Testament of Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII signed his testament (will) on May 15, 1956, some fifteen months before his death. Unlike the testaments of his predecessor Pius X and successor John Paul II, it is a very short document, omitting names, details and designations of individual material belongings. Supporters of Pope Pius XII view the testament as a testimonial of his modesty and spiritual holiness. It has been quoted at memorial events in his honour and is allegedly a part of the documentation of his beatification process underway in Rome. Noteworthy is the first sentence in Latin: "Miserere  mei, Deus, secundum (magnam) misericordiam tuam" ("Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your great mercy;" Psalm 50). When the Pope pronounced these words after his election March 2, 1939, the word "magnam" was a part of the cited Psalm. However the new 1945 translation left out this word. In order to be correct in his 1939 quote, Pope Pius put (magnam) in parentheses. Text. Alternative translation. Another translation of the Testament was given by Dorothy Day in "Catholic Worker" magazine. The naming of faults has an extra phrase: "sins committed". This is a significant inclusion, knowing Day's  admiration of Pius XII (She calls him "our dear Holy Father" in the article giving the alternate translation). Dropping the strong words "sins committed" would need to be explained. Also interesting is the translation "scandalized". The complete listing of faults follows: