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"EDITH STEIN hardly seemed Catholic-saint material. She, a precocious Jewish child, rejected God as a teen at the turn of this century in Breslau, Germany (now Wroclaw, Poland). But even as a child Edith was, at heart, a radical, one who goes to the radix, the roots. When she became convinced of the truth of an idea, her life fell into place around it. In the midst of all her studies, Edith Stein was searching not only for the truth, but for Truth itself and she found both in the Catholic Church, after reading the autobiography of Saint Teresa of Avila. She was baptized on New Year's Day, 1922.  After her conversion, Edith spent her days teaching, lecturing, writing and translating, and she soon became known as a celebrated philosopher and author, but her own great longing was for the solitude and contemplation of Carmel, in which she could offer herself to God for her people. It was not until the Nazi persecution of the Jews brought her public activities and her influence in the Catholic world to a sudden close that her Benedictine spiritual director gave his approval to her entering the Discalced Carmelie Nuns' cloistered community at Cologne-Lindenthal on 14 October 1933. The following April, Edith received the Habit of Carmel and the religious name of "Teresia Benedicta ac Cruce," and on Easter Sunday, 21 April 1935, she made her Profession of Vows.  When the Jewish persecution increased in violence and fanaticism, Sister Teresa Benedicta soon realized the danger that her presence was to the Cologne Carmel, and she asked and received permission to transfer to a foreign monastery. On the night of 31 December 1938, she secretly crossed the border into Holland where she was warmly received in the Carmel of Echt. There she wrote her last work, The Science of the Cross.  Her own Cross was just ahead of her, for the Nazis had invaded neutral Holland, and when the Dutch bishops issued a pastoral letter protesting the deportation of the Jews and the expulsion of Jewish children from the Catholic school system, the Nazis arrested all Catholics of Jewish extraction in Holland. Edith was taken from the Echt Carmel on 2 August 1942, and transported by cattle train to the death camp of Auschwitz, the conditions in the box cars being so inhuman that many died or went insane on the four day trip. She met death with stoic acceptance and a happy heart in her final moment on this earth with her prayful desire to unite in hope all unbeleivers with her faith and desire to share in the Cross of Christ and to be with Him in His Passion.  She died in the gas chambers at Auschwitz on 9 August 1942.  We no longer seek her on earth, but with God Who accepted her sacrifice and will give its fruit to the people for whom she prayed, suffered, and died. In her own words: "Once can only learn the science of the Cross by feeling the Cross in one's own person." We can say that in the fullest sense of the word, Sister Teresa was "Benedicta a Cruce" -- blessed by the Cross.

Pope John Paul II beatified Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross on 1 May 1987, and canonizes her on 11 October 1998."

May the Grace of God make me worthy to become the example of faith that our beloved Sister Teresa was.  St. Benedicta, pray for us-Desertknight.



Her Commemoration-http://www.zenit.org/article-4843?l=english

She can't pray for you, she is dead.  She is sleeping the sleep of death until the resurrection.  It is my understanding that she wrote letters to the Pope asking him to speak out and take a stand against the Nazis, particularly their persecution against the Jews. She was never answered though, and the stand never took place.  As you stated, she later died in a Nazi concentration camp.

Apart from this, some of the methods used by Hitler upon the Jews, were used long before him upon them by a certain Pope of Rome.  Such as separating them from everyone else, confining them to one neighborhood, and making them wear bands around their arms to identify them as Jews.  This is of course not to mention the mass extermination of Jews by the church of Rome long before Hitler ever existed.

Your trafficking in lies is just stunning, but I've come to expect it.  Yes, My Church, the true Church of Christ must really be embarrassed about her...that's why we declared her a Saint!  If you believe her soul is dead, you must have some really big problems believing in our Christian faith.  She is as alive as the day she was born, and neither the Nazis, nor you, can do anything about that. The Holy See was deluged with letters during that time and unable to answer them personally.   That has nothing to do with how our Church regarded her.  We stood by our Jewish brothers.  You are trafficking in lies.

