Mother Teresa
of Calcutta
(1910 - 1997)

living witness of God's love in our century

 

  
"Whatsoever you  
do to the least of   
my brothers, that  
you do unto me"
The old nun's secret !
  

  

"Only love, 
will change 
the other person" 
 
 
"Where there is 
great love, there 
are always great miracles." 
 
 "We know that whatever we do is simply a droplet in the ocean. But if that droplet were missing, the ocean would be lacking."  
  

  

Albanian-born Roman Catholic nun, founder of the Missionaries of Charity, and Nobel laureate. Born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, she entered the Order of the Sisters of Our Lady of Loreto in Ireland at the age of 18. She trained in Dublin and  Darjeeling, India, before taking her religious vows in 1937. While serving as principal of a Roman Catholic high school in Calcutta, she was moved by the presence of the sick and dying on the city's streets. In 1948 she was granted permission to leave her post at the convent and begin a ministry among the sick. 

In 1950 Mother Teresa and her associates were approved within the archdiocese of Calcutta as the Missionaries of Charity. Later the order was recognized as a pontifical congregation under the jurisdiction of Rome. Members of the congregation take four vows on acceptance by the religious community. In addition to the 3 basic vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, a fourth vow is required pledging service to the poor, whom Mother Teresa described as the embodiment of Christ. 

In 1952 Mother Teresa opened the Nirmal Hriday (Pure Heart) Home for Dying Destitutes in Calcutta. Subsequently she extended her work worldwide. In recognition of her efforts she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. She was forced to scale down her activities in 1990 because of declining health. 

"I see God in every
human being.
When I wash 
the leper's wounds,
I feel I am nursing
the Lord himself. Is it not
a beautiful experience?"


Her deep faith and compassion led her to work for the poorest of the poor.
  
 
  

A famous actress was passing through New Delhi and wanted to see the old nun out of curiousity.  She found her in the street medicating an 80-year old man suffering from leprosy.  Disgusted, the actress told Mother Teresa, "I wouldn't do that for 1 million dollars a day". 

The old nun replied: "Not even me, I would not do it for 1 million dollars a day, I do it for the love of Christ". 
 

  
 
  
The Nobel Prize laureate for peace left her 
physical body on September 5, 1997. 
Mother Teresa's body flanked by her nuns
Mother Teresa receiving the Nobel Prize in 1979
Nobel Prize 1979
  
 
  
The interviewer of a local TV station told the old nun: "You spend your life with the outcasts, the filthy. Aren't you disgusted?"  
The woman smiled and replied: 

"My secret is simple, I pray"
"The poor give us much more than we give them. They’re such strong people, living day to day with no food. And they never curse, never complain. We don’t have to give them pity or sympathy. We have so much to learn from them." 
 
 
 
(minn http://www.oocities.org/Athens/Academy/7786/mteresa.htm)