The Testament of Pope Pius XII was signed by Pope Pius XII on May 15, 1956, some fifteen months before his death. Unlike the documents of his predecessors (Pope Pius X) and successors (Pope 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 1956 translation left out this word. In order to be correct in his 1939 quote, Pope Pius put (magnam) in parentheses.
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