David Kertzer Books

David Kertzer has an eye for a story, an ear for the right word, and an instinct for human tragedy. They all come together in The Pope and Mussolini to document, with meticulous scholarship and novelistic flair, the complicity between Pius XI and the Fascist leader in creating an unholy alliance between the Vatican and a totalitarian government rooted in corruption and brutality. This is a sophisticated blockbuster. -Joseph J. Ellis, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Revolutionary Summer 'Much more attention has been given to the Vatican's compromises and complicity with Hitler, but Kertzer tells a fascinating and tragic story of its self-interested support for Mussolini when he was vulnerable early on.' - The New Yorker 'Revelatory . . . [a] detailed portrait of the inner workings of the Vatican in this period . . . The general outlines of this story have always been matters of public record, but Kertzer's book deepens and alters our understanding considerably. The portrait that emerges from it suggests a much more organic and symbiotic relationship between the Church and fascism. Rather than seeing the Church as having passively accepted fascism as a fait accompli, Kertzer sees it as having provided fundamental support to Mussolini in his consolidation of power and the establishment of dictatorship in Italy.' - The New York Review of Books 'Gripping storytelling . . . a book whose narrative strength is as impressive as its moral subtlety . . . Kertzer has uncovered a fascinating tale of two irascible-and often irrational-potentates, and gives us an account of some murky intellectual finagling, and an often startling investigation of the exercise of power.' - The Guardian 'Captivating . . . the real Da Vinci Code -only it's rigorously documented and far less implausible.' - San Francisco Chronicle 'The papacy of Pius XI remained essentially a foil for discussing his successor. Kertzer's excellent volume will change all of that. . . . From the outset of his new book, Kertzer deftly reconstructs the parallel lives of Achille Ratti, who became Pius XI, and of Benito Mussolini, both men whose beginnings do not point to the historic role that they began to play in 1922. The narration unfolds along the separate political, ideological, and institutional backgrounds of the Pope's and Duce's careers and brings up in fascinating detail the issues on which their interests converged and clashed. . . . Kertzer's essential book reveals a window on this sordid history-a window that for a long time was shuttered, but will not be obscured anymore.' - The New Republic§'Stunning . . . remarkable . . . Kertzer authoritatively banishes decades of denial and uncertainty about the Vatican's relationship with Italy's fascist state.' - The Christian Science Monitor 'A capstone on David Kertzer's already crucial work, The Pope and Mussolini carefully and eloquently advances the painful but necessary truth of Vatican failure to meet its greatest moral test. This is history for the sake of justice.' -James Carroll, National Book Award-winning author of Constantine's Sword 'Sweeping and nuanced . . . required reading for anyone with an interest in the Roman Catholic Church and early twentieth-century European history.' - St. Louis Post-Dispatch 'The author spares no toes in his crushing of the Church's 'comforting narrative' around its relationship with Mussolini's Fascist regime. . . . Kertzer is unflinching and relentless in his exposure of the Vatican's shocking actions. . . . Deeply troubling revelations around Vatican collaboration with evil.' - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)'A compelling case that the Catholic Church should pay greater penance for its support of Mussolini and the rise of fascism . . . The Pope and Mussolini matches rigorous scholarship with a fair yet forceful prose voice. It is an impressive work of history.' - The Daily Beast§'[Kertzer] reconstructs, as if in a historical docudrama, the paths taken b

Filled with discoveries, this is the dramatic story of Pope Pius XII's struggle to response to the Second World War, the Holocaust, and the Nazi domination of Europe.

In this meticulously researched, unflinching, and reasoned study, National Book Award finalist David I. Kertzer presents shocking revelations about the role played by the Vatican in the development of modern anti-Semitism. Working in long-sealed Vatican archives, Kertzer unearths startling evidence to undermine the Church’s argument that it played no direct role in the spread of modern anti-Semitism. In doing so, he challenges the Vatican’s recent official statement on the subject, We Remember. Kertzer tells an unsettling story that has stirred up controversy around the world and sheds a much-needed light on the past.

