(PHOTOS FROM “THE HOLOCAUST BY BULLETS”)
Elderly eyewitnesses to mass murders of Jews told their stories to Holocaust expert Father Patrick Desbois.
Priest unearths forgotten chapter of Holocaust By Michael Vick Auschwitz. Treblinka. Birkenau. Names etched forever into the consciousness of a world reeling from the horror of the Holocaust. Around six million died as a direct result of the Nazi’s planned extermination of the Jewish people. But before the death camps, before the gas chambers, before the crematoria, before the mechanization of mass murder, the killing took place face-to-face. Between 1941 and 1944, in the villages and towns of Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Western Russia, mobile death squads called Einsatzgruppen slaughtered Jews by the thousands. All told, an estimated 1.5 million perished, fully one-quarter of all Jews killed during the period of genocide. The Einsatzgruppen buried the bodies
in mass graves and strove to remove all evidence. After the war, tensions between the West and the Soviets, along with Soviet anti-Semitism and the unique history of the genocide, conspired to prevent the knowledge of Nazi atrocities from reaching the outside world. Thanks in part to the efforts of French diocesan priest Father Patrick Desbois,
the story of one of the earliest and leastknown chapters of Holocaust history is being told. While visiting San Francisco for a talk on his new book, “The Holocaust by Bullets,” the priest spoke with Catholic San Francisco about his investigation. “War is never finished until we bury the last victim,” Father Desbois said, quoting a Russian proverb. “But time is against us.
Catholic san Francisco Northern California’s Weekly Catholic Newspaper
We have to pass from Poland to Ossetia. It’s the whole continent. It’s like if you say there are mass killings from New York to San Francisco, and you have five years to find all the mass graves. There are mass graves in almost every village.” Father Desbois’ fascination with the Holocaust began in childhood. Born after the war, the priest heard stories about the hard times faced by his family and all of France during the Nazi occupation. His grandfather had been among 25,000 French classified as political enemies and deported to a prison camp near Rawa-Ruska, a Ukrainian town on the border with Poland. “He didn’t want to speak of that,” Father Desbois said. Still, as a young boy the priest was ever curious about what had happened to his grandfather at the camp. Finally, his HOLOCAUST, page 20
U.S. bishops cite abortion concerns in statement BALTIMORE (CNS) – Fears about laws and changes in regulations on abortion that might advance under a new Democratic-run Congress and White House are the central focus of a statement approved by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Nov. 12 during its annual fall meeting. The majority of the 830-word, untitled statement focuses on concerns about the possible passage of the Freedom of Choice Act, calling it “an evil law that
would further divide our country” and adding that the Church “should be intent on opposing evil.” It warns against interpreting the outcome of the Nov. 4 elections as “a referendum on abortion” and says “aggressively pro-abortion policies, legislation and executive orders will permanently alienate tens of millions of Americans.” (The text of the statement is carried on Page 16.) The statement was crafted during the bishops’ meetBISHOPS’ CONCERNS, page 11
Rome journey, Part III Underground encounter with the apostle Peter By Rick DelVecchio ROME – Msgr. Christopher Nalty, a Diocese of New Orleans priest on assignment for the Vatican’s Congregation for the Clergy, doubles as a tour guide in the 2,000-year-old necropolis under St. Peter’s Basilica. He was our leader on a sweltering trip through the underground streets of what had been a Roman and early Christian graveyard on the high ground known as Vatican Hill. At the close of the tour Msgr. Nalty led our international pilgrim group in a subterranean Our Father, Hail
Mary and Glory Be, and a petition to St. Peter for a safe journey home. By then all of us were wilting in the damp heat and some were holding ourselves back from leaning on the ancient walls. We held back because we had heard the monsignor warn that touching the antiquities could get us tossed out on the street unless we could explain ourselves quickly in Italian. And we had heard him add that if touching the walls were to get out of hand on these carefully controlled tours, the authorities would not think twice about closing the scavi to the public. The underground Vatican, we were learning, ROME JOURNEY, page 24
Actions at a Glance Key actions taken by the U.S. bishops’ conference at its fall general assembly r Warned the new administration and new Congress that lifting existing federal abortion restrictions would alienate tens of millions of Americans and could be seen as an attack on religious freedom.
r Overwhelmingly approved a liturgical service in English and Spanish for blessing children in the womb.
r Issued a statement on the economic crisis saying the church will continue to reach out to those in need.
r Set goals on priority issues ranging from strengthening marriage to cultural diversity in the church.
r Approved another section of the English translation of the third edition of the Roman Missal.
r Chose the Revised Grail Psalter from Conception Abbey over the Revised New American Bible translation of the Book of Psalms for liturgical use.
r Approved a $144 million budget and a list of plans and programs for 2009.
r Elected Bishop George V. Murry of Youngstown, Ohio, as USCCB secretary-elect and chose chairmen-elect for five USCCB committees. ©2008 CNS
INSIDE THIS WEEK’S EDITION Simbang Gabi . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Letters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Scripture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Bestsellers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Catholic schools study is complete ~ Page 3 ~ November 21, 2008
Gracenter provides a home and healing ~ Page 5 ~
Charities share their Christmas wish lists ~ Pages 12, 13, 18 ~
SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS
Datebook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Classified ads . . . . . . . . 26-27
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