THE TRUTH!!!

http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/apologetics/ap0064.html

"From the beginning Hitler and his closest followers were motivated by a pathological hatred for the Catholic Church, which they appraised correctly as the most dangerous opponent to what they hoped to do in Germany. Proof of this, among other things, are Hitler's already published discussions with those closest to him, Joseph Goebbels' diary, Martin Bormann's decrees, Alfred Rosenberg's delirious diatribes, and Heinrich Himmler's orders to the SS and GestaHis Holiness on Adolf Hitler..."

"This man is completely earned away; everything he says and writes has the mark of his egocentrism; this man is capable of trampling on corpses and eliminating anything that is an obstacle. I cannot understand how there are so many people in Germany who do not understand him, and cannot draw conclusions from what he says or writes. Have any of them even read his horrifying Mein Kampf?"   -Pope Pius XII

QuoteYour trafficking in lies is just stunning, but I've come to expect it.  Yes, My Church, the true Church of Christ must really be embarrassed about her...that's why we declared her a Saint!  If you believe her soul is dead, you must have some really big problems believing in our Christian faith.  She is as alive as the day she was born, and neither the Nazis, nor you, can do anything about that. The Holy See was deluged with letters during that time and unable to answer them personally.   That has nothing to do with how our Church regarded her.  We stood by our Jewish brothers.  You are trafficking in lies.

THE TRUTH!!!

http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/apologetics/ap0064.html

"From the beginning Hitler and his closest followers were motivated by a pathological hatred for the Catholic Church, which they appraised correctly as the most dangerous opponent to what they hoped to do in Germany. Proof of this, among other things, are Hitler's already published discussions with those closest to him, Joseph Goebbels' diary, Martin Bormann's decrees, Alfred Rosenberg's delirious diatribes, and Heinrich Himmler's orders to the SS and GestaHis Holiness on Adolf Hitler..."

"This man is completely earned away; everything he says and writes has the mark of his egocentrism; this man is capable of trampling on corpses and eliminating anything that is an obstacle. I cannot understand how there are so many people in Germany who do not understand him, and cannot draw conclusions from what he says or writes. Have any of them even read his horrifying Mein Kampf?"   -Pope Pius XII

I learned the info, minus the sleep of the dead,  from a video I got from the public library, that was made by a Roman Catholic who decided to take an honest look at some of his Churches serious mistakes of the past.  Interesting, I now have two RC's claiming authoritative knowledge of history contradicting each other, and calling each other liars.  I will try to find the video again and give you the name of it.  You can report it to your Church, and they can do what they do, and have it removed from all public libraries.

Edith does not here your prayers, she is asleep in the grave awaiting the resurrection.  Even if she was alive and conscious in heaven, which she is not, she is not God, and could not possibly here and understand the silent prayers of all who might possibly be praying to her at the same time.  Or is she now omni present, and omniscient like God according to you.  If not she must depend on God to relate peoples prayers to her, what a waste of time that would be.  Not to mention the insult to God, who does here and know every single prayer uttered by anyone who has ever prayed.

QuoteI learned the info, minus the sleep of the dead,  from a video I got from the public library, that was made by a Roman Catholic who decided to take an honest look at some of his Churches serious mistakes of the past.  Interesting, I now have two RC's claiming authoritative knowledge of history contradicting each other, and calling each other liars.  I will try to find the video again and give you the name of it.  You can report it to your Church, and they can do what they do, and have it removed from all public libraries.

What are you even talking about?  You do not have two "RC's" contradicting each other, because I have no earthly idea what this supposed other person is saying.  It can all be made good with the time honored way of "put up, or shut up".  Just post some source for your claim and I will see what you are referring to.  As you are a good Christian, I'm sure you are not exaggerating or lying about anything.

QuoteEdith does not here your prayers, she is asleep in the grave awaiting the resurrection.  Even if she was alive and conscious in heaven, which she is not, she is not God, and could not possibly here and understand the silent prayers of all who might possibly be praying to her at the same time.  Or is she now omni present, and omniscient like God according to you.  If not she must depend on God to relate peoples prayers to her, what a waste of time that would be.  Not to mention the insult to God, who does here and know every single prayer uttered by anyone who has ever prayed.

