Edith Stein

After I read 'The Diary of A Young Girl, by Anne Frank, I wanted to get started reading another book that has been on hold for a few months now. In the back of my mind, I remembered that I had a Edith Stein book that I have never read. I didn't know if I wanted to read anymore, at the time being, on WWII. The subject is hard for me to understand and so damn sad. But I knew, if I didn't read it now, I probably would not had picked it up any time soon. Now I am so glad that I did decide to pick up the book to read it.

Before I finished this book though, I watched Schindler's List.

That came out when I was in my 20's so I really wanted to watch it again to see if I could learn more about WWII, and perhaps to try and understand it better. Come to find out, this was a true story. I know that WWII is a true story but I mean the movie Schindler's List is a true story! There was a German man named Oscar Schindler and it is true that he made a List of Jews. He did his best to make sure that these Jews 'listed' were to come to work for him in his factory so that the Jews wouldn't have to go to the concentration camps. This guy was hero! Although at the end of the movie, he did have to run away when the war ended because he still was seen as a war criminal who made the Jews work for free. But this saved these Jews lives.

Schindler was making money off of the Jews and was very rich. I don't really understand that part. And in turn he, would give some Jews gifts to give to the Nazi personnel to remove a Jew from harms way, if the Nazi seen that a particular Jew needed to die or was upsetting the Nazi's in anyway. Removing the Jew to Schindler's factory for safety. There was one part when Schindler talked privately to a Jew woman who was frightened for her life. I forgot his name, but some Nazi officer kept a Jew woman for himself to do the domestic affairs. The woman says that the Nazi officer shoots woman for no reason and was so afraid that he would kill her. Schindler told her that the officer 'liked' her and that he wouldn't do that. Schindler basically told her that she knows what she has to do to keep safe. Schindler did what he could do for the woman. Which there wasn't much he could do.

The movie was almost 3 1/2 hours long, but I'm so glad I watched it again. Another movie comes to mind that I would like to see again, is 'The Pianist'. That to is about WWII. If there are any other movies that you would like to recommend, please do. I would really like to watch them.

Any how. Getting on with my book review on Edith Stein.

I am so glad that I did pick up this book. I learned more about WWII. Didn't think I would. I also was a little hesitant to pick up this book because it's one of my Catholic books and I wasn't in the mood to read it. But I thought that I would pick it up to read it as a history book and not so much as a Catholic book. And it did seem to work that way. Although being Catholic, helped me understand more of the Catholic side to the story. I was thinking that I wouldn't probably write a review on this book, because it wasn't a classic book. But now that I have read it, it definitely is a classic book and everyone should read it.

Edith Stein was a Jew who became a Catholic nun. The story tells you how upset and her family was about her becoming Catholic. Especially at a time of what was going on in the world! World War II. Jews seen that Christians were their persecutors. The Stein family felt very betrayed by Edith. Edith Stein's Mother was very upset about her youngest daughter wanting to become Catholic.

But before Edith choose to follow the Catholic faith, she first went through years of education and was quite smart. She was a very, highly educated woman. Very intelligent.

In my opinion, that is what lead Edith to the Catholic faith. She was always seeking the truth in her education. So it would seem fitting that she would go down that path. Even if it meant upsetting her family. Her whole life was based on finding the truth. But her family were very dear to her to her heart.

Edith even wanted to become a nun but didn't tell her mother for like 12 years. But then Edith knew that she couldn't wait any longer. She had to be honest with her family. She went home to announce to her family what her plans were. Edith's Mom was very hurt. The last three years of Edith's Mom's life, Edith was living at the convent and did not see her Mom before she died. Edith was very upset about this. They did keep some contact through letters but not many.

A Bishop stood up for the Jews and told the Nazi group how they shouldn't treat the Jews this way. Just because of that, the Nazi's had all Catholics who were Jews arrested in that particular area. And and you can guess, the fate of that instance got Edith Stein arrested. Edith Stein's sister Rosa became a nun to after their mother died. The two sisters were arrested together. The two sister were sent right to the death camps. They were told that they were going to be showered off for lice and to fold and lay their clothes neatly, so they could pick them up after the shower. Well, there was no shower. They were gassed and killed. The book does get somewhat gruesome after this but I'm not going to write about those horrendous details. It doesn't need to be talked about here.

Pope John Paul II declared Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein) a saint in 1987. The Stein family was invited and they all attended. Even to this day, the Stein family struggles with the fact that Edith Stein is now a Saint in the Catholic church.

In this book, four woman, Edith Stein, Simone Weil, Anne Frank and Etty Hillesum have all been said to have kept a diary during their times of struggle doing WWII. I believe that they are all Jewish except for Edith Stein who became Catholic. I know Anne Frank was because I just read her diary. I just found it kind of neat because I to keep a diary.

The whole Holocaust topic is just so sad. But I did give this book four stars for very good. Even though it is sad. We all need to know the history of WWII so that we can pass it down to our children. It does need to be remembered. I just want to say that what happened to the Jews during WWII was devastating. But it wasn't just an injustice to the Jews. It was a injustice for the whole human race. We all are made from one God. No matter what there religion or beliefs. No one deserves to be treated the way that the Jewish people were.

The book reminds me that Pope John Paul II suffered himself from the Nazi's when they occupied Polish. Wasn't he in hiding to? I thought I read that somewhere. Maybe I can read up on that again some other day. So that helped the communication with the Catholics and the Jewish people. Also during his first trip to Poland as Pope, back in 1979, he visited Auschwitz where Edith Stein died. It was the first time a Pope had visited a concentration camp. Also Pope John Paul II was the first pope to have entered a synagogue in 1986 where he prayed.

Edith Stein reminded me of myself following the Catholic faith as an adult. I really enjoyed learning about WWII but also learning about her as a person. She was brave and courage's. Always kept her cool under pressure and fear for that matter. Always wanted to help people first before herself. She came to love the Lord with all of her heart, soul and mind. She says that prayer kept her faith strong so that she could remain close to the Lord at the most difficult time in history of her era. I'm so glad that Pope John Paul II made Teresa Benedicta of the Cross a Saint.