Edith Stein: The Life of a Philosopher and Carmelite

by Teresia Renata Posselt, John Sullivan (Editor), Susanne M. Batzdorff (Editor)

Teresa Renata Posselt, O.C.D. was the Novice Director, then Mother Prioress of the Cologne Carmel when Edith Stein lived there. This is Posselt’s tribute to Saint Edith Stein, a wreath of recollections, lovingly woven together. It is also the first-ever biography published about that “Great Woman of the Twentieth Century.”

Having been out of print for half a century, the original text is here re-edited and enhanced by scholarly perspectives and updated and corrected in the light of knowledge which was not available to the author at the time.

Enriched by a broader range of contemporary literature about the philosopher, educator, spiritual writer, and victim of the catastrophe that engulfed her as part of her Jewish people, this new presentation of the biography everyone cites so frequently brings the reader closer to the real Edith Stein.

The editors have avoided weighing down this engaging life story with intrusive scholarly notes and commentaries. Instead they have relegated such material to a separate section of “Gleanings.” This gives the reader the option of enjoying the biography unencumbered by supplementary matter or delving into the Gleanings when desired.

The three editors/translators are close to the Stein family as well as to her Carmelite family which she entered in 1933. Susanne Batzdorff is Edith Stein’s niece, who has known her in person. Josephine Koeppel and John Sullivan are both Carmelites who have occupied themselves with the life and work of the saint and have talked with several Carmelite religious who lived with Edith Stein. Complementing their notes and comments that deepen the
knowledge of the famous phenomenologist and Carmelite is an insightful “Foreword” contributed by Sr. Amata Neyer, O.C.D., who knew Posselt personally. She has served as prioress of the Cologne Carmel and as archivist for its Edith Stein Archive.

Genres: Biography

394 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 2, 2005

Reviews

[booklady · Rating 5 out of 5]

She was an amazing woman, kind, brilliant, hard-working, devoted to family and friends, brave, thoughtful, holy; there are few superlatives which do not apply to Edith Stein. She was every bit the inspiring saint and I personally believe she will be a Doctor of the Church someday.

A first rate biography about her.

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

Remarkable biography of a remarkable woman. Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, as she was known in Carmel, was an amazing scholar and holy lay woman before she entered the monastery at the age of 40. She faced discrimination as a woman (common in Germany during the 1930s) and for her Jewish background, and was murdered at Auschwitz. She managed to face these challenges with incredible grace and dignity. I found her love of God, her family and humanity inspirational.
This translation of the original biography includes many notes (nicely placed at the end of the text so as not to disrupt the original) containing more detail about her that various researchers have unearthed.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

“To suffer and to be happy although suffering, to have one’s feet on the earth, to walk on the dirty and rough paths of this earth and yet to be enthroned with Christ at the Father’s right hand, to laugh and cry with the children of this world and ceaselessly sing the praises of God with the choirs of angels—this is the life of the Christian until the morning of eternity breaks forth.”

[Hannah Chartier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Edith has befriended me, and forever changed the way I see my vocation as a woman, mother and wife.

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book led me to fall in love with St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein). Such a beautiful life, wherein even the tragic ending at the hands of the Nazis could not dim the radiant light of her faith, her search for truth, and her love of God. Anyone that wants an example of true heroism, or insight into philosophy (particularly phenomenology), or a witness to authentic Catholic femininism, or just needs inspiration for adamantine trust in Divine Providence, should read this book.

[Ian Clary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a remarkably moving book, for so many reasons. The chief, of course, is that it is about the life and thought of Edith Stein, a beautiful human being. Any book about her is bound to be remarkable given the nature of its topic. I've read other studies of Stein's life, but this one is especially good as it was written by the prioress of the Cologne Carmel while Edith was there, before Hitler's persecution of anyone with Jewish blood, which Edith had. As such, this biography was a labour of love, written by a mother who lost a beloved daughter, which is evident in the care with which it was obviously written. Though Sr. Posselt was not a trained historian or academic, and thus made some basic errors, this version was critically revised -- with the same love and care evinced by Sr. Posselt -- by leading Stein scholars, whose additional research pulled up texts and sources that have not only corrected any errors, but have added to the value of Posselt's work. Thus, this book strikes a wonderful balance of scholarship and love.
Even though I know the details about how Edith died -- at Auschwitz -- nevertheless, I was moved to tears twice as I read of her kidnapp and eventual gassing, given the sustained quotations of various sources who saw or spoke with Edith after she was kidnapped by the SS and before her death in that evil camp. Her humility and serenity in the midst of chaos and evil was, quite frankly, shocking. She is a model of Christian grace that at once shames and encourages me. Her death was tragically beautiful. May I have even a sliver of the same love of God and neighbour that she had -- if we all did, the world would be a much better place.

[Carissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 1 of a year with Edith Stein. I loved this book and all the gleanings. Next up: Life in a Jewish family.

[Clare Nantz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great biography. Included a lot of firsthand sources!

[Cala Meyers · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an important read not only for Carmelites, but for all. It recounts through primary documents the life of Stein, a brilliant phenomenologist and philosopher through her last moments as a Roman Catholic nun and victim of the holocaust.

[Marcia S]

Inspiring story to make you rethink your devotion.