"As Scripture indicates, those in heaven are aware of the prayers of those on earth. This can be seen, for example, in Revelation 5:8, where John depicts the saints in heaven offering our prayers to God under the form of "golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." But if the saints in heaven are offering our prayers to God, then they must be aware of our prayers. They are aware of our petitions and present them to God by interceding for us.

Some might try to argue that in this passage the prayers being offered were not addressed to the saints in heaven, but directly to God. Yet this argument would only strengthen the fact that those in heaven can hear our prayers, for then the saints would be aware of our prayers even when they are not directed to them!

In any event, it is clear from Revelation 5:8 that the saints in heaven do actively intercede for us. We are explicitly told by John that the incense they offer to God are the prayers of the saints. Prayers are not physical things and cannot be physically offered to God. Thus the saints in heaven are offering our prayers to God mentally. In other words, they are interceding.

The Bible directs us to invoke those in heaven and ask them to pray with us. Thus in Psalms 103, we pray, "Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, hearkening to the voice of his word! Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers that do his will!" (Ps. 103:20-21). And in Psalms 148 we pray, "Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his host!" (Ps. 148:1-2)."

Martin Luther wanted to remove the Epistle of James, Esther, Hebrews, Jude and Revelation, from "his" bible.

Calvin and Zwingli also both had problems with the Book of Revelation, the former calling it "unintelligible" and forbidding the pastors in Geneva to interpret it, the latter calling it "unbiblical".

So much for sola scriptura!

Jeez! Don't you Protestants read the Bible?

QuoteWhat are you even talking about?  You do not have two "RC's" contradicting each other, because I have no earthly idea what this supposed other person is saying.  It can all be made good with the time honored way of "put up, or shut up".  Just post some source for your claim and I will see what you are referring to.  As you are a good Christian, I'm sure you are not exaggerating or lying about anything.

Patience desertknight.  I need to get back to the library and find it again.

Quote"As Scripture indicates, those in heaven are aware of the prayers of those on earth. This can be seen, for example, in Revelation 5:8, where John depicts the saints in heaven offering our prayers to God under the form of "golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." But if the saints in heaven are offering our prayers to God, then they must be aware of our prayers. They are aware of our petitions and present them to God by interceding for us.

Some might try to argue that in this passage the prayers being offered were not addressed to the saints in heaven, but directly to God. Yet this argument would only strengthen the fact that those in heaven can hear our prayers, for then the saints would be aware of our prayers even when they are not directed to them!

In any event, it is clear from Revelation 5:8 that the saints in heaven do actively intercede for us. We are explicitly told by John that the incense they offer to God are the prayers of the saints. Prayers are not physical things and cannot be physically offered to God. Thus the saints in heaven are offering our prayers to God mentally. In other words, they are interceding.

The Bible directs us to invoke those in heaven and ask them to pray with us. Thus in Psalms 103, we pray, "Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, hearkening to the voice of his word! Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers that do his will!" (Ps. 103:20-21). And in Psalms 148 we pray, "Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his host!" (Ps. 148:1-2)."

Martin Luther wanted to remove the Epistle of James, Esther, Hebrews, Jude and Revelation, from "his" bible.

Calvin and Zwingli also both had problems with the Book of Revelation, the former calling it "unintelligible" and forbidding the pastors in Geneva to interpret it, the latter calling it "unbiblical".

So much for sola scriptura!

Jeez! Don't you Protestants read the Bible?

Yes, some of us do.  I have read it coer to cover several times, and continue to do so.  This is how I know you are missrepresenting what the scriptures teach regarding the state of the dead.  You are making the scriptures blatantly contradict each other.  We know Enoch, and Elijah, and Moses are in heaven now according to the scriptures.  So also are those who were resurrected when Christ died.  Apart from these select few, the rest of the dead are sleeping the sleep of death, until the resurrection as the scriptures clearly teach.

Matt 27:50 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. 51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; 52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, 53 And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.

Got to go, company.  I'll get back to you about that video.

desertknight, the name of the DVD is CONSTANTINE'S SWORD.  It centers around a man by the name of James Carroll.  He is a practicing Catholic, and ex - Catholic Priest.  He takes a honest look at his churches past.

