The Diocese of Allentown celebrated the feast day of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, also known as Edith Stein, on Aug. 9.

Edith Stein was born into a Jewish family in Poland and was a brilliant student from a young age. But, she stopped believing in God when she was a teenager, according to Franciscan Media. She earned a doctorate in philosophy and became a professor. 

Eventually, Stein read St. Teresa of Avila's autobiography and she became drawn to Catholicism, according to Saints Resource. She was baptized in 1922 and began teaching at a Catholic girls' school. In 1933, she became a sister with the Discalced Carmelite Order, taking the name Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. 

During World War II, she was sent to Holland because her Jewish heritage put her in danger. After the Nazis conquered Holland in 1942, Sister Teresa Benedicta was arrested along with her sister, who had also converted, Saints Resource said.

“In 1942, she died in a gas chamber in Auschwitz with other converted Jews,” the diocese wrote in a Facebook post. “St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, pray for us and help us carry our own cross in this life.” 

Pope John Paul II beatified Teresa Benedicta in 1987 and canonized her in 1999. She is the patron saint of Europe and converts to Christianity.