Agnes Conxha Bojaxhiu, better known as Mother Teresa of Calcutta, was born on the day August 26, 1910, in the city of scopy (Skopje), in the old Yugoslavia. After that country was dismembered, in 1991, the municipality became the capital of Northern Macedonia.
Although she was born in Skopje, on some occasions the nun said her origins were Albanian, as her parents, Nikola and Dranafile Bojaxhiu, were born in Albania. Youngest of three siblings, Teresa lost her father at the age of eight.
According to studies, at age 12, during a visit to a sanctuary, Teresa felt a called to become a nun and serve God. Throughout her adolescence, she matured into the idea. Meanwhile, Agnes sang in the church choir and helped her mother organize events and distribute food to the poor.
In her late teens, the future Mother Teresa decided to follow her vocation and, at age 18, she left her home to join the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, better known as the convent of the Sisters of Loreto, in Dublin, in Dublin. Ireland.
The season in the European country was a preparation for the religious to start working in missions in the India, which was already her wish. At this time, Agnes was called Sister Mary Teresa.
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Life in Calcutta
Mother Teresa arrived in India on January 6, 1929. In 1931 she was sent to the Convent ofLoreto located in the Entally district in the city of Calcutta. There, she began teaching history and geography to girls at Saint Mary's school.
In 1935, Teresa, aged 25, received a exemptionSpecial to teach at a school outside the convent, in Santa Teresa. On May 24, 1937, the nun officially became "Mother Teresa". In 1944, she assumed the position of director of the school, returning to live within the walls of the convent.
During a train journey from Calcutta to Darjeeling, a city in the Indian state of West Bengal, on September 10, 1946, Mother Teresa received a "call within a call." According to the nun, on that day, also known as “the day of inspiration”, she received a message that she had to leave the convent and help the poor and the sick, even living among them.
It took Mother Teresa about two years to get permission to begin the mission with the poor, as her superiors thought it dangerous for her to move to the outskirts of Calcutta. Studies show that, for her, it was a long and frustrating process.
As there were many sick people in the Indian slums, Mother Teresa thought that, before living in the place, it would be interesting spend time with nurses to have some knowledge of the area of Medicine. So she spent a season in Patna, India, with the Sisters of the Medical Mission.
On April 12, 1948, Mother Teresa received permission from the Pope Pius XII to start his mission with the poor. On August 16, 1948, at the age of 38, the nun left the convent.
typical dress of the Indian woman.²
On August 17, Mother Teresa wore, for the first time, a sari – typical Indian woman's clothing – white cotton with blue stripes along the edge. In the future, the garment would be used as a uniform by the missionary nuns of charity.
Studies report that Mother Teresa began her work with the poor in Calcutta, teaching kidssmall. As she didn't have a board, she used a stick to draw the letters on the sidewalks herself.
Later, the nun found a hut and turned it into a room so that she could teach. Taking advantage of the fact that she was in the region, she visited families who lived nearby and offered medical help It's a smile. As she said, "peace begins with a smile."
Upon learning about Mother Teresa's work, other people were willing to help the poor and made donations. So, little by little, she formed her own order of nuns.
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Missionaries of Charity
The Missionaries of Charity were founded in October 7, 1950. At the time, the society consisted of only 12 members. In the 1950s, India was going through a difficult time after gaining its independence from England.
THE indian population lived in extreme poverty is on bad hygiene conditions, which favored the contamination of diseases. Also, the scaste system contributed to people starving and living on the streets.
On August 22, 1952, Mother Teresa opened in Calcutta a home for people on the brink of death, called nimalHriday ("Place of the Immaculate Heart"). Historians indicate that, daily, the nuns walked the streets and took the dying to the support house. They were fed, washed, clothed and thus could die with dignity.
About ten years after the creation of the Missionaries of Charity, in the 1960s, the religious were allowed to take their work to other Indian cities such as Delhi, Ranchi and Jhansi. In the mid-1960s, the nun created a colony to help people with the disease leprosy, known at the time as leprosy. On site, called Shanti Nagar ("The Place of Peace"), the sick lived and worked.
In 1955 Mother Teresa opened the first home to help children.¹
In 1955 Mother Teresa created the first house to help kids. in space, called ShishuBavan, the boys, most orphans, were housed, cared for and fed. The aim of the house was for the boys to be adopted, but those who were not chosen learned some commercial skill to work in the future.
In February 1965, the nun obtained the Pope Paul VI the right to open a missionary house in Venezuela. In the following years, new charities spread around the world.
