The Programs on Religion and the Holocaust at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Pontifical Gregorian University, and Yad Vashem invite applications for a conference, “Witness to the Age of Extremes: The Life and Work of Father Robert Leiber, S.J. (1888-1967)." The conference will take place at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, March 8-9, 2027.
The conferences focuses on Father Robert Leiber S.J., who was Pope Pius XII’s (Eugenio Pacelli) personal secretary and unofficial advisor for over four decades. Father Leiber was witness and confidant to the future pope through the establishment of the Soviet Union (1922-1991), the German Weimar Republic (1919-1933), the rise of Benito Mussolini’s Fascist Party in Italy (1922-1943), the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), the Second World War (1939-1945), the Holocaust, and its aftermath as Europe was restructured over the course of the late 1940’s and 1950’s. Father Leiber taught history at the Pontificia Università Gregoriana throughout his time in Rome, where a portion of his personal papers are housed and will be made publicly available in 2027. This conference will rediscover Father Leiber as a crucial historical actor, as a deeply spiritual researcher and teacher, as a liaison for Pope Pius XII to the world’s most powerful leaders, and as a mirror for the times in which he lived.
To Apply
Applications are welcome from scholars at all career levels, from PhD candidates to senior scholars. Apply here by October 31, 2026.
Applications must include:
a curriculum vitae
a brief paper proposal of 300-400 words
Travel and Lodging
The conference will be held in-person only. For non-local participants, the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum will cover the cost of (1) direct travel to and from the participant’s home institution and Rome, and (2) lodging for the duration of the conference. All participants will also be provided $200 to defray the cost of ground transportation and incidentals. Questions about travel should be directed to religion@ushmm.org.
This conference is made possible by support from the Cardinal Bea Centre for Judaic Studies, Pontifical Gregorian University; the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; the International Institute for Holocaust Research, Yad Vashem; and the Israeli Embassy to the Holy See.
Witness to the Age of Extremes: The Life and Work of Father Robert Leiber, S.J. (1888-1967) - Call for Applications
The Programs on Religion and the Holocaust at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Pontifical Gregorian University, and Yad Vashem invite applications for a conference, “Witness to the Age of Extremes: The Life and Work of Father Robert Leiber, S.J. (1888-1967)." The conference will take place at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, March 8-9, 2027.
The conferences focuses on Father Robert Leiber S.J., who was Pope Pius XII’s (Eugenio Pacelli) personal secretary and unofficial advisor for over four decades. Father Leiber was witness and confidant to the future pope through the establishment of the Soviet Union (1922-1991), the German Weimar Republic (1919-1933), the rise of Benito Mussolini’s Fascist Party in Italy (1922-1943), the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), the Second World War (1939-1945), the Holocaust, and its aftermath as Europe was restructured over the course of the late 1940’s and 1950’s. Father Leiber taught history at the Pontificia Università Gregoriana throughout his time in Rome, where a portion of his personal papers are housed and will be made publicly available in 2027. This conference will rediscover Father Leiber as a crucial historical actor, as a deeply spiritual researcher and teacher, as a liaison for Pope Pius XII to the world’s most powerful leaders, and as a mirror for the times in which he lived.
To Apply
Applications are welcome from scholars at all career levels, from PhD candidates to senior scholars. Apply here by October 31, 2026.
Applications must include:
a curriculum vitae
a brief paper proposal of 300-400 words
Travel and Lodging
The conference will be held in-person only. For non-local participants, the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum will cover the cost of (1) direct travel to and from the participant’s home institution and Rome, and (2) lodging for the duration of the conference. All participants will also be provided $200 to defray the cost of ground transportation and incidentals. Questions about travel should be directed to religion@ushmm.org.
This conference is made possible by support from the Cardinal Bea Centre for Judaic Studies, Pontifical Gregorian University; the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; the International Institute for Holocaust Research, Yad Vashem; and the Israeli Embassy to the Holy See.