Gustavo Juan Franceschi and the Jews: The Overcoming of Prejudice by an Argentine Prelate
This article seeks to demonstrate how Monsignor Gustavo Juan Franceschi (1871–1957) became a friend of the newly created state of Israel when only twenty years earlier he had maintained that Jews constituted Argentina's major political problem. This intellectual transformation will be traced through a consideration of Franceschi's writings about the Jews. As a prominent member of the Catholic church and a strong advocate of Argentine nationalism, his views also reflected the generally ambivalent and suspicious attitude which that powerful institution held regarding Jews. However, following the devastation of European Jewry during World War II and the creation of the state of Israel in 1948, Franceschi's opinion of Jews moderated, resulting in greater understanding. Before presenting Franceschi's views, a consideration of Argentine Catholic nationalism will be provided in order to place these opinions within a proper context.