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All the reasons so far advanced for the withdrawal of
this mission, in conventions of religious groups and
statements of religious leaders, have been purely negative
and have not envisioned the new responsibilities of our
government in world affairs.
I am confident the record of the past tragic years
will show that on many important occasions, the President
of the United States asked and received the moral support
of Pope Pius XII as an advocate of the principles of
justice which our country has so ardently defended.
For the achievement of our aims in the post-war re-
construction period, sound moral principles must be rock-
bottom to the structure. An accessible liaison between
the Vatican, as a great exponent of moral principles
throughout the world, and the President of the United
States, the leader of the strongest free country in the
world, is vital to the building of that peace structure.
on world affairs, the Vatican has never used its
voice in a sectarian plea. The personal representative
of the President at the Vatican does not enter into re-
ligious affairs or represent our Government in religion.
He limits himself to representing our country in inter-
national affairs.
To terminate this mission at a time when the past
results prove its effectiveness and give high promise of
its future, would be tragic. It is common knowledge that
the cooperation of our country and the Vatican brought
about effective relief in Italy and other nations in
Europe.
A discontinuance of the mission between the United
States and the Vatican would be interpreted as a rift
and lead to unnecessary complications and loss of inter-
national prestige. The Catholics of the United States
had no part in the decision of President Roosevelt to
send a personal representative to the Vatican. They at-
tached no religious significance to his appointment. It
is clear, however, that the withdrawal of that mission at
this time, under publicly advertised pressures by those
who are short-sighted about our interests in world af-
fairs, would arouse deep resentment and create a division
in our national unity when it is needed most.
I believe that one of the fundamental safeguards to
implement the peace is the continuity of your personal
**NATIONAL
ARCHIVES RECORDS AND
SERVICE*
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Context sent to Scholar
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"ocrText": "2\nAll the reasons so far advanced for the withdrawal of\nthis mission, in conventions of religious groups and\nstatements of religious leaders, have been purely negative\nand have not envisioned the new responsibilities of our\ngovernment in world affairs.\nI am confident the record of the past tragic years\nwill show that on many important occasions, the President\nof the United States asked and received the moral support\nof Pope Pius XII as an advocate of the principles of\njustice which our country has so ardently defended.\nFor the achievement of our aims in the post-war re-\nconstruction period, sound moral principles must be rock-\nbottom to the structure. An accessible liaison between\nthe Vatican, as a great exponent of moral principles\nthroughout the world, and the President of the United\nStates, the leader of the strongest free country in the\nworld, is vital to the building of that peace structure.\non world affairs, the Vatican has never used its\nvoice in a sectarian plea. The personal representative\nof the President at the Vatican does not enter into re-\nligious affairs or represent our Government in religion.\nHe limits himself to representing our country in inter-\nnational affairs.\nTo terminate this mission at a time when the past\nresults prove its effectiveness and give high promise of\nits future, would be tragic. It is common knowledge that\nthe cooperation of our country and the Vatican brought\nabout effective relief in Italy and other nations in\nEurope.\nA discontinuance of the mission between the United\nStates and the Vatican would be interpreted as a rift\nand lead to unnecessary complications and loss of inter-\nnational prestige. The Catholics of the United States\nhad no part in the decision of President Roosevelt to\nsend a personal representative to the Vatican. They at-\ntached no religious significance to his appointment. It\nis clear, however, that the withdrawal of that mission at\nthis time, under publicly advertised pressures by those\nwho are short-sighted about our interests in world af-\nfairs, would arouse deep resentment and create a division\nin our national unity when it is needed most.\nI believe that one of the fundamental safeguards to\nimplement the peace is the continuity of your personal\n**NATIONAL\nARCHIVES RECORDS AND\nSERVICE*"
}