He speaks of the inquisition against the Jews, and the crusades against the Muslims, which began first closer to home against the Jews along the way, wiping out entire Jewish communities and towns.  The DVD addresses an instance of Christians being killed also for practicing certain things considered Jewish.  It does not however delve deeply enough into this, for there were many many Christians killed who kept the seventh day Sabbath and were therefore considered Jews.

While the DVD attempts to honestly address the atrocities committed by the Church toward the Jews, it does not delve into the same concerning the Churches involvement in committing the same towards other Christians that did not bow the knee to Rome.  Estimates concerning these atrocities range anywhere from about fifty to one and twenty five million.  In fact, a far greater number of Christians were killed under the direct influence of the Church of Rome, than Jews.

In 1555 Pope Paul IV who previously was an inquisitor, proclaimed the following concerning the Jews in Rome.

Jews are to own no real-estate.
Jews are to hire no Christian servants.
Jews are to no longer ignore the ancient requirement to wear distinctive clothing and badges identifying then as Jews.
Jews are to pay higher taxes.
Jews are to live in a distinctive quarter, cut off from other sections of the city, which is only to have one entrance to be locked at sundown.

The Jews were walled up in a tiny ghetto after the above decree, only four square blocks.  They lost all their possessions and names.  They could not buy, sell, or work with anything new, only old used things.  They were forced to attend Catholic services.  It was three hundred years before they were liberated from the ghetto, only after the papacy lost it's power in the 1870's to a unified Italy.

Within two weeks of Hitler coming to power in 1933, the Vatican Foreign Minister sent him warm greetings, and treaty negotiations began between the Minister and Hitler's Vice Chancellor.  In July they signed a Concordat  and the Vatican became the first foreign power to enter into a bilateral treaty with Hitler.  This concordat involved a secret provision in which the church defended Jews who had converted to Catholicism, but indicated it would have nothing to say about Nazi assaults against other Jews. 

Edith Stein, whom you have mentioned as a Saint of the Catholic Church, was a Jewish German Philosopher.  She converted to Roman Catholicism in 1922 and became sister Benadicta of the cross.

St. Edith Stein's letter to Pope Pius XI

In 1933, Sister Edith wrote to Pope Pius XI, warning about persecution and hatred levied against the Jews. Stein implored for intervention against this inhumanity. In her letter to the Pope she wrote:
""As a child of the Jewish people who, by the grace of God, for the past eleven years has also been a child of the Catholic Church, I dare to speak to the Father of Christianity about that which oppresses millions of Germans. For weeks we have seen deeds perpetrated in Germany which mock any sense of justice and humanity, not to mention love of neighbor. For years the leaders of National Socialism have been preaching hatred of the Jews. Now that they have seized the power of government and armed their followers . . . this seed of hatred has germinated. . . . But the responsibility must fall, after all, on those who brought them to this point and it also falls on those who keep silent in the face of such happenings.

Everything that happened and continues to happen on a daily basis originates with a government that calls itself "Christian.

desertknight, the name of the DVD is CONSTANTINE'S SWORD.  It centers around a man by the name of James Carroll.  He is a practicing Catholic, and ex - Catholic Priest.  He takes a honest look at his churches past.

He speaks of the inquisition against the Jews, and the crusades against the Muslims, which began first closer to home against the Jews along the way, wiping out entire Jewish communities and towns.  The DVD addresses an instance of Christians being killed also for practicing certain things considered Jewish.  It does not however delve deeply enough into this, for there were many many Christians killed who kept the seventh day Sabbath and were therefore considered Jews.

While the DVD attempts to honestly address the atrocities committed by the Church toward the Jews, it does not delve into the same concerning the Churches involvement in committing the same towards other Christians that did not bow the knee to Rome.  Estimates concerning these atrocities range anywhere from about fifty to one and twenty five million.  In fact, a far greater number of Christians were killed under the direct influence of the Church of Rome, than Jews.

In 1555 Pope Paul IV who previously was an inquisitor, proclaimed the following concerning the Jews in Rome.

Jews are to own no real-estate.
Jews are to hire no Christian servants.
Jews are to no longer ignore the ancient requirement to wear distinctive clothing and badges identifying then as Jews.
Jews are to pay higher taxes.
Jews are to live in a distinctive quarter, cut off from other sections of the city, which is only to have one entrance to be locked at sundown.

