The ordeal of Pius XII

Indeed, so searching are the questions and so inflamed are discussions about the Roman Catholic Church's pontiff during World War II that the current pope, Benedict XVI, recently announced that he may postpone Pius's beatification until the Vatican's archives for the war years are opened and examined.

Why is Pius XII so often accused of having been almost an accomplice of Nazi Germany when, during his papacy, the Catholic Church in Rome protected and hid thousands of Jews? This is one of the knottiest historical questions of our times.