Gospel in Art: Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), Virgin, Martyr

Edith Stein (Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross), Stamp issued in 1983, issued by the Deutsche Bundespost, Germany

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 9 August 2025
Matthew 25:1-13

At that time: Jesus told his disciples this parable, 'The kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.

As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a cry, "Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him." Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, "Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out." But the wise answered, saying, "Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves."

And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. Afterwards the other virgins came also, saying, "Lord, lord, open to us." But he answered, "Truly, I say to you, I do not know you." Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.'

Reflection on the stamp

Today, we celebrate the Feast of St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, also known as Edith Stein (1891-1942). A Carmelite nun, martyr, and patron of Europe, she was born into a devout Jewish family. She had a distinguished academic career as a philosopher, including a doctorate from the University of Freiburg. After reading the autobiography of Saint Teresa of Ávila, she converted to Catholicism and was baptised just over 100 years ago, in 1922. She later became a lecturer at the Institute for Pedagogy in Münster, but was dismissed in 1933 because of the Nazi regime's anti-Semitic laws.

She then entered a Carmelite monastery in Cologne, adopting the name Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. To protect her from the escalating Nazi threat, her order moved her to the Netherlands. Following a public condemnation of Nazi racism by the Dutch Bishops' Conference on 20 July 1942, however, the authorities ordered the arrest of all Jewish converts to Christianity. Teresa Benedicta was taken to Auschwitz and killed on 9 August 1942. She was canonised by John Paul II in 1998 and declared a co-patroness of Europe the following year.

In 1983, the German Postal Service (Deutsche Bundespost) issued a commemorative postage stamp in honour of Edith Stein to mark the 40th anniversary of her death in Auschwitz in 1942. The stamp, with a face value of 80 Pfennig, was part of a series dedicated to important women in German history. The text on the stamp simply reads "Edith Stein 1891-1942 Auschwitz". The release of the stamp reflected growing recognition of Stein's spiritual and intellectual legacy, as well as Germany's ongoing efforts to confront and commemorate the tragedies of the Holocaust. Issued before her canonisation in 1998, the stamp was one of the earliest national acknowledgments of her significance as a martyr and a bridge figure between Jewish and Christian thought.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's Reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/matthew-25-1-13-2025/