Israel Zolli

Israel Anton Zoller (b. September 27 1881, Brody, Galicia - d. March 2 1956) was from 1939 to 1945 Chief Rabbi of Rome. After he was rejected by the Jewish community on account of his conduct during the war, he converted to Roman Catholicism, taking on the name Eugenio Zolli in recognition of Pope Pius XII.

Early life

Zoller was born in Brody, in the Austro-Hungarian province of Galicia. His father was a formerly wealthy factory owner. His mother sprang from a family of dynastic rabbis. He received a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Florence. At the same time, he prepared for the rabbinate at a nearby yeshiva.

Rabbi

In 1918 he was appointed as rabbi of the city of Trieste, which had just been transferred from Austria-Hungary to Italy. The family Italianized their surname to "Zolli". During this time, Zolli taught at the University of Padua. In 1932, Zolli took on the middle name of Anton in honor of Saint Anthony, the patron saint of Padua. This was during the 700th anniversary celebration of his canonization by the Catholic Church. Some of his fellow Jews viewed this change of name as politically motivated opportunism and unbecoming of a rabbi.

There were other incidents that seemed opportunistic as well. While his fellow Jews were resigning posts on account of the rise of Fascism, Zolli joined the Fascist party. Later Zolli changed his first name to Italo, possibly to ingratiate himself with the Italian authorities. In 1939, after the "Italians of the Jewish Religion" had succeeded in deposing Zolli's predecessor, Zolli was named as Chief Rabbi of Rome.

Zionism

Prior to the the First World War, when the majority of the Triest Jewish Community was decidely anti-Zionistic, Zolli was part of the anti-Zionist trend. Later, however, when Trieste became a center of embarkation for Palestine and thus consequently became more Zionistic, so did Zolli. When the "Italians of the Jewish Religion" supported his candidacy for the position of Chief Rabbi in Rome, he assured them and Silvio Ottolenghi, one of the anti-Zionist leaders, that he will give them no trouble on the issue of Palestine. After he emerged from concealment in 1944, he again became Zionistic.

Holocaust

During the Holocaust, he was concealed in the Vatican by priests of the Roman Catholic Church. He was given advanced warning about an imminent "Aktion" of the Nazis, yet failed to warn other Roman Jews about what was about to transpire and about his own plans. Some have described his failure to share his information with other Jews as a serious moral failure. He later described his experiences as follows:

"It was from my father that I learned the great art of praying with tears. During the Nazi persecution, long years afterward, I lived near the center of Rome in a small room. There, in the dark, in hunger and cold, I would pray weeping: 'Oh, thou keeper of Israel, protect the remnants of Israel: do not allow this remnant of Israel to perish!'" [Eugenio Zolli, "Before the Dawn," quoted in, "Sweet Honey from the Rock," edited by Roy Shoeman, page 73.]

Some, however, view Zolli's failure to warn the "remnants of Israel" of their imminent deportation and demise as in contrast to his tearful prayers while in hiding.

Zolli emerged from his hiding spot in the Vatican and attempted to reclaim his position as Chief Rabbi and even requested back pay. The Jewish community eventually rebuffed his request.

On July 9, 1944 Zolli, while still attempting to retain the title of "Chief Rabbi" gave an interview to a reporter named Matthews. He described how two Italian families hid him but he made no mention of the fact that during the major portion of his absence he hid in the Vatican.

After the war a great debate arose between Foa, the president of the Jewish community in Rome and Zolli as to who was at fault for allowing the Nazis to obtain the list of Roman Jews when they were gathered ,deported, and murdered. Foa blamed Zolli. Zolli blamed Foa. Jane Scrivener, however, in her book "Inside Rome with the German" (1945, p. 31) blames Zolli for not destroying his register of Jews in Rome before the Nazis got hold of it.

During this period, Zolli was filled with anxiety and concerned that the members of the Jewish community, some of whom were upset at his conduct and behavior, would bring back his predecessor to replace him. He also noted that some Americans were slowly losing faith in his ability to run the Jewish community. American visitors noted his agitated mental state.

Newman, however, suggests ("A Chief Rabbi of Rome Becomes a Catholic" p. 135) that Zolli's culpability in not destroying the register indicated to him that "his future must lie elsewhere than in the Jewish community."

