Pope Pius XI (1857-1939) speaks on a rare disc. This speech, recorded on February 12, 1931, is titled "Allocution Irradiée." It was issued on Starr 15810. He was pope during most of Benito Mussolini's fascist rule, and this pope had a fairly friendly relationship with the Duce. I marvel that friendship with a ruthless dictator allowed a pope to end the longstanding hostility between the church and the Italian government. The Lateran Treaty of 1929 was important and long overdue since it meant popes were no longer prisoners of the Vatican, but I think that earlier popes should have made such a deal with the Italian government. Pius XI was granting the Duce too much legitimacy whereas earlier Italian leaders had been truly legitimate. Pope Pius XI died in February in 1939 on the day before he had intended to make a speech mildly denouncing Mussolini. He died almost exactly eight years after making this recording. It was the eve of World War II. That speech was printed up, ready to go--all copies vanished upon the pope's death. Such a speech would have irritated Mussolini if the pope had actually delivered it. In the wake of the pope's death, Mussolini arranged for all copies of the speech to be destroyed. In 1939, Catholics had a new leader--Pope Pius XII. Alas, he likewise tended to work with fascist governments more than work against them. I refer to Cardinal Secretary of State Eugenio Pacelli--known now as Pope Pius XII. The relationships of these two popes with dictators (Mussolini and Hitler--Franco, too, I suppose) were complicated and nuanced, of course. It is open to interpretation whether these two popes deserve praise or criticism for how they reacted to the unusual demands of those years. I personally don't give them much credit. Millions lost their lives during World War II. Would the people who died say the Vatican had the right men in the right place at the right time? If nobody had been in the Vatican from 1920 to 1945, would the death count have been higher or lower? If lower, then the world may have been better off with nobody as pope during those years. The Church lost some moral authority at that time since the Church was powerless to stop evil or, worse, made it easier for dictators to rule. A new book titled The Pope and Mussolini gives details about Pius XI and how he worked with Mussolini, the pope feeling that a right-wing fascist government would be better than a socialist revolution as in Soviet Russia. The two men met only once though they were in regular communication through subordinates. One reason the two leaders met only once (instead of more often) is that the pope insisted that Mussolini come to the Vatican. Never could a pope go to anyone else! They lived within miles of each other for many years, but protocol and fussy personalities made visits difficult. I'm talking here about the pope's relationship with the Duce instead of talking about the recording itself, but that relationship is what defines this pope in my mind. Did he stand up to the bully Mussolini or did he submit? The evidence seems to be that he submitted more than any spiritual leader should have and lost some moral authority because of that submission. The political instincts of Pope Pius XI told him to make bargains with Mussolini. He was heir to St. Peter. Would St. Peter have made the same deals with a fascist? I recommend David I. Kertzer's new book on Pope Pius XI's secret relations with Mussolini, Kertzer quotes documents in the Vatican and Fascist archives, including reports from spies inside the high levels of the Church. Spies were everywhere in Italy in the 1930s, and Pius had planned to say as much in the speech that written bu never delivered due to the pope's death. Pope Pius XI was born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti. His papal motto was ironic: "Pax Christi in Regno Christi," translated as "The Peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ." "Peace" in his motto? It is ironic since during his years as pope the foundation stones were put in place for history's most disastrous, costly, bloody war. It possible that a better man in Vatican--a braver one, somebody bold, more insightful, less addicted to tradition and protocol--could have stopped that war or saved some of the lives lost.

• published: 08 Feb 2014
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