Elio Toaff

[1] one of four children, the others being Cesare, Renzo and Pia,[1] He then undertook, under his father's guidance, his early religious formation at Livorno's Rabbinical College, while attending the University of Pisa where he studied law.

By that time, the Fascist government had passed its antisemitic Italian Racial Laws, which blocked Jews from registering to study for, though not from completing, a tertiary degree.

Only one professor, Lorenzo Mossa, finally offered to step in, and assigned him to work on the legal conflict between Ottoman, Jewish and English law in Mandatory Palestine.

[1] In the wake of Pietro Badoglio's declaration of a cessation of hostilities with the Allied on 8 September 1943, Toaff and his family were forced to go into hiding, as Germany invaded Italy.

He shut the synagogue when German troops arrived, an event coinciding with Yom Kippur that year, and, with the help of the Anconians, hid the members of the community in local houses and in parish churches.

[3] At the conclusion of the hostilities of World War II, Toaff was appointed chief rabbi of Venice, a position he held until 1951 when he assumed the same role for the Jewish community of Rome.

The protagonist of Italian civil and Jewish history in recent decades, he knew how to overcome divisions, and both of our communities had a common esteem and appreciation for his moral authority, together with a deep humanity.

I remember with gratitude his generous commitment and sincere willingness to promote dialogue and fraternal relations between Jews and Catholics; during his tenure our communities saw a significant moment in this regard, in his memorable encounter with my esteemed predecessor Saint Pope John Paul II, at the Chief Synagogue of Rome.

[5]Toaff and his wife had 4 children, 3 sons, Ariel, Daniel, and Godiel,[1] and a daughter Miriam, who married Sergio Della Pergola and lives in Israel.

When the war was raging, Pius spoke out very often to condemn the false race theory,"[7] a sentiment echoed widely in the Jewish communities at that time, though later challenged by Rolf Hochhuth.

[9] On 7 April 1994, Toaff co-officiated at the Papal Concert to Commemorate the Shoah at the Sala Nervi in Vatican City, along with Pope John Paul II, and the President of Italy Oscar Luigi Scalfaro.