JERUSALEM, APRIL 21, 2009 (Zenit.org).- In view of Benedict XVI’s upcoming Holy Land visit, the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation has launched a worldwide appeal for testimonies of Jews saved by Catholics during the Holocaust.
The foundation explained in a statement: “During World War II, a great number of Catholic men and women in the European continent risked their own lives to save the Jews persecuted by the Nazis. Only a fraction of these saviors were duly recognized.”
The mission of the foundation is to “develop educational programs and public awareness campaigns based on the values of solidarity and civic courage, ethical cornerstones of the saviors of the Holocaust.”
One of the organization’s objectives is to unearth these stories of heroism and establish educational programs for the legacy of courage to be conveyed to younger generations. Thus they launched the campaign to call for information or evidence related to rescues led by Catholics during the Holocaust.
This recent initiative coincides with the upcoming May 8-15 visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Israel. The statement noted that it is “a way to celebrate the presence of the Pope in the Holy Land and the fraternal embrace between Catholics and Jews it symbolizes.”
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On the Net:
Foundation Web site: http://www.raoulwallenberg.net/?en/
Campaign information: dannyrainer@irwf.org
