthcoming in making documents available to the six Jewish and Catholic scholars. Nevertheless, he feels sorrow, not anger at the impasse. "I want to continue this dialogue [with church officials] because this is a remarkable program. We still have much to learn from this terrible moment in contemporary history. It is vitally important that this effort to understand continue in a climate of free inquiry, open debate and mutual respect. This is a set-back but, I hope, only a temporary set-back." The Vatican and the International Jewish Committee for Interreligious Consultations appointed the scholars in October 1999. The panel had agreed to review 11 volumes of already published Vatican records and "to pose questions about unresolved matters" in the documents. The team's preliminary report, issued in October 2000 and entitled The Vatican and the Holocaust, raised many questions requiring additional documentation from the Vatican's unpublished archives. However, in a letter dated June 21, a top church official said that archives beyond 1923 could not be made accessible "at present for technical reasons." The Vatican, Marrus noted, is a deeply traditional institution with different lines of authority, which may have hindered access to the archives. "It's difficult to say if we will get access to the archives in the near future but it's increasingly obvious there needs to be consensus [within the church]." Marrus, who holds the university's Chancellor Rose and Ray Wolfe Chair in Holocaust Studies, has written extensively on modern European history and the Holocaust. Among other books, he is the author of The Holocaust in History and The Nuremberg War Crimes Trial 1945-46: A Documentary History. Jane Stirling is the associate director of news services with the Department of Public Affairs. CONTACT: U of T Public Affairs, ph: (416) 978-2105; email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- ------------------------------------------------- This Discussion List is the follow-up for the old stopnato @listbot.com that has been shut down ==^================================================================ EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9spWA Or send an email To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] This email was sent to: [email protected] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
