This Castle Films News Parade episode from 1954 tells the story of Pope Pius XII. Born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli, Pope Pius XII (00:42) served as Pope of the Catholic Church from 1939 until his death in 1958. The film opens with an aerial shot of the Vatican (00:21) and St. Peter’s Basilica (00:30). Before becoming the 266th pontiff of the Catholic Church, he visits the Shrine of Lourdes (01:10), Budapest (01:16), and Fordham University (01:40) in the U.S. In 1939, he is elected Pope (02:14), and the ceremony is held in public for the first time in many years. The Swiss Guards swear their allegiance (02:32) as part of the ceremony. King Victor Emmanuel of Italy (03:01) and his queen pay their respects to the new pope. Pius XII gets to work, holding audiences and running the church despite the war. Pius XII walks through the Vatican’s gardens (03:54) for some quiet. Rome is liberated by U.S. soldiers, who are cheered on by Italians as the Coliseum looms in the background (04:30). U.S. GIs meet with Pope Pius XII and attend mass (04:54). In 1946, Pius XII elevates a number of archbishops to the rank of cardinal, including Archbishop Francis Spellman of NY (05:12) and Archbishop James McGuigan of Canada (05:29). Pope Pius XII oversees a pilgrimage during the Holy Year (05:45). On Christmas Eve of 1949, Pope Pius XII walks through the door of St. Peter’s (06:35) and presides over mass; the heavy wooden door is shut and sealed (07:40) to conclude the end of the Holy Year. In 1954, Pope Pius XII celebrates the Marian Year (08:07), which concludes the film.

Pope Pius XII (Italian: Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli[a] (Italian pronunciation: [euˈdʒɛːnjo maˈriːa dʒuˈzɛppe dʒoˈvanni paˈtʃɛlli]; 2 March 1876 – 9 October 1958), was the Pope of the Catholic Church from 2 March 1939 to his death in 1958. Before his election to the papacy, Pacelli served as secretary of the Department of Extraordinary Ecclesiastical Affairs, papal nuncio to Germany (1917–1929), and Cardinal Secretary of State, in which capacity he worked to conclude treaties with European and Latin American nations, most notably the Reichskonkordat with Nazi Germany.

While the Vatican was officially neutral during the war, Pius XII maintained links to the German Resistance, used diplomacy to aid the victims of the war and lobby for peace, and spoke out against race-based murders and other atrocities.[2] The Reichskonkordat of 1933 and Pius’s leadership of the Catholic Church during World War II remain the subject of controversy—including allegations of public silence and inaction about the fate of the Jews.[3] After the war, Pius XII advocated peace and reconciliation, including lenient policies towards Axis and Axis-satellite nations. Pius XII was also a staunch opponent of Communism and of the Italian Communist Party. During his papacy, the Decree against Communism was issued by the church; the decree declared that Catholics who profess Communist doctrine are to be excommunicated as apostates from the Christian faith. In turn, the Church experienced severe persecution and mass deportations of Catholic clergy in the Eastern Bloc. He explicitly invoked ex cathedra papal infallibility with the dogma of the Assumption of Mary in his 1950 Apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus His magisterium includes almost 1,000 addresses and radio broadcasts. His forty-one encyclicals include Mystici corporis, the Church as the Body of Christ; Mediator Dei on liturgy reform; and Humani generis on the Church’s positions on theology and evolution. He eliminated the Italian majority in the College of Cardinals in 1946.

In 1954, Pius XII began to suffer from ill health, which would continue until his death in 1958. The embalming of his body was mishandled, with effects that were evident during the funeral. He was buried in the Vatican grottos and was succeeded by Pope John XXIII.

In the process toward sainthood, his cause for canonization was opened on 18 November 1965 by Pope Paul VI during the final session of the Second Vatican Council. He was made a Servant of God by Pope John Paul II in 1990 and Pope Benedict XVI declared Pius XII Venerable on 19 December 2009.

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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com