St Basil Academy - Basilianette Yearbook (Philadelphia, PA)

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ope of C9 ofacfy Of all the Popes Plus XII had the closest tres with the Umted States Not only was hrs trap here while he was Papal Secretary of State the first ever made by a man who later became Pope but hrs pontrficate was also notable for many honors to the Church rn thus country Repeatedly recalling hrs trap the Holy Father always spoke of hrs special affectlon for Ameruca and its people In the drplomatlc field has rergn was marked by closer relatnons between the Holy See and Amernca than had existed for many decades He named more than half the present American hrerarchy received a far greater number of Americans at the Vatican than any of hrs predecessors and canontzed the first United States crtnzen Sarnt Frances Cabrmr As a chlld Eugenro Pacellr often played near the puazza of Rome s St Mary of Peace Hrs personal motto the fulfillment of has pontrficate was taken from the walls of this church The word of lustnce rs peace And some of hrs most poignant appeals to the world for peace stemmmg from lustrce were given on feast days commemoratmg Mary the Vrrgnn Mother Dunng hrs pontrficate Hrs Holmess Pope Plus XII on November I 1950 solemnly proclaamed before a vast crowd at St Peters Square the first new dogma of a century the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary clrmaxmg the great Holy Year of 1950 On September 8 1953 the feast of the Natrvrty of the Blessed Lady Pope the Immaculate Conception In an encyclrcal entitled The Radiant Crown he called the farthful to a crusade of prayer and penance for peace the end of class hatred and the Irberatron of the Church of Silence behind the Iron Curtain Plus XII whose entire adult life was lived In a world at war came to be known as the Pope of Peace The beginning of has pontrficate corncrded with the outbreak of an armed war between the nations of the world on a scale unequaled an history Its termination ushered rn Instead of the much sought peace a war of ideologies marked by vrolent aggressrons against man s natural rights and a tremendous effort to destroy Christianity In the death of Our Holy Father Pope Plus XII on October 9 1958 the world has lost one of Its finest leaders He died at the henght of hrs greatness recognized as a Irving saint no less by the love and devotion of the free world than by the cold fury and hatred of the Communists Because of has deep love and devotion to Mary Pope Pius XII will always be remembered rn the hearts of mankmd as The Pope of Our Lady One of the last documents to be signed by Pope Plus was done to fulfill the desire of Cardnnal Roncalll now Hrs Holmess Pope John XXIII who washed to spread greater devotion to Mary Pope Plus proclaimed Our Lady Help of Christians patroness of the Venetran Island of St George We are grateful to God for the rnsprrrng reign of Plus XII May He rest rn peace' , . I ' I ' . . I . I , . . . , . . . , . . . ,, , I . . . ,, . . I . . . . . I . I I I ' I ' I I D l I Pius proclaimed 1954 a Marian year in honor of the one-hundredth anniversary of . . . . . , I I I . . ,, . ,, . . . I . . . . I ,, ,, . .... . . . . . I . I . . . . . , . I . I I I ' I , . I . . ' ' ll II I . . I I . . .

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8ITlOl'tdfI'l Nw Q POPE PIUS XII 1876-1958 Requiescaf in Pace .r4'N Hn - ' will PA l . A9V. W P , 1 xx X. W , . R A ' H W 2 Y . F 3 xr Ag. X Q

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C79 Cjlcose successors of tlze apostles HIS HOLINESS, POPE JOHN XXIII