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Article: Move to canonize Pius IX insults Jews
- Article from:
- Chicago Sun-Times
- Article date:
- July 2, 2000
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2000 Chicago Sun-Times. (Hide copyright information)
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In 1858, the police of the papal city of Bologna took a 6-year-
old boy named Edgardo Mortara away from his parents and sent him to
the pope (Pius IX) in Rome. At first the parents were not even told
why this highhanded act by the pope's forces had taken place. It was
because a Christian woman claimed that, several years before, she had
secretly baptized little Edgardo. The pope himself would bring up
this little Christian, who was not to be left in the care of his own
parents.
The parents protested. Papers around the world expressed outrage
at this kidnapping of a child. The American newspapers printed story
after story on the case. When his own advisers told Pius that he was
offending ...