The Jews were walled up in a tiny ghetto after the above decree, only four square blocks.  They lost all their possessions and names.  They could not buy, sell, or work with anything new, only old used things.  They were forced to attend Catholic services.  It was three hundred years before they were liberated from the ghetto, only after the papacy lost it's power in the 1870's to a unified Italy.

Within two weeks of Hitler coming to power in 1933, the Vatican Foreign Minister sent him warm greetings, and treaty negotiations began between the Minister and Hitler's Vice Chancellor.  In July they signed a Concordat  and the Vatican became the first foreign power to enter into a bilateral treaty with Hitler.  This concordat involved a secret provision in which the church defended Jews who had converted to Catholicism, but indicated it would have nothing to say about Nazi assaults against other Jews. 

Edith Stein, whom you have mentioned as a Saint of the Catholic Church, was a Jewish German Philosopher.  She converted to Roman Catholicism in 1922 and became sister Benadicta of the cross.

St. Edith Stein's letter to Pope Pius XI

In 1933, Sister Edith wrote to Pope Pius XI, warning about persecution and hatred levied against the Jews. Stein implored for intervention against this inhumanity. In her letter to the Pope she wrote:
""As a child of the Jewish people who, by the grace of God, for the past eleven years has also been a child of the Catholic Church, I dare to speak to the Father of Christianity about that which oppresses millions of Germans. For weeks we have seen deeds perpetrated in Germany which mock any sense of justice and humanity, not to mention love of neighbor. For years the leaders of National Socialism have been preaching hatred of the Jews. Now that they have seized the power of government and armed their followers . . . this seed of hatred has germinated. . . . But the responsibility must fall, after all, on those who brought them to this point and it also falls on those who keep silent in the face of such happenings.

Everything that happened and continues to happen on a daily basis originates with a government that calls itself "Christian.

I dunno if you can really say there is a sleep between death and the end of all things.

Not from the dead person's point of view, anyway.

Paul did say that to be absent from the body was to be present with the Lord.  And we do know from Scripture that God is the God of the living, not of the dead.  Their are no dead, in one sense.

Maybe it's OK to refer to that state of being dead as a sleep, from our side of the line -- but I suspect that those who have gone on before see it differently from their side.

Praying to anything besides Divinity is another matter... But, then, who am I to tell people the dead can't hear them?  I figure, if the story of the Rich Man & Lazarus has any merit, the dead can think about us.  And God is the God of the living...

Maybe those who want to pray to saints think of it as asking for intercessory prayer the same way they ask Aunt Jenny and Deacon Irving to pray for them.  And that's nice.  But too much emphasis on that stuff puts so many layers between you and the cleansing fire of God.

We are more comfortable that way, you know.  Us humans, I mean.  The Israelites hated the idea of direct contact with God, and even shied away from the glow of His presence fading off Moses' face.

So, us humans, that's what we want.  We want layers between God and us.  Other people to approach the throne for us.  We know instinctively that the presence of God will burn us and refine us.  We know that we will lose much in the fire.  So, better go manufacture a revered army of priests to defend us from Yahweh... better to set up a barricade of dead saints to stand between us and the Holy...

Admire the people before us who lived for the Lord, as best they knew of Him.  Take courage and learn humility from their example.  But, please, pray your prayers to God.  He is the only one with power to help you. 

QuoteAdmire the people before us who lived for the Lord, as best they knew of Him.  Take courage and learn humility from their example.  But, please, pray your prayers to God.  He is the only one with power to help you. 

AMEN!

Heb 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 16 For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. 17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. 18 For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.

Heb 4:14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Our God gave the ultimate and infinite sacrifice, so that we could each have a personal and direct relationship with Him through His Son Jesus Christ.  Why approach Him through another when He has done everything possible to bring about the very opposite.?

Quote from: Amo
desertknight, the name of the DVD is CONSTANTINE'S SWORD.  It centers around a man by the name of James Carroll.  He is a practicing Catholic, and ex - Catholic Priest.  He takes a honest look at his churches past.