Conversion

According to biographer Judith Cabaud, in 1944, while conducting a Yom Kippur service, Zolli allegedly experienced a mystical vision about Jesus of Nazareth, who is called Messiah. [http://www.catholicculture.org/docs/doc_view.cfm?recnum=4533] . No mention of this, however, was made contemporaneously to his conversion.

Shortly after the end of World War II, Zolli and his second wife (his first wife had died years before) converted to the Roman Catholic Church, a decision that remains controversial. Zolli then went to the Gregorian University. He was baptized by Mgr. Luigi Traglia in the presence of Father Dezza, also known as Paolo Cardinal Dezza. Israel Zolli was named Eugenio Maria Zolli in honor of Pope Pius XII, who was born Eugenio Pacelli. The ceremony was done with much pomp and publicity. Newman contends that "If Zolli had been a sincere and devout neophyte" he would have entered the church humbly without fanfare. Contrary to some of Zolli's Catholic biographers, Newman concludes that the act was a vengeful act of spite against the Jewish community for having rejected him.

On Wednesday, February 14th, 1945, the day after his baptism, Chaplain Meyer Berman of the British Forces and Chaplain Jacob Hochman of the American Forces visited Zolli in his home. According to their report (Vorwaerts, March 7th, 1945 p. 2) Zolli spoke of himself as a "Meshumad Lehachis" - an apostate out of spite. The conversation had begun with Zolli listing his grievances at the hands of the Jewish community in Rome, Trieste, and elsewhere for 35 years.

Later life

Employed afterwards at the Pontifical Biblical Institute, Eugenio Zolli died in Rome, at the age of 74.

Criticism

Israel Zolli is not without his critics. While Christians often mention Zolli as an example of an observant Jew who found Christ, some Jewish scholars contend that Zolli's conversion was a result of being ostracized from the Jewish community following the Holocaust rather than a spiritual awakening. [Rabbi Tovia Singer, "Why Did the Chief Rabbi of Rome convert to Catholicism?" http://www.outreachjudaism.org/rome.html]

Memoir

His 1954 memoir "Before the Dawn" gives details of his conversion and explains his highly positive view of Pope Pius XII. He wrote several other books of Christian devotion and theology that include autobiographical elements.

Quote

* "Conversion consists in responding to a call from God. A man is not converted at the time he chooses, but at the hour when he receives God's call. When the call is heard, he who receives it has only one thing to do: "obey." Paul is 'converted'. Did he abandon the God of Israel? Did he cease to love Israel? It would be absurd to think so. But then? The convert is who feels impelled by an irresistible force to leave a pre-established order and seek his own proper way. It would be easier to continue along the road he was on." [Eugenio Zolli, "Before the Dawn," quoted in, "Sweet Honey from the Rock," edited by Roy Shoeman, page 79.]

* "In the Old Testament, Justice is carried out by one man towards another... We do good for good received; we do harm for harm we have suffered at the hands of another. Not to do injury for injury is, in a certain fashion, to fall short of justice.' What a contrast with the Gospel: Love your enemies... pray for them, or even Jesus' last words on the cross: Father, forgive them, for they know not what they are doing! 'All this stupefied me. The New Testament is, in fact, an altogether new Testament." Eugenio Zolli

External links

* [http://www.catholicculture.org/library/view.cfm?recnum=1065 Before the Dawn: the Mysterious Conversion of Rome's Chief Rabbi]
* [http://print.google.com/print?hl=en The Chief Rabbi, the Pope, and the Holocaust: An Era in Vatican-Jewish Relations by Robert G Weisbord, available online from Google Print]
* [http://www.ignatiusinsight.com/features2005/print2005/swallow_zolli_sept05.html Eugenio Zolli's conversion story] , from a Catholic point of view.
* [http://www.outreachjudaism.org/rome.html Why Did the Chief Rabbi of Rome Convert to Catholicism?] , from a Jewish point of view.
* [http://freerepublic.info/focus/f-religion/1788313/posts] Catholic Converts - Israel (Eugenio) Zolli - Chief Rabbi of Rome.

References