The Essential Woman

Edith Stein (St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross) was a Jewish philosopher who became a Catholic in 1922 after reading the autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila. When asked why she converted, she wrote, "secretum meum mihi." (Latin for "my secret is mine") She became a Carmelite nun in 1934, but was murdered by the Nazis at Auschwitz in 1942.

Dr. Stein's opinions on Catholic women's education were widely reported and discussed in German Catholic circles in the early 1930's. Her list of the virtues a woman ought to embody prompted many requests for elaboration. This volume reprints Dr. Stein's list of feminine virtues, her explanation of how to live these virtues, and essays from My Secret is Mine newsletter on living those virtues today. After each essay, a bible study related to the theme rounds out the chapter.