The Catholic Church and the Jews

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The Catholic Church and the Jews

Argentina, 1933-1945

Graciela Ben-Dror

Studies in Antisemitism Series

278 pages

Hardcover

January 2009

978-0-8032-1889-5

$55.00 Add to Cart
eBook (PDF)
Ebook purchases delivered via Leaf e-Reader

January 2009

978-0-8032-2044-7

$55.00 Add to Cart

About the Book

The impact of events in Nazi Germany and Europe during World War II was keenly felt in neutral Argentina among its predominantly Catholic population and its significant Jewish minority.

The Catholic Church and the Jews, Argentina, 1933-1945 considers the images of Jews presented in standard Catholic teaching of that era, the attitudes of the lower clergy and faithful toward the country’s Jewish citizens, and the response of the politically influential Church hierarchy to the national debate on accepting Jewish refugees from Europe. The issue was complicated by such factors as the position taken by the Vatican, Argentina’s unstable political situation, and the sizeable number of citizens of German origin who were Nazi sympathizers eager to promote German interests.
 
Argentina’s self-perception was as a “Catholic” country. Though there were few overtly anti-Jewish acts, traditional stereotypes and prejudice were widespread and only a few voices in the Catholic community confronted the established attitudes.
 

Author Bio

Graciela Ben-Dror is a lecturer of history at the University of Haifa in Israel.

Praise

"This resource would be a fine addition to any collection that supports academic research of the Holocaust."—Arthur G. Quinn, AJL Newsletter

"A significant contribution to Argentine and Jewish history."—J. L. Elkin, CHOICE

Table of Contents

Foreword by Haim Avni
Acknowledgments
Introduction

PART I: THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN ARGENTINA AND ANTISEMITISM
1. The Consolidation of the Catholic Church in Argentina
2. The Consolidation of Antisemitism
3. The Stance of the Catholic Hierarchy toward the Jews
4. The Turning Point: The Military Coup and "Catholic Argentina, 1943–1945

PART II: THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN ARGENTINA AND ITS ATTITUDE TO NAZISM AND THE HOLOCAUST
5. The Position of the Catholic Hierarchy in Argentina on the Nazi Regime
6. The Attitude of the Clergy to Nazism and the Jewish Refugees
7. The World War and Its Implications for the Argentinean Church
8. The Argentinean Church and the Plight of European Jewry, 1938–1942
9. The Reaction of Argentine Catholics to the Mass Murder of European Jews, 1942–1943
10. The End of the War: Turning Point or Continuation?
11. Summary

Index

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