History

Holy Silence

Take a fresh look at a topic that has sparked controversy for decades. During the years leading up to WWII, what was the Vatican's reaction to the rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany? After the war began, how did the pope respond to the horrors of the Holocaust? In telling that story, "Holy Silence" focuses on American officials who worked behind the scenes to influence the Vatican's actions.

Holy Silence

55m 34s

Take a fresh look at a topic that has sparked controversy for decades. During the years leading up to WWII, what was the Vatican's reaction to the rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany? After the war began, how did the pope respond to the horrors of the Holocaust? In telling that story, "Holy Silence" focuses on American officials who worked behind the scenes to influence the Vatican's actions.

Episodes

  • Holy Silence: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Holy Silence

    S1 E1 - 55m 34s

    Take a fresh look at a topic that has sparked controversy for decades. During the years leading up to WWII, what was the Vatican's reaction to the rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany? After the war began, how did the pope respond to the horrors of the Holocaust? In telling that story, "Holy Silence" focuses on American officials who worked behind the scenes to influence the Vatican's actions.

Extras + Features

  • Catholics in America: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Catholics in America

    S1 E1 - 2m 14s

    Throughout the 1930s, President Franklin D. Roosevelt increasingly recognized the political benefits of winning over Catholic voters in the United States.

  • Evidence of the Holocaust: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Evidence of the Holocaust

    S1 E1 - 2m 2s

    As news began to emerge of the mass murder of Jews across Europe, Pope Pius XII continued to maintain his position of silence and neutrality.

  • An Assignment from the Pope: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    An Assignment from the Pope

    S1 E1 - 2m 4s

    In 1938, John LaFarge, a Jesuit priest from New England, was directed by Pope Pius XI to draft a papal encyclical that would denounce anti-Semitism and Adolf Hitler's campaign against the Jews.

  • Trailer: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Trailer

    S1 E1 - 30s

    Take a fresh look at a topic that has sparked controversy for decades. During the years leading up to WWII, what was the Vatican's reaction to the rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany? After the war began, how did the pope respond to the horrors of the Holocaust? In telling that story, "Holy Silence" focuses on American officials who worked behind the scenes to influence the Vatican's actions.

  • Hitler Comes to Power: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Hitler Comes to Power

    S1 E1 - 2m 17s

    As Adolf Hitler rose to power in the 1930s, the Vatican negotiated a treaty with Nazi Germany aimed at protecting the Catholic Church in that country.

  • Roosevelt's Envoy to the Vatican: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Roosevelt's Envoy to the Vatican

    S1 E1 - 1m 53s

    In 1940, President Roosevelt sent industrialist Myron Taylor to the Vatican in an effort to persuade Pope Pius XII to speak out against Nazi Germany and in favor of the Allies.

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