Edith Stein, or St. Benedicta of the Cross, was born Jewish, on October 12, 1891, in Breslau, Germany. She was the youngest of 11 children, and was known to be very intelligent as a child, but hated to be considered so. Because her father died when she was young, and her mother worked hard hours, Edith Stein was raised by her older sister and as a result became very independent. At 13 Edith lost her faith in God and became devoted to discovering philosophical truth.
After entering University of Breslau, Edith met Professor Edmund Husserl, who is seen as the most influential person in her life. She discovered the catholic faith initially at Göttingen University, and her interest in the Catholic faith grew in 1917, but she didn 't convert until the year 1921. In 1933 Stein entered the Carmelite convent
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They were both taken to Auschwitz, where they were lost track of. However it is assumed that they, along with the hundreds of thousands of others, were killed in a gas chamber and later deposited into a mass grave.
Edith Stein is the patron saint of converted Jews, Europe, loss of parents, and World Youth Day. She died in August of 1942 and was canonized on October 11, 1998. Her feast day is on August 9th.
Edith was an incredibly admirable person, and continues to inspire people all over the world today. She sought philosophical truth her entire life which led to a very close relationship with God. Her relationship with God gave her the ability to be able to stay in the Netherlands with her sister even though she knew that this meant almost inescapable extermination. We can emulate St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross by being selfless, and putting others before ourselves. From helping a stranger with their groceries or pushing someone out of the path of a vehicle, we are called to act parallel to Edit