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Archbishop Viganò prays the rosary at the 2017 Rome March for LifeClaire Chretien / LifeSiteNews

May 26, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò has responded to a German Rabbi, Jehoschua Ahrens, who called the Viganò Appeal concerning the corona crisis and its dangers for constitutional liberties a “shock,” adding that he is glad that the German bishops have distanced themselves from it. 

The Italian prelate defended issuing the May 7 appeal, stating: “I think it is the duty of each one of us to express our concerns about a situation that, taking advantage of the Covid crisis, goes far beyond reasonable safety measures, imposing on entire nations the deprivation of constitutional freedoms.”

Archbishop Viganò warned that recent German history has much to teach about the rise of a “hellish dictatorship” that few opposed and spoke out against at the time it was happening.  

“There was a time when, with the obedience of the masses, a hellish dictatorship committed a very serious crime, making itself responsible for the deportation and death of millions of innocent people, only because of their faith and line of descent,” he said. 

“Even then the mainstream media praised those in power and remained silent about their crimes; even then doctors and scientists lent their work to a delusional plan of domination; even then those who dared to raise their voices were accused of ‘conspiracy theories.’ One had to wait until the end of the Second World War to discover with horror the truth about which many had hitherto remained silent,” he added. 

The Archbishop warned that those who today “delegitimize” the Appeal as an expression of “conspiracy theories” do not “realize the real dangers to which the entire human family is exposed.”

“But I am certain that both Catholics and all men of good will – and among them I think I can include the children of Abraham – have at heart the greater glory of God, the respect for the dignity of individuals, and the freedoms of peoples,” he said. 

Rabbi Ahrens’ criticism of Viganò’s Appeal was reported on May 20 by Katholisch.de, the German bishops' official news website. The Rabbi’s original words first appeared in the newspaper Jüdische Allgemeine.

Katholisch.de especially highlighted the following words of the Rabbi concerning the so-called “conspiracy theories”: 

“We have known for some time that there are people within the churches who adhere to such theories. But now they have the courage to express these opinions even more openly.” 

While stressing the good collaboration with the Catholic Church in Germany, Ahrens points out that there is still a “minority” among the Catholics in Germany who have conspiracy theories. While insisting that Jews themselves are less “prone to conspiracy theories,” he states that “we know, after all, that in general these theories are about us.”

While rejecting the idea that God is punishing us with this corona crisis, Rabbi Ahrens points out that “it is an intention of Jewry: to turn a negative into a positive, to turn a curse into a blessing,” that is to say, to learn lessons from this crisis.

Archbishop Viganò’s response to the Rabbi was only covered in part by Katholisch.de (adding a link to the full letter only in the end of the post), despite the Archbishop asking that his letter be published in full. Katholisch.de did not even mention that they received the letter from the Italian prelate with this request. LifeSiteNews is pleased to provide the full letter below. 

The May 7 Viganò Appeal– which was also signed by Cardinals Gerhard Müller, Joseph Zen and Janis Pujats, as well as Bishops Athanasius Schneider and Joseph Strickland – had called into question the world-wide response of lockdowns and strong restrictions of freedoms of citizens as measures against the coronavirus outbreak. 

The signatories of this Appeal, among whom are also journalists, experts, and other clergy, showed concern for the Church and the world that the COVID-19 pandemic is being used as a “pretext” by world leaders to “control” people, strip them of their fundamental rights, while providing a “disturbing prelude to the realization of a world government beyond all control.” They also reminded the public of the liberty of the Catholic Church who “firmly asserts her autonomy to govern, worship, and teach,” thus making clear that the state has not the authority to decide over church closures. So far, more than 51,000 people have signed this document.

***

Full letter by Archbishop Viganò in response to Rabbi Ahrens:

Dear Rabbi Ahrens,
Since I have been criticized for my Appeal for the Church and the world, I ask Katholisch.de to give me permission to answer you.
I must tell you, Dr. Ahrens, that I am not a little surprised by your words when you say: “We have known for some time that there are people within the churches who adhere to such theories. But now they have the courage to express these opinions even more openly.” 