That statement is enough to make me spit up my coffee.  Mr. Carroll is a man who betrayed his vows and left the priesthood and who's reputation, known to all familiar with him, is that of a rabid anti-Catholic secular humanist.  To say his opinions are an "honest look" is like reading a book entitled "A Fair and Balanced View of Native Americans", by General Philip Sheridan.  BTW, if you think Mr. Carroll ends with his hatred of my Church, think again.  I will be happy to post his views on how the church you attend, and I need not know which, as long as it is Biblically conservative, is filled with neo-fascist, homophobic, woman haters, as Mr. Carroll is ardently leftist who believes that the only thing wrong with Christianity..is that people believe in it.  He has a consistent pro-abortion, gay rights, anti-evangelical and anti-Christian conservative, agenda, as well as his anti-Catholic one.

QuoteHe speaks of the inquisition against the Jews, and the crusades against the Muslims, which began first closer to home against the Jews along the way, wiping out entire Jewish communities and towns...While the DVD attempts to honestly address the atrocities committed by the Church toward the Jews, it does not delve into the same concerning the Churches involvement in committing the same towards other Christians that did not bow the knee to Rome.  Estimates concerning these atrocities range anywhere from about fifty to one and twenty five million.  In fact, a far greater number of Christians were killed under the direct influence of the Church of Rome, than Jews.

Well, your first clue as to how reliable your source is, is that there was never any such thing as an "Inquisition against the Jews."  No such thing existed.  All non-Christians were completely exempt from any "Inquisition" or any other Church court.  If you can find any such reference in some reliable and unbiased historical source for a "Jewish Inquisition", please post it.  Wiki knows nothing about it.  As to the Crusades, again, they may have received support from the Church, but they were not conducted by her.  You do realize, don't you, that while the Crusades were occurring Muslims had invaded and occupied Christian Europe and would continue to occupy it for hundreds of years.  The Crusades may not have always been conducted according to the proper rules of war, but they were for the most part and the Church and political leaders of Europe were entirely justified in supporting them.  The Crusades, besides the religious component, were a effort to throw off the Muslim invasions and occupation of Europe, by invading them.  Vienna was laid siege by Muslim armies as late as 1683.  Benjamin Franklin would be born less than 25 years later.  Pardon us for a spirited defense of both our civilization and the Christian faith.  Enjoy all of the benefits of Western/Christian civilization?  Do you now what they are?  Then the next time you think of it, offer a sincere prayer of thanks to those Christians who gave their lives in defending it.  God bless our Crusaders!   As to your "numbers", those are figures that are not supported by any reputable historian.  They also show a bias that you seem to have regarding, 1.  Who is a "Christian".  When the Church has been attacked by Gnostics for example, they may have considered themselves some sort of Christians, but you or I wouldn't.  2.  You have not mentioned, and funny, almost no one ever does here, the mass of atrocities that were perpetrated by Protestants against Catholics.  Tragically, both sides have plenty of blood on their hands to go around.  Some of the most revered figures of the "Reformation", Luther, Knox, were indisputably guilty of mass murder and torture.  Here is an excellent answer to your exact statements, (You can find several very knowledgeable answers to this same myth on-line.)...

"There were two major Inquisitions, the Medieval Inquisition and Spanish Inquisition. Although there are no exact numbers, scholars believe they have estimated Inquisition deaths reasonably accurately. The Spanish Inquisition, by far the bloodiest, was not carried out by the Church at all, but by the Spanish State, with some Dominicans serving as judges. Numbers have often been inflated into the millions by the popular culture have absolutely no scholarly research to validate their claims.  A broad range of scholars, many of whom were not Catholic, have carefully studied the Inquisitions. They looked at all the existing records and were able to extrapolate. In the Medieval Inquisition, Bernard Gui was one of the most notorious of the medieval inquisitors. (so much so that the sick modern pornography industry has turned him into a hero). He tried 930 people out of which 42 were executed (4.5%). Another famous Inquisitor was Jacques Fournier who tried 114 cases of which 5 were executed (4.3%). Using numbers that are known, scholars have been able to surmise that approximately 2,000 people died in the Medieval Inquisition. (1231-1400 AD)

