Bishops in France, Pope Pius XII, and the Rescue of Jews, 1940–1944

France, after Italy, was one of the countries of occupied Western Europe where the Jewish community best survived the Holocaust. French Catholic bishops, religious congregations, and priests and nuns also contributed to this situation in great measure. Even though most bishops supported Maréchal Pétain, head of the Vichy government, most of them also rescued Jews. This activity was against the policy of the Vichy government. Those bishops had the courage to do this because they were supported by the Vatican. Eugenio Pacelli (the future Pius XII) knew them very well as the Secretary of State to Pope Pius XI, before 1939. During World War II, the Vatican sent large sums of money to rescue Jews and other fugitives interned in France, including women and children. The encyclicals and declarations of Popes Pius XI and Pius XII were widely distributed in France, and they encouraged Catholics to help Jews and other fugitives. Pius XII was close to the Catholic community in France, and he fully supported their rescue activities in favor of Jews there. This article provides insight into many aspects of the Catholic Church's record in France during the years 1940–1945.