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Congressional Gold Medal.com |
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Congressional Gold Medal Recipient
Mother Teresa of Calcutta
1910 - 1997
Pope John Paul II Vatican Beatification of Mother Teresa of Calcutta October 19, 2003
Cause of Canonization of Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa: She wanted us all to be saints
October 19, 2003
Pope John Paul II greets Mother Teresa at the start of a private audience at the Vatican in this May 20, 1997 photo.
(AP Photo/Arturo Mari,HO) Vatican calling
Blessed Mother Teresa smiles as she arrives in Rome to meet Pope John Paul II on May 16, 1997. (Reuters photo) She was probably the most admired women of all time, received many rewards and prices for her outstanding work and she used her reputation traveling all over the world raising money and support for her causes. As Mother Teresa is beatified this Sunday in Rome, she will be remembered for her work with the needy -- in particular, the poorest and frailest people of Calcutta. A mere six years after her death, Mother Teresa will be recognized in a monumental beatification ceremony -- the final step towards sainthood. Is this something the humble and tireless worker would have wanted? Sister Nirmala, her successor in running the Missionaries of Charity, said: "Mother wanted to become a saint and mother wanted everybody to become a saint. And she always said that holiness is not a luxury of few but it is a right, simple duty of every person. She wanted to become a saint but she never thought of beatification or canonization. This is being given to her over and above." Her life and work Mother Teresa was born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, in Macedonia, on August 26, 1910. She spent much of her youth following in the footsteps of her mother, a devout Catholic woman. In 1929, at the Loreto Convent in Ireland, she received the name of Mary Teresa, (after her patroness, St. Thrse of Lisieux). She then moved to Calcutta, India, where she taught at a school for girls. She later became known as Mother Teresa after taking her Final Profession of Vows, becoming, as she said, the "spouse of Jesus" for "all eternity." In September of 1946 she accepted "the call within a call" to create the Missionaries of Charity family. The aim of the charity is to help the poor and to serve the will of God. The years that followed saw the worldwide expansion of the Missionaries of Charity. Today the order has about 700 centres in 123 countries around the world. Although in later years Mother Teresa was occasionally criticized for her fundraising and business operations, she remained undeterred in her mission. Mother Teresa spent 50 years serving the homeless, dying and orphans of India. For her efforts she received 124 awards including a Nobel Peace Prize, the Order of Merit from Queen Elizabeth, and the
United States Congressional Gold Medal. Some of the ill that continue to be picked up off of the streets by Mother Teresa's sisters live in the Nirmal Hriday (Pure Heart) home for the dying. Many of them keep pictures of Mother Teresa above their beds for comfort and hope. Pilgrims from India and around the world routinely visit her tomb in St. Thomas's Church next to the Loreto convent. There they pray and honour her memory. Many residents of Calcutta feel thankful for Mother Teresa and her devotion to the betterment of their lives. They are pleased she will be recognized for her heroic virtue. "She belonged to the whole world, each and every people. From those begging for food to millionaires, she was for all. I am proud, really proud as a Calcuttan of Mother Teresa," Ashim Banerjee, a Hindu resident of Calcutta, told Associated Press. Faith and doubt Mother Teresa's life has been scrutinized by church officials during the process leading up to beatification. Their reports indicate that she tried to fight off "attacks by the Devil." At one point her Archbishop demanded she be exorcised. Intimate letters written by Mother Teresa from the 1950s and 1960s to her spiritual leaders revealed her inner turmoil, as she sometimes questioned her relationship with God. She felt abandoned by God since the early beginnings of her work with the ill and homeless. At one point she wrote in her journal, "I feel just that terrible pain of loss, of God not wanting me, of God not being God, of God not really existing." Despite the scrutiny and controversy leading up to Sunday's beatification, her loyal followers in Calcutta believe she deserves to be honoured. To those in Calcutta who see the fruits of her work everyday, she is already their "Saint of Gutters," and her legacy of charity continues. "It is still the same because it is not mother's personality that did it, but it happened because of mother's trust in God and God's work and she knew if she did what he wanted her to do, he would provide. And she is not worried even after her death. She knew since it is his work, it will continue and it is continuing," Sister Nirmala, successor to Mother Teresa, said. Beatification Pope John Paul II has highly regarded Mother Teresa and her work. In an address to the Bishops of India earlier this year he said, "Her life of joyful sacrifice and unconditional love for the poor stirs in us a desire to do likewise. For to love the least among us without expecting anything in return is truly to love Christ." Beatification cannot begin unless the candidate has been dead for at least five years. But less than two years after Mother Teresa's death, the Pope waived this requirement and considered her to hold the title of "Blessed Teresa of Calcutta" and permitted the opening of her Cause of Canonization. If the Pope finds that the candidate lived a valiant Christian life and approves the miracle attributed to the person's intercession, the beatification ceremony can occur. The Pope believes that an Indian woman's stomach cancer was cured in 1999 by a miracle because of her prayers to Mother Teresa. But skeptics and the doctor who examined her believe the woman was cured by medicine not a miracle. Once beatified and as "Blessed Teresa of Calcutta," the Church officially recognizes the power of the Holy Spirit within her. And later she can become "Saint Teresa of Calcutta." By Nicole Singh, CTV.ca News Staff The last journey
Wrapped in Tricolour, Blessed Mother Teresa's body is carried by Indian Army personnel from
St Thomas Church in Kolkata, on 12 September, 1997. To mark her beatification, Vatican has issued stamps of Blessed Mother Teresa. A display of her blood and a musical and cartoon celebrating her life will also be held in the Vatican on October 19.
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