Prof. Agostino Borromeo, stated that about 125,000 persons were investigated by the Spanish Inquisition, of which 1.8% were executed (2,250 people). Most of these deaths occurred in the first decade and a half of the Inquisition's 350 year history. In Portugal of the 13,000 tried in the 16th and early 17th century 5.7% were said to have been condemned to death. News articles did not report if Portugal's higher percentage included those sentenced to death in effigy (i.e. an image burnt instead of the actual person). For example, historian Gustav Henningsen reported that statistical tabulations of 50,000 recorded cases tried by nineteen Spanish tribunals between 1540-1700 found 775 people (1.7%) were actually executed while another 700 (1.4%) were sentenced to death in effigy ("El 'banco de datos' del Santo Oficio: Las relaciones de causas de la Inquisición española, 1550-1700", BRAH, 174, 1977). Jewish historian Steven Katz remarked on the Medieval Inquisition that "in its entirety, the thirteenth and fourteenth century Inquisition put very few people to death and sent few people to prison; 90 percent of its sentences were canonical penances" (The Holocaust in Historical Context, 1994).

During the high point of the Spanish Inquisition from 1478-1530 AD, scholars found that approximately 1,500-2,000 people were found guilty. From that point forward, there are exact records available of all "guilty" sentences which amounted to 775 executions. In the full 200 years of the Spanish Inquisition, less than 1% of the population had any contact with it, people outside of the major cities didn't even know about it. The Inquisition was not applied to Jews or Moslems, unless they were baptised as Christians.

Nevertheless, the Inquisition tortures and death were inexcusable. I echo the voice of John Paul II "Forgive us Lord, Never Again"

http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/madden200406181026.asp

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Inquisition#Death_tolls

QuoteWithin two weeks of Hitler coming to power in 1933, the Vatican Foreign Minister sent him warm greetings, and treaty negotiations began between the Minister and Hitler's Vice Chancellor.  In July they signed a Concordat  and the Vatican became the first foreign power to enter into a bilateral treaty with Hitler.  This concordat involved a secret provision in which the church defended Jews who had converted to Catholicism, but indicated it would have nothing to say about Nazi assaults against other Jews.

That is a real interesting read on the history.  The Church then went on and issued writs of Baptism by the 100,000 of thousands.  The History Channel just did a piece on the role of the Church in saving untold 100,000 of thousands of Jews from all over Europe, but of course, to the anti-Catholic, no such history will be read by them.

"As Rabbi Dalin shows, the Catholic Church, under direct orders from Pius XII, went to great lengths to shelter and protect Jews throughout Europe. The Myth of Hitler's Pope is filled with examples of heroism throughout the European continent, and case after case of rescuers and rescued alike honoring Pope Pius XII for his defiance of the Nazis. Particularly moving is the book's discussion of Pius' efforts on behalf of Slovakian Jews; Rabbi Dalin contends that 20,000 Jews escaped deportation as a direct result of the Pope's intervention.

Rabbi Dalin devotes considerable attention to the Nazi roundup of Jews in Rome, which has been the source of much controversy in the Pius XII debate. Michael Tagliacozzo, the leading authority on that terrible event (and himself a survivor of the roundup), says Pius XII "was the only one who intervened to impede the deportation of Jews on October 16, 1943, and he did very much to hide and save thousands of us." Archival evidence, he says, proves that it was the protests and actions of Pius XII that were responsible for rescuing 80 percent of Rome's Jews. At the Pope's behest, Jews were hidden all over the city, in churches, monasteries, and wherever room for them could be found."

http://www.lewrockwell.com/woods/woods48.html  

QuoteSt. Edith Stein's letter to Pope Pius XI
Stein's letter received no answer. In 1942, she was arrested at a Netherlands convent. Later that year, she was murdered at Auschwitz. The Church did not release her letter publicly until 2003.

So?  That one nun wrote a letter to the Pope during the middle of a global war and received no answer proves only that the Holy See was undoubtedly overwhelmed with one crisis after another during this time.  You seem to be implying that something sinister was afoot.  I know of no such history.  If you do, please post evidence of it.