I think it is the duty of each one of us to express our concerns about a situation that, taking advantage of the Covid crisis, goes far beyond reasonable safety measures, imposing on entire nations the deprivation of constitutional freedoms: this may not have happened in Germany, but it has certainly happened in many countries.

I ask you, dear Rabbi Ahrens: in your opinion, is it still permissible to express oneself freely, or are there subjects that cannot be discussed anymore in a civil manner? If you can express your disagreement with the content of the Appeal, why should “people within the churches” not be entitled to express themselves freely, as well? And why do you think that one would need to “have courage” in order to do so, as if it were a matter of mere rantings without any reference to reality?

To dismiss these concerns – which have been expressed, moreover, by reputable personalities – as “conspiracy theories” does not seem to me a constructive attitude: especially if one does not have the merit of disproving what is considered untrue. I therefore ask you: in what, specifically, do you disagree with the text of the Appeal? What in the Appeal represents a “shock” for you?

Believe me: I would have never thought that the Appeal could offend you; on the other hand, why should a Rabbi himself feel criticized when there is now talk of the New World Order? The Messiah that Israel awaits is Rex pacificus, Princeps pacis, Pater futuri saeculi [King of Peace, Prince of Peace, Father of the world to come]: not a tyrant without morals who dominates the world by subjugating men as slaves. This rather applies to the Antichrist.

Let us now come to the spiritual significance of Covid. In the Old Testament there are many examples of punishments sent to the Chosen People by God, and the Prophets many times warned the Jews to abandon idolatry, and not to contaminate themselves with the pagans, and to remain faithful to the one true God. I recall here the words of the Prophet Jeremiah, after the burning of Jerusalem by Babylonian troops in 585 B.C.: “Her adversaries have taken over, her enemies prosper; for the Lord has afflicted her for her countless sins” (Lam. 1:5). 

This vision, which the Church of Christ shares, shows us a just and merciful God, who rewards the good and punishes the wicked; who like a loving Father punishes also His disobedient children, to bring them back to follow His holy Law. For this reason, “turning the negative into the positive, turning a curse into a blessing” is achieved by recognizing that one has committed a sin, that one has broken the covenant with God, that one has deserved His chastisements. Then the epidemic also becomes an opportunity to return to the Lord, worship Him in His holy temple, follow His precepts.

There was a time when, with the obedience of the masses, a hellish dictatorship committed a very serious crime, making itself responsible for the deportation and death of millions of innocent people, only because of their faith and line of descent. Even then the mainstream media praised those in power and remained silent about their crimes; even then doctors and scientists lent their work to a delusional plan of domination; even then those who dared to raise their voices were accused of “conspiracy theories.” One had to wait until the end of the Second World War to discover with horror the truth about which many had hitherto remained silent.

I am sure that those who today delegitimize the Appeal as an expression of “conspiracy theories” do not realize the real dangers to which the entire human family is exposed. But I am certain that both Catholics and all men of good will – and among them, I think I can include the children of Abraham – have at heart the greater glory of God, the respect for the dignity of individuals, and the freedoms of peoples. Beatus populus, cujus Dominus Deus ejus (Ps 143:15). 

+ Carlo Maria Viganò, Archbishop, Apostolic Nuncio

May 22, 2020, Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord

Translation by LifeSite's Dr. Maike Hickson

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Dr. Maike Hickson was born and raised in Germany. She holds a PhD from the University of Hannover, Germany, after having written in Switzerland her doctoral dissertation on the history of Swiss intellectuals before and during World War II. She now lives in the U.S. and is married to Dr. Robert Hickson, and they have been blessed with two beautiful children. She is a happy housewife who likes to write articles when time permits.

Dr. Hickson published in 2014 a Festschrift, a collection of some thirty essays written by thoughtful authors in honor of her husband upon his 70th birthday, which is entitled A Catholic Witness in Our Time.

Hickson has closely followed the papacy of Pope Francis and the developments in the Catholic Church in Germany, and she has been writing articles on religion and politics for U.S. and European publications and websites such as LifeSiteNews, OnePeterFive, The Wanderer, Rorate Caeli, Catholicism.org, Catholic Family News, Christian Order, Notizie Pro-Vita, Corrispondenza Romana, Katholisches.info, Der Dreizehnte,  Zeit-Fragen, and Westfalen-Blatt.