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health and death
Even with old age and poor health due to problemscardiacand pulmonary, in the 80's and 90's, the nun followed her journey of helping the poor and the sick around the world. Mother Teresa of Calcutta he diedon september 5th of 1997, at the age of 87, by insufficiencycardiac arrest.
Thousands of people took to the streets to attend the wake. The event was seen by millions of people around the world on television. O funeral of the religious was organized by governmentIndian. her body was buried in the Motherhouse of the Missionaries of Charity, inCalcutta. Among the legacy of Mother Teresa of Calcutta are: 4,000 Missionary Sisters, in 610 centers in 123 countries.
Recognition and awards
From the 1960s onwards, the work of Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity began to be internationally recognized. The nun even began to have celebrity status, becoming one of the biggest names in the Catholicism.
From 1980 to 1990, Mother Teresa opened missionary houses in almost every communist country, including the former Soviet Union, Albania and Cuba. During this same period, she created in the United States (USA) and Ethiopia, for example, spaces called “houses of love” to help people with Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).
During her trajectory, Mother Teresa has wonsomeawards, which she accepted, but made a point of saying that they were the work of God and that she was just the tool used to facilitate that.
Check out some of the awards of Mother Teresa:
August 11, 1962 - Padma Shri Award, from the President of India
January 6, 1971 - Pope John XXIII Peace Prize
October 16, 1971 - Kennedy International Award
April 25, 1973 - Templeton Award for helping children in Calcutta
1978 - Balzan Foundation Award for Humanity and Peace among Peoples
December 10, 1979 - Nobel Prize of Peace
March 22, 1980 - Bharat Ratna Award
June 27, 1980 – Medal of Merit Award from the City of Skopje
October 24, 1983 – Queen Elizabeth II Order of Merit Award
1985 – Freedom Presidential Medal Award by US President Ronald Reagan
1996 - Honorary US Citizen
Curiosity: when Mother Teresa received the Nobel Peace Prize, she was asked this question: “What can we do to promote world peace?”. The nun replied: "Go back to your homes and love your families".
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Beatification and Canonization
Two years after Mother Teresa's death, the Pope John Paul II began her beatification and canonization phase. On December 20, 2002, he approved the decrees on the heroic virtues and miracles of the nun.
Mother Teresa went beatified in October 19, 2003 by Pope John Paul II. The fact made her one of the most beloved personalities of Catholic church.
On December 17, 2015, Pope Francis approved the secondmiracle necessary for Mother Teresa to be declared a saint. he recognized the cure of a brazilian who was in a coma on December 9, 2008, just minutes before undergoing emergency brain surgery.
In day September 4, 2016, the day before his death anniversary (September 5, 1997), the Pope Francis declares Mother Teresa "holy".
memorial house
Personalitymorefamousinscopy and only Nobel Prize winner in Macedonia, Mother Teresa has won on January 30, 2009 a House Memorial. The space was built where the Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church was. localofbaptismgivesreligious, which was performed the day after her birth.
Admission to Mother Teresa's Memorial House is free. Information about days and times can be obtained from the site.
Phrases of Mother Teresa of Calcutta
Some phrases by Mother Teresa of Calcutta became famous and used to inspire people. Check out a selection of ten known:
“It's easy to love those who are far away. But it's not always easy to love those who live beside us.”
“If you judge people, you don't have time to love them.”
“Often, a single word, a look, a quick gesture, and darkness fills the heart of the person we love.”
“Be faithful in the little things because that's where your strength resides.”
“Life is an adventure. Drive it. Life is happiness. Deserve it. Life is life. Defend it.”
“Lack of love is the greatest of all poverties.”
“Love is doing little things with great love.”
“Don't wait for the leaders. Do it yourself, person to person.”
“Kind words may be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.”
“It's not how much we do, but how much love we put into doing. It's not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving.”
Reviews
Even though she is a figure loved and admired by Catholics and supporters, Mother Teresa of Calcutta received some criticism to their work throughout their trajectory of helping the poor.
Some people said that the houses created by her, where the sick and dying lived, nothey weresanitized correctly. There were also opposing opinions about the way they were cared for, since youcaregivers were not in the medical field.
More criticism indicates that there were people who believed that Mother Teresa was more interested in helping the dying turn to God or else to convert them to Christianity. Finally, other criticisms arose when the nun spoke openly against the abortion it's the birth control.
Image credits:
¹Credit: NI Memorial house of Mother Teresa
²Credit: Kingkongphoto & www.celebrity-photos.com
By Silvia Tancredi
Journalist
Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/biografia/madre-teresa-calcuta.htm