Final answer:
Nelly Sachs was of Jewish heritage and her work deeply reflects Jewish themes, particularly influenced by the Holocaust. Although direct evidence of her religious practices is unclear, her Jewish identity profoundly shaped her poetry and life.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question seeks to determine whether Nelly Sachs, a German-born Jewish poet, was a practicing Jew. The background provided discusses Jews living under Nazi rule leading up to and during World War II. However, to directly answer the question, Nelly Sachs herself was of Jewish heritage and her life and writing were profoundly affected by the rise of the Nazis and the Holocaust. While there is no clear record of Sachs' religious practices, her works reflect deep engagement with Jewish themes, and she is often commemorated within Jewish cultural history. It was this very Jewish heritage that shaped her life, as she was forced to flee Germany with her mother to escape the Holocaust, eventually settling in Sweden.
It is important to note that Nelly Sachs' work often dealt with the suffering of Jews during the Holocaust, and it is likely that her Jewish identity was an integral part of her life and poetry.