The Unnecessary Problem of Edith Stein

Edith Stein's murder at Auschwitz is a topic of intense controversy among members of the Jewish and Catholic faiths. Some observers, both Jews and Christians, insist that Stein was sent to the gas chambers because of her Jewish heritage and faith, and that it would be inappropriate to declare her a saint in the Christian religious tradition. Yet, others of both faiths find in Stein a healing symbol for our time of the atrocities committed against Jews in Christian nations during World War II. In this volume, members of the Jewish and Christian religious traditions speak to this deeply divided debate.

Harry James Cargas is Professor of Literature, Language, and Religion at Webster University, St. Louis. Among his 24 books are A Christian Response to the Holocaust, Conversations with Elie Wiesel, and Reflections of a Post-Auschwitz Christian.