They support the author's argument that the church was not a passive witness to the Holocaust but an active collaborator in it.

Veilly was part of the Duchy of Burgundy and enjoyed the status of "passive witness" of the Duchy's rich history.

But the Islanders remained passive witnesses.

Uncharacteristically, he was a passive witness only, as if he were viewing some meaningless holographic reconstruction of an event that was of no interest to him.

At most, he'd have the excitement of being a passive witness as we faced whatever had attacked the settlers... Was that why Cohen sounded so eager?

All she could do was stand there, a passive witness.

It is not a passive witness to creation, but is the dynamic conscious activity which constitutes creation.

The audience isn't condescended to.... We share the excitement of figuring out how things develop and unfold, when so often the movies only need us as passive witnesses.

She or he is not just a passive witness.

"It is probable that we have all become passive witnesses, once again, to a barbaric act - this time a barbaric act backed by democracy."