Polish Catholic hierarchs in face of the Holocaust: reassessing their role on a national and international level

It is often assumed that in countries where Catholics formed a majority of the population during the Holocaust, the influence of the Catholic hierarchy on the actions and attitudes of ordinary believers towards Jews could be considered crucial. It is also known that the survival of Jews depended on the willingness of the non-Jews to assist them in various ways. Hence, the question arises how the Catholic Church faced this challenge and responded to it. This research project will address that question through a detailed study of the Polish Catholic hierarchy. In particular, bishops’ knowledge about the annihilation of Jews, attitudes towards Jews during the war and their actions and omissions regarding their situation will be taken under scrutiny. The opening of the Vatican archives regarding the pontificate of Pius XII is a great opportunity for this research project. Among other things, the archives contain the correspondence between the Polish bishops and the Vatican and information about possible informal efforts of the hierarchs to contact the Vatican, as well as their efforts to draw the attention of the Pope to the fate of Jews within the Polish territory. I also intend to extensively use Polish Church archives. The research project will offer an in-depth historical analysis of the Polish Catholic hierarchs facing the Holocaust. Its main goal is the reassessment of the role Polish bishops played on both a national and international level.