In the wake of the fall of the Berlin wall, and with the Communist regimes of Eastern Europe collapsing, Italian Communist Party (PCI) head Achille Occhetto shocked his party in 1989 by insisting that the PCI jettison its old name and become something new. This dramatic book tells of the ensuing struggle within the PCI, which at the time was Italy's second-largest party and the most powerful Communist party in the West. David I. Kertzer's vivid depiction of the conflict brings to life the tactics that party factions employed and the anguish of party members for whom Communism was the core of their identity. Kertzer also tells a larger story from an anthropologist's the story of the importance of symbols, myths, and rituals in modern politics.Those who seek dramatic political change, Kertzer contends, must remake history. He recounts how those who succeeded in transforming the PCI into the new Democratic Party of the Left effectively used ritual and manipulated political symbols. Bringing the views of Antonio Gramsci, Pierre Bourdieu, Michel Foucault, and other political thinkers into his discussion, Kertzer explores theoretical issues involving the relation between symbolism and political power, concluding that modern politics is fundamentally a struggle over symbols and the redefinition of history.

Kertzer writes lucidly, navigating the crowded scenery of his tale with great deftness. His narrative achieves momentum without sacrificing reflective depth, and makes spaces for the many stories spun by the protagonists themselves as they reasoned their way into and out of the predicaments they faced. Christopher Clark, London Review of Books

Soon to be a major motion picture from Steven Spielberg. A National Book Award Finalist The extraordinary story of how the vatican's imprisonment of a six-year-old Jewish boy in 1858 helped to bring about the collapse of the popes' worldly power in Italy. Bologna: nightfall, June 1858. A knock sounds at the door of the Jewish merchant Momolo Mortara. Two officers of the Inquisition bust inside and seize Mortara's six-year-old son, Edgardo. As the boy is wrenched from his father's arms, his mother collapses. The reason for his abduction: the boy had been secretly "baptized" by a family servant. According to papal law, the child is therefore a Catholic who can be taken from his family and delivered to a special monastery where his conversion will be completed. With this terrifying scene, prize-winning historian David I. Kertzer begins the true story of how one boy's kidnapping became a pivotal event in the collapse of the Vatican as a secular power. The book evokes the anguish of a modest merchant's family, the rhythms of daily life in a Jewish ghetto, and also explores, through the revolutionary campaigns of Mazzini and Garibaldi and such personages as Napoleon III, the emergence of Italy as a modern national state. Moving and informative, the Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara reads as both a historical thriller and an authoritative analysis of how a single human tragedy changed the course of history.

David Kertzer's work delves into the complex relationship between the Vatican and the Italian state, exploring the political and social dynamics of the time. The narrative uncovers the intrigues and power struggles surrounding the papacy, particularly during the late 19th century. Kertzer's meticulous research brings to light the lesser-known aspects of this historical period, highlighting the impact of these events on both the Church and Italy. The book offers a compelling examination of the interplay between religion and politics, making it a significant contribution to historical scholarship.

Wie stand Papst Pius XI. zum Faschismus? Während sein Nachfolger, Papst Pius XII., öffentlich zum Holocaust schwieg, galt Pius XI. (1922-1939), lange Zeit als wahrer Stellvertreter Christi, der auf der Seite der verfolgten Juden stand und Hitler durch die Enzyklika ›Mit brennender Sorge‹ in seine Schranken verwies. In der packenden Geschichte über die Geheimbeziehungen des Vatikan zur faschistischen Führung wird deutlich, dass sich Mussolini und Pius XI. zwar hassten, sich aus Gründen des Machterhalts aber dennoch stützten. Der ungebildete, ungläubige Duce und der gottesfürchtige Kleriker schlossen einen verhängnisvollen Pakt. Erst mit Einführung der Rassengesetze 1938 und der immer größer werdenden Nähe zu Nazi-Deutschland dämmerte es Pius XI., mit wem er da paktiert hatte. Als er starb, konnte sein Nachfolger Eugenio Pacelli diesen Pakt fortsetzen. David Kertzers bahnbrechende Arbeit, die mit dem Pulitzer-Preis ausgezeichnet wurde, enthüllt das ganze Ausmaß der faschistischen Verstrickung.

