Welcome to our special program on the Year of Faith, THE FAITHFUL WITNESS, a series
on the lives of Inspiring People and Witnesses of faith in the Catholic Church from
around the world. These are people who lived their ordinary lives in extraordinary
ways. They are examples of great fortitude and virtue. Their unique stories inspire
us to be rooted in our faith. God calls each one of us today to inspire our brothers
and sisters and to be witnesses of our faith. Listen: The
Faithful Witness of this week is Blessed Teresa of Kolkata. In this month of September,
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. Insert: 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: Insert:
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. Insert: voice of Mother Teresa xxx You
have been listening to THE FAITHFUL WITNESS our weekly series based on the lives
of Inspiring People and Witnesses of faith in the Catholic Church from around the
world. Our Faithful Witness today has been Blessed Teresa of Kolkata. If you have
a faith experience to share with us, let us know. Visit our website radiovaticana.va.
This program is brought to you by Vatican Radio’s English Service for South Asia.
By P.J. Joseph SJ FRIDAY, 20 September 2013