In the European Summer of 1992, Father Gerard Dowling, Melbourne priest/social worker, 3UZ talk-back counsellor, and author, set out with thirteen other Australians in the steps of six people who were martyred for their Faith during this century. Drawn from five different nationalities, they all died because their commitment ran counter to one or other of the totalitarian regimes that have blighted recent human history.
Prompted by the fact that two of these martyrs, Blessed Edith Stein and Blessed Titus Brandsma, died exactly fifty years ago, in 1942, when the Nazis were at the height of their power, Father Dowling, in conjunction with Philomena Cornu and Staff, planned and carried out a pilgrimage through eastern and central Europe between 17th July and 15th August.
He and his group visited places of birth, scenes of life experiences and sites of execution, including the dreaded concentration camps at Dachau and Auschwitz, where these six lived and died for their uncompromising love for Jesus and their dedication to proclaim him. "In Their Footsteps" comprises the diary and letters that he wrote each day of the journey. He shares them with you in the hope that his experiences and those of his companions might be of interest to you, and might challenge" you to give of your best in your own efforts to follow Jesus and to proclaim his Good News to these you meet.