Welcome to INSPIRING LIVES, a series on lives of the Saints in the catholic
church from around the world. Saints are holy people who lived ordinary lives in
extraordinary ways. They are examples of great holiness and virtue, and they invite
us to follow their paths to holiness. Their unique stories inspire us to be rooted
in our faith. God calls each one of us to be a saint. Every month, hundreds of
thousands of people converge on the headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity in
the Indian city of Kolkata, to pay homage to its founder, Mother Teresa of Calcutta.
People from all walks of life streams into her tomb in the mother house to pray to
her. Mother Teresa left a testament of unshakable faith, invincible hope and
extraordinary charity. Her response to Jesus’ plea, “Come be My light,” made her a
Missionary of Charity, a “mother to the poor,” a symbol of compassion to the world,
and a living witness to the thirsting love of God. Pope John Paul II beatified
her on 19th October 2003, just six years after her death. During the
last two weeks we listened to the Early years of Mother Teresa, and her new found
vocation to serve the poorest of the poor, what she called a ‘call within a call’.
Let us now listen to the legacy of Mother Teresa which inspires millions even today.xxxOn
7 October 1950 the new congregation of the Missionaries of Charity was officially
established in the Archdiocese of Calcutta. Here is what Mother Teresa said about
the starting of the Missionaries of Charity. voice of Mother Teresa By
the early 1960s, Mother Teresa began to send her Sisters to other parts of India.
The Decree of Praise granted to the Congregation by Pope Paul VI in February 1965
encouraged her to open a house in Venezuela. It was soon followed by foundations in
Rome and Tanzania and, eventually, on every continent. Starting in 1980 and continuing
through the 1990s, Mother Teresa opened houses in almost all of the communist countries,
including the former Soviet Union, Albania and Cuba. In order to respond better
to both the physical and spiritual needs of the poor, Mother Teresa founded the Missionaries
of Charity Brothers in 1963, in 1976 the contemplative branch of the Sisters, in 1979
the Contemplative Brothers, and in 1984 the Missionaries of Charity Fathers. Yet her
inspiration was not limited to those with religious vocations. She formed the Co-Workers
of Mother Teresa and the Sick and Suffering Co-Workers, people of many faiths and
nationalities with whom she shared her spirit of prayer, simplicity, sacrifice and
her apostolate of humble works of love. This spirit later inspired the Lay Missionaries
of Charity. In answer to the requests of many priests, in 1981 Mother Teresa also
began the Corpus Christi Movement for Priests as a “little way of holiness” for those
who desire to share in her charism and spirit. xxx During the years
of rapid growth of the Missionaries of Charity, the world began to turn its eyes towards
Mother Teresa and the work she had started. Numerous awards, beginning with the Indian
Padmashri Award in 1962 and notably the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979, honoured her work,
while an increasingly interested media began to follow her activities. She received
prizes and brought focus on the poor around the world. Mother Teresa received
the Nobel peace prize in the name of the poor. In her acceptance speech she said: voice
of Mother Teresa The whole of Mother Teresa’s life and labour bore witness
to the joy of loving, the greatness and dignity of every human person, the value of
little things done faithfully and with love, and the surpassing worth of friendship
with God. Mother shared her own experience of receiving from the poor much more than
what she has given to them. voice of Mother TeresaListen to the
‘On Demand and podcast’ for the complete programmeBy P.J. Joseph SJ