Edith Stein (Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross) October 12, 1891- August 9, 1942

“Come! We are going for our people.”
These are the last words of a woman of wisdom and perseverance. A fellow human being whose calling was to serve God through mundane acts. Once an atheist but later realized the value of religion. A feminist who wanted woman empowerment, and a fighter who voiced out her ideology even to the Pope.

Edith Stein is indeed an epitome of a modern-day hero. She did not shed blood nor fought in battles against the Nazis. In fact, she was also one of the victims of the holocaust. But what set her apart from the rest was that, she knew something was wrong and she did try to take actions.

Edith Stein’s Humble Beginning

Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross or Edith Stein was born on October 12, 1891 in Breslau, Germany. She was the 11th child of a religious Jewish couple, Siegried Stein and Auguste Courant.
Just like other teenagers, she had spent her childhood years under the influence and guidance of her parents. She admired her mother’s strong faith the most; but later on she became an atheist during her teenage years.

However, atheism had nothing to do with her desire to learn. Edith Stein’s family favor professions in the field of Medicine. Her sister became a Gynecologist. She, on the other hand was one of the few who were interested in a branch of medicine we now call psychiatry.

She took it in order to unlock questions like how the mind works, what trouble pains the heart, and how to cure or heal the soul. Her passion about it was reflected on her works and actions during her time.

Edith Stein’s Calling: Phenomenology and Service

In 1911 at the age of 19, she studied philology and philosophy at the University of Breslau.

Upon her discovery of the book published by Edmund Husserl entitled Logical Investigations, Edith decided to transfer to the University of Göttingen.. At the age of 21, she become initiated into the new philosophy of science called Phenomenology. under the teaching of Husserl. She was one of the first women students to enroll at the said university.

At the beginning of World War I in 1914, she volunteered at a military hospital, where she also found inspiration for her philosophical work on the subject of empathy.

She later earned her doctorate in philosophy Suma Cum Laude in 1916, still under Husserl’s tutelage at the University of Freiburg. She then worked for him as a research and teaching assistant for 18 months. After which, she quit but she continued to work in various projects of his former mentor.

From 1916 through 1921, this is the period when she wrote her four treatises: first “On the Problem of Empathy,” 1916, second, “Sentient Causality,”1918, third, “Individual and Community,” 1919 and lastly, “On the state” 1921. All her published works present new perspectives and were somehow unconventional.

Due to some issues on gender and women empowerment, it took her a decade to have a university career in 1930′s. She was just starting to teach at Münster when the anti-Semtic regulations of 1933 was implemented taking her job away.

While she was doing her studies, Edith Stein was searching not only for the truth, but for Truth itself. After reading the autobiography of Saint Teresa of Avila she found what she was looking for. After she was enlightened, she converted into Catholic. She was baptized on New Year’s Day, January 1, 1922.

After her conversion, at the age of 42, she was accepted into the Carmel at Cologne. This has been a major step in fulfilling her vocation. She spent her days serving the people through teaching, lecturing, writing and translating. She offered herself to God by touching people’s lives. Later, her brilliance was acknowledge and she became a renowned philosopher and an author.

On October 14, 1933, Edith Stein entered the Discalced Carmelie Nuns’ cloistered community at Cologne-Lindentha upon the approval of he Benedictine spiritual director. She received the religious name “Teresia Benedicta ac Cruce” the moment she received the Habit of Carmel. She made her Profession of Vows on April 21, 1935.
Because of the holocaust, Edith Stein soon sensed danger and decided to transfer to a foreign monastery. It was on December 31, 1938 when she crossed the border into Holland and was received by the Carmel of Echt. This time, she wrote The Science of the Cross which became her last work.

When the Nazis invaded Holland, all the Catholics of Jewish including Edith Stein was taken away from Echt Carmel. They were brought into the death camp of Auschwitz on August 2, 1942. The four-day trip was brutal and the they were treated inhumanly. Many died and her fate was not different from the other Jews. On August 9, 1942, Edith Stein died in gas chambers.

In 1955, an American organization of Roman Catholic converts was named Edith Stein Guild in honor of Edith Stein. After 45 years, she was beatified as Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross on 1 May 1987 by Pope John Paul II. She was canonized on October 11, 1998 and became a patron saint of Europe In 1999.

Many questioned her canonization because of some religion issues. However, one’s past is not important. Whether you were a Jew or a Catholic, what important is the person you are today. Just like Edith Stein,she made her choices along the way. She did not become influential in Germany but Europe as a whole.

Sources:

http://www.ewtn.com/faith/edith_stein.htm

http://www.library.nd.edu/colldev/subject_home_pages/catholic/personal_connections.shtml

http://womenshistory.about.com/od/jewishwomen/p/edith_stein.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edith_Stein