German cardinal discusses church's use of slave labor during WWII

Published: 2008-04-10

MAINZ, Germany (CNS) -- A German cardinal said a report detailing how the church used slave laborers during World War II was an "important building block" for reconciliation. "The church's memory was blind for too long to the fate and sorrows of men, women, youngsters and children who were brought from all over Europe as slave laborers to Germany," said Cardinal Karl Lehmann of Mainz, former president of the German bishops' conference. "This documentation, scientifically examining a forgotten chapter of contemporary church history, cannot and should not be understood as a final reckoning. It is rather an important building block on the way to a future of reconciliation for the Christians of Germany and Europe," said the cardinal. After eight years of research by a special commission, the 703-page report called "The Catholic Church and Forced Labor 1939-1945" was presented in Mainz April 8. Karl-Joseph Hummel and Christoph Koesters headed the commission of historians that prepared the report.

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