The World Jewish Congress (WJC) Monday criticized the decision by Pope Benedict XVI to pave the way for the beatification of his controversial war-time predecessor Pius XII (Eugenio Pacelli), who was pontiff of the Catholic Church from 1939 to 1958. Benedict XVI's signature on the document certifying Eugenio Pacelli's (religiously defined) "heroic virtues" over the weekend came as a surprise since the pope's decision to move his World War II-era predecessor, Pius XII, a step nearer sainthood was taken less than a month before the pontiff's planned visit to Rome's main synagogue. "As long as the archives of Pope Pius...