Memories of a Devil: My Life as a Jesuit in Dachau

The year is 1939. The German army marches into Poland to a frosty reception. The air is thick with the threat of violence. Rumor and conspiracy lurk behind every corner. In this environment, a recently ordained Jesuit priest receives a message: “You are a target. Get out while you still can.” Father Chester Fabisiak did not believe that warning, and it almost cost him his life. “Memories of a Devil: My Life as a Jesuit in Dachau” is Father Chester’s recounting of what happened next; a dramatic, pulse-pounding, cautionary tale of the price of disbelief in evil. As readers follow Father Fabisiak’s journey through the holocaust from occupied Poland to the notorious Dachau concentration camp near Munich, they are shown the depths of humanity’s depravity – and of its grace. Fabisiak’s message is clear: humanity’s will is constantly threatened by evil and only resistance can overcome it. Father Fabisiak’s memoir is a treasure trove of historical facts about the holocaust and an important philosophical testament about humanity’s duty to challenge evil wherever it is found. While Fabisiak survived his ordeal in Dachau, he saw firsthand the cruelty and carnage of the holocaust. His gratitude for being liberated by U.S. soldiers before he suffered that same fate propelled him to live a life of servitude as a Jesuit priest in America. After his death in 1996, his niece Danuta made sure his manuscript was converted into a memoir, so his teachings could be shared with future generations.“Memories of a Devil” has been hailed among holocaust books as being “infinitely inspiriting” and “a brave but disturbing act of bearing historical witness” by Kirkus Reviews. It is available in paperback and on Kindle.