On January 29, forty-seven Democrats of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to Pope Benedict XVI stating their concern over comments made by Bishop Richard Williamson’s concerning the Holocaust. Led by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, these Democrats – all of them Roman Catholics – demand in the letter that the pope should “publicly state your unequivocal position on this matter so that it is clear where the Church stands on one of the most consequential events of the 20th century.” The letter addresses the pope as a “spiritual leader”, rather than head of state of the Holy See, even while the signatories are sitting representatives of government.
The bishop in question belongs to a dissident group within the Catholic Church called the Society of St. Pius X, which was founded by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre – a prelate who was eventually excommunicated along with other members of the SSPX by Pope John Paul II.
Bishop Williamson stirred considerable controversy by questioning the historical record that shows that thousands of Jews and other enemies of National Socialist Germany were exterminated in gas chambers before and during the Second World War. He has also gone on record as saying that only a few hundred thousand Jews may have perished due to the racist and anti-Semitic pogroms unleashed by Nazism in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s.
Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi denounced the bishop’s statements, calling them “absolutely indefensible”, while SSPX leader Bishop Bernard Fellay also distanced himself from the remarks. The future of the group within the Church remains unclear, as there issues in addition to accusations of widespread anti-Semitism that are to be addressed in the process of bringing the traditionalist sect under the umbrella of the Church.
William Donohue, the leader of the Catholic League, a New York-based advocacy group, responded to the Democrats' letter, saying “The congressmen’s letter to the pope smacks of posturing and hypocrisy, and is factually wrong. They begin by saying ‘we are writing to express our deep concerns with your decision to reinstate Bishop Richard Williamson to communion with the Catholic Church….’ The fact is that the pope did not reinstate the bishop to communion with the Church—he merely lifted the excommunication of the group to which he belongs. In order for the group to be fully reinstated, it would have to express its fidelity to the teachings of the Church, as well as the norms of Vatican II. In other words, the letter is based on a false predicate.”
Donohue goes on, “Facts aside, this kind of posturing is a disgrace: for American congressmen to lecture the pope about an event in which he was personally victimized, and about which he has long condemned, is nothing short of arrogant.
“The hypocrisy is mind-boggling. They beg the pope to ‘publicly state your unequivocal position on this matter so that it is clear where the Church stands….’ How ironic that most of these very same Catholics fail to speak with clarity about what the Church teaches on abortion.
“Of the 47 signatories, the majority have a 100 percent NARAL score (meaning they vote with the radical pro-abortion group on every issue). The leader of this group, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, never agrees with the Catholic Church on abortion—her NARAL score is 100 percent.
“One more thing: they addressed the pope not as a head of state but as a ‘spiritual leader.’ Didn’t they ever hear of respecting separation of church and state?”
The lifting of the ban of excommunication from the members of the SSPX has stirred controversy within Jewish and Catholic circles. The rabbinate of Israel, for example, has severed official ties to the Vatican over the incident, while others have continued dialogue with Rome.
Below is the text of the letter.
January 29, 2009
His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI Apostolic Palace 00120, Vatican City State, Europe
Your Holiness Pope Benedict XVI, As Catholic Members of Congress, we are writing to express our deep concerns with your decision to reinstate Bishop Richard Williamson to communion with the Catholic Church at the same time that Bishop Williamson publicly denies that the Holocaust occurred or that such was the policy under Adolf Hitler. We do not question your reasons for revoking the excommunication of Bishop Williamson or your right to do so, but we fail to understand why the revocation was not accompanied by an emphatic public rejection of his denial of the Holocaust. As such, we seek clarification on this important matter.
Bishop Williamson has said as recently as this past November that, “historical evidence is hugely against 6 million Jews having been deliberately gassed in gas chambers as a deliberate policy by Adolf Hitler.” Yet, the Holocaust is a verifiable fact and as people of good will would agree, one of the darkest chapters in our history as a human family. There are still thousands of people amongst us – Jews and non-Jews – who can attest through eye-witness accounts to the horrors of the Holocaust. Bishop Williamson’s comments regarding the Holocaust echo those of neo-Nazis, Islamist extremists, racists and others who choose hatred and violence over peaceful co-existence among peoples of all races and ethnicities.
We understand that Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi has said that this issue is unrelated to the reinstatement of Bishop Williamson and that you do not share in his views. And we welcome your recent statement expressing "full and indisputable solidarity" with the Jewish people. But this is too sensitive an issue to be handled without a direct repudiation of Bishop Williamson’s views. As a spiritual leader and the head of the Catholic Church, we believe it is vital that you publicly state your unequivocal position on this matter so that it is clear where the Church stands on one of the most consequential events of the 20th century. To neglect to do so is to allow others to portray it as they wish and impede the progress made over so many years toward harmony and reconciliation.
Thank you for your consideration.
Respectfully,
ROSA L. DeLAURO
WILLIAM DELAHUNT
ANNA ESHOO
JAMES L. OBERSTAR
BART STUPAK
BILL PASCRELL
CHRISTOPHER P. CARNEY
GERALD E. CONNOLLY
MAURICE D. HINCHEY
JIM COSTA
PHIL HARE
JOSEPH CROWLEY
PETER DEFAZIO
PATRICK J. KENNEDY
DENNIS J. KUCINICH
JAMES P. MORAN
WM. LACY CLAY
RICHARD E. NEAL
ALBIO SIRES
PETER WELCH
TIM RYAN
TOM PERRIELLO
LINDA SÁNCHEZ
LUIS V. GUTIERREZ
CAROL SHEA-PORTER
MICHAEL F. DOYLE
DENNIS A. CARDOZA
JOHN LARSON
XAVIER BECERRA
GEORGE MILLER
FRANK PALLONE
BETTY McCOLLUM
JAMES A. McGOVERN
JACKIE SPEIER
CAROLYN McCARTHY
EDWARD J. MARKEY
NYDIA VELAZQUEZ
STEPHEN F. LYNCH
JOSE E. SERRANO
SILVESTRE REYES
RAUL GRIJALVA
JOE BACA
BRIAN HIGGINS
MIKE THOMPSON
JERRY F. COSTELLO
DIANE WATSON
JOHN A BOCCIERI
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