Trudno o bardziej odmienne postaci: Pius XI spędził większość życia pochylony nad średniowiecznymi manuskryptami.Benito Mussolini był zanurzonym w teraźniejszości podżegaczem, awanturnikiem i antyklerykałem. Istniały jednak i podobieństwa. Obaj mieli wybuchowy temperament, obaj domagali się bezwarunkowego posłuszeństwa i wywoływali u swoich podwładnych strach, obaj uważali komunizm za zagrożenie. I z czasem docenili znaczenie wsp�łpracy.Papież i Mussolini to opowieść o dw�ch ludziach, kt�rzy w tym samym 1922 roku sięgnęli po władzę i zmienili bieg XX wieku. Kiedy w 2006 roku otwarto tajne archiwa Watykanu, a cenne źr�dła ujrzały światło dzienne, możliwe było wreszcie wyjaśnienie, co połączyło te dwie postaci i jakie były tego skutki.

Zmierzch 23 czerwca 1858 roku, Bolonia. W domu żydowskiego kupca Momolo Mortary rozlega się nagły łomot. U drzwi stoi dwóch oficerów inkwizycji z rządowym poleceniem zabrania z domu sześcioletniego Edgarda. Powodem jest rzekomy potajemny chrzest chłopca udzielony przez służącą, a według prawa Państwa Kościelnego, któremu przewodzi wówczas papież Pius IX, katolik nie mógł być wychowywany przez żydowskich rodziców. Edgardo zostaje przewieziony do Rzymu, gdzie ma dorastać pod okiem kleru. Okazuje się, że uprowadzenie chłopca będzie mieć dalekosiężne skutki dla losów zarówno Włoch i Państwa Kościelnego, jak i całego świata. Choć przez dziesiątki lat w Państwie Kościelnym odbierano rodzicom sekretnie ochrzczone żydowskie dzieci, dlaczego to właśnie sprawa Edgarda Mortary zyskała międzynarodowy rozgłos i doprowadziła do zjednoczenia Włoch? Z tą historią mierzy się amerykański antropolog, laureat Nagrody Pulitzera David I. Kertzer. Niczym detektyw bada historię porwania chłopca i próbuje odpowiedzieć na pytania dotyczące przenikających się granic władzy państwowej i religijnej. „Porwanie Edgarda Mortary” to nie tylko opowieść o losach żydowskiego chłopca i jego rodziny. To również świadectwo narodzin Włoch jako państwa, a także historia starć między starym i nowym porządkiem u zarania nowoczesności. Książka znalazła się w finale Amerykańskiej Nagrody Książkowej oraz została uhonorowana przez Jewish Book Council nagrodą dla najlepszej książki o tematyce żydowskiej. Nad ekranizacją „Porwania Edgarda Mortary” pracuje Steven Spielberg. „Rozdzierająca opowieść o walce między konserwatywnym a liberalnym społeczeństwem Europy XIX wieku […]. Poruszające studium odwiecznych starć między sacrum a profanum.” „Kirkus Reviews” „Erudycja Kertzera połączona z jego talentem narracyjnym tworzą wspaniałą, dramatyczną i wciągającą historię.” „Boston Globe” „Relacja Kertzera przypomina współczesne dramaty sądowe, choć jednocześnie zaskakuje i trzyma w napięciu jak najlepsza powieść.” „Newsday” „Fascynująca historia łącząca tragiczne losy żydowskiej rodziny z wielkimi przemianami w dziewiętnastowiecznej Europie.” Jay Freeman, „Booklist”