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The
Catholic Church in Argentina and the Confirmed Reports of the
Extermination of European Jews (1942-1943)
Reports
on the mass extermination of the European Jews reached Argentina in
November-December 1942. The article examines the reactions of three
Catholic groups: the Church establishment, the Demo-Christians
(Democratic-Christian camp), and the nationalists. Although some
establishment Catholic leaders expressed compassion for the Jews,
most of their periodicals took an ambivalent stand. El Pueblo,
for instance, condemned liberalism, communism, and “materialist
racism,” maintained anti-Jewish prejudices, and sometimes cast
doubts on the veracity of the reports on the genocide. The
Demo-Christians took a pro-Allied stance and spoke against the
Nazis’ persecution of the Jews. The harshest anti-Jewish stance
was taken by the Catholic nationalists, who in their papers openly
supported the Axis, opposed the admission of Jewish refugees to
Argentina, and expressed blatant antisemitism. The reports on the
Nazi extermination of Jews only intensified the nationalists’
hatred toward the Jews and identification with Nazi goals.
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