The Bishops of Rome, Turin, Milan, Trieste, Fiume and Padua have made strong protests to Premier Mussolini against the persecution of Jews in Italy, it is revealed in the Regime Fascista, which reached here today.
The Regime Fascista, which is published by Roberto Farinacci, formerly secretary of the Fascist party and the chief anti-Semitic propagandist in Italy, mentions the protests only obliquely in an attack on the Church leaders, since the Italian press was forbidden to publish any reports of the Bishops’ action. It warns the Catholic leaders that the Church will be excluded from participation in the ”New Order” in Europe if some members of the clergy persist in showing pity for Jews.
“The Church’s obstruction of the practical solution of the Jewish problem constitutes a crime against the new Europe,” the Fascist paper declares, ”Sincere Catholics must convince themselves that the future of Catholicism in a new Europe will be linked with the Church’s contribution to the New Order by struggling for the utmost liberation of Europe from the leprosy of Judaism. One of Judaism’s most formidable allies in Italy is the blissful ignorance on the Jewish question prevailing among the Italian clergy.”
Regime Fascista also laments the fact that the newly-created Fascist centers for ”the study of the Jewish problem” have encountered great difficulties because ”there are few students of this burning question and there is a dearth of anti-Semitic material in Italy.”
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
