The Catholic Church Summary

Although the reconstruction of post war Europe has been examined extensively by historians, relatively little attention has been given to the Catholic Church’s influence before, during, and after the war. Through his book, The Lonely Cold War of Pope Pius XII, University of New Brunswick professor Peter C. Kent attempts to remedy this discrepancy by examining the post war period through the lens of the Catholic Church. Kent’s investigation delves into the diplomatic relationships between the Vatican, the hierarchy of the Catholic Church, and the countries involved in World War II and the reconstruction of Europe, from the start of the war, in 1939, through to the early years of the Cold War. He describes how the Catholic Church utilized diplomatic …show more content…
In writing The Lonely Cold War of Pope Pius XII, Kent engages with a number of diverse sources, including an extensive list of archival documents from French, British, Canadian, American, and Italian archives. The significance of his extensive research into these archival sources cannot be downplayed, as it represents a major contribution to the historiography of the postwar Europe. Further discussing his use of primary sources, Kent notes that the foreign ministry archives of the Vatican were only opened in 1975, after being closed for thirty years. Being that he enlists material from these archives, his book has a distinct evidential advantage over books written prior to the opening of these archives. In addition to his use of primary sources, Kent cites evidence from a number of well respected, well researched, scholarly sources. Through these sources, he acknowledges arguments contrary to his, and systematically works to refute them; although he is not particularly successful arguing the contrary viewpoints, his acknowledgement of them provides the book with an air of fairness and balance. Kent’s research into the Catholic Church’s diplomatic relationships during the war and postwar periods is masterful. The extensive and diverse crop of sources Kent utilizes demonstrates a profound knowledge of research techniques, and a desire to present a …show more content…
That is, rather than using his sources to build a case that supports his thesis; Kent chooses to toil in the minutia of his sources, providing names, dates, and details of events, but giving little explanation of their significance. This problem is exacerbated by Kent’s lack of a coherent argument in the first place. The title of the book, as well as the thesis, depicts pope Pius XII as alone in his struggle to bring stability and peace to postwar Europe. This could not be further from the evidence presented in the book though. The book frequently recounts pope Pius XII’s positive encounters with various governments, and other institutions, at particular points throughout the war and postwar. Being that the Vatican did not have any discernable military, or espionage capabilities, its only real means of initiating change in Europe was through diplomacy. Being that the book provides numerous examples of the Vatican initiating change through diplomatic channels, it serves to disprove the argument it initially presents. Despite the book’s failure to make a cohesive argument, it presents an interesting, fairly presented, narrative. Although this narrative does little to further the discussion of the Catholic Church’s involvement in the reconstruction of Europe, it does serve as an adequate starting