Old Hippie,
Many people today criticize this pope. Yet, they say little about the many who did not even lift a finger to help the Jews. Where was the rest of mankind during the Holocaust? What did President Roosevelt or British Prime Minister Churchill do to help the Jews during the war years? I remember reading about a shipload of Jews off the coast of Florida seeking asylum, who were denied access by the U.S.
Some Jews asked the pope not to speak out because they feared greater reprisals. Moreover, even without speaking out, hundreds of priests and nuns (especially from Poland) were sent to concentration camps. What do you think Hitler would have done to Catholics had the pope spoken out publicly.
Pope Pius XII was working all those years, underground, through the clergy and the Catholic laity, hiding hundreds of thousands of Jews--even in the Vatican itself (making many Swiss guards). It is estimated that as many as 850,000 Jews were saved through the pope's efforts. Do you know anyone else who matched this record?
In defense of Pius XII, I say that he did what he could. And actions speak louder than words.