Who hasn't met—or has a relative or friend—who has spent a few weeks or a year in India with the Missionaries of Charity, lending a hand with the demanding work carried out by the spiritual daughters of Mother Teresa of Calcutta?
“Today the Catholic Church celebrates the feast day of Saint Teresa of Calcutta, a nun of Albanian origin who, through her ”yes’ to the Lord’s plans, was able to bring God’s love to the poorest of the poor in more than 130 countries—that is, to every corner of the globe. What is impossible for man is possible for God,”, wrote Last year on Omnes, on this very date, Fernando Gutiérrez, a lay missionary and founder of Mary’s Children Mission.
And she added: “During the fifteen months I lived in Calcutta, there was one thing that really caught my attention. The place where this great work of charity—which God brought about through Mother Teresa—began in the humble neighborhood of Motijheel remains today a predominantly Muslim area where there is still, moreover, a great deal of poverty, both material and spiritual. And I would often think to myself as I walked through its streets: If I had grown up in Kolkata with a saint so close to me, I would have converted long ago, and my faith would already be nearly the size of that mustard seed.”.
Mother Teresa's charisma: dedication with heart and soul
The Missionaries of Charity have posted on their website charisma from its founder, which they have also summarized in a somewhat colloquial way as follows:
“The goal of the Missionaries of Charity is to devote themselves body and soul, and exclusively, to the material and spiritual well-being of all the destitute, the defenseless poor, abandoned children, the helpless sick, lepers, and beggars in need; in short, all those unfortunate people who, whether through their own negligence or a lack of public concern, are forced to wander through life without help or hope.”.
Some of his messages
Here are some of the saint’s messages—necessarily abridged—that may be suitable for meditation before the Lord on this day. In summary, the saint said this:
“The fruit of silence is prayer. The fruit of prayer is faith. The fruit of faith is love. The fruit of love is service. The fruit of service is peace.”.
“Religion is a work of love; it should not divide us or destroy peace and unity.”
1.- Religion should be an act of love. Therefore, it should not divide us or destroy peace and unity. Let us use religion to help us become one heart filled with love in the heart of God. By loving one another, we will fulfill the purpose of our creation: to love and be loved.”.
2.- “We are all capable of doing good and evil. We are not born evil. We all have something good inside us. Some hide it, others neglect it, but it is there. God created us to love and be loved… we are all His children, whether we are Hindus, Muslims, or Christians.”.
“We are children of God, created to love and be loved”
3.- “We are all children of God, and we have been created for great things: to love and be loved. God loves each of us with an eternal love; we are precious to Him. Therefore, nothing should separate us. Religion is a gift from God, and its purpose is to help us become one heart filled with love. God is our Father, and we are all His children; we are all brothers and sisters. Let there be no distinction based on race, color, or creed.”.
4.- “We have been sent to unite all people under one Spirit, regardless of their nation, race, or culture. Under what spirit? The spirit of love! We have been sent to unite everyone under the spirit of love: to unite all people of different religions—Hindus, Muslims, and people of different castes, colors, or cultures. We have been called to bear witness to the reality of the brotherhood of all peoples, in which the fulfillment of the law is love.».
“Let’s not use religion to divide us”
5.- Let’s not use religion to divide us. In all the holy books, we see how God calls us to love. Everything we do for one another, we do for Him, because God is our Father. Religion is a work of love, not something meant to destroy peace and unity.
6.- “Some call Him Ishwar, others Allah, and still others simply God, but we must all recognize that He created us for great things: to love and be loved. What matters is that we love. We cannot love without prayer, so, whatever our religion may be, we must pray…”
“Our work is not aimed at conversion, but at bringing people closer to God through our acts of charity.”
7.- “Our work in India and elsewhere is not aimed at conversion, but at bringing people—especially those most in need—closer to God through our charitable works.” “If, when we come face to face with God, we accept Him into our lives, then we are being converted.” “The best conversion is helping people love one another. When they love one another, they draw closer to God.” And how do we begin? By praying together. Let us pray to bring prayer into our families.
“A smile is the beginning of love”
8.- “Let’s always greet each other with a smile… because a smile is the beginning of love.” Be kind and merciful. May no one leave your presence without feeling better and happier. Be a living expression of God’s goodness: goodness on your face, goodness in your eyes, goodness in your smile, goodness in your warm greeting.
9.- “Sisters and brothers around the world, in every country, we strive to provide the same love and care, regardless of religion, caste, or skin color. We try to serve God’s children, our brothers and sisters. And I believe this has been another beautiful gift from God—giving us the opportunity to serve Him.”.
A pivotal anecdote: the first woman to collect
Saint Teresa of Calcutta recounts that “I personally picked up the first woman I saw from the street. She had been half-eaten by rats and ants. I took her to the hospital, but they couldn’t do anything for her. They only admitted her because I refused to leave until they took her in.”.
”From there, I went to city hall and asked them for a place where I could take these people, because that very same day I had found other people dying on the streets.".
“The city council’s health official took me to the temple—the Temple of Kali—and showed me the Darmashalah, where people used to rest after praying to the goddess Kali. It was an empty building; he asked me if I would accept it. I was very happy to have that place for many reasons, but above all because I knew it was a center of worship and devotion for Hindus.”.
”Within twenty-four hours, we had already brought our patients there and began working at the shelter for the destitute sick and dying. Since then, we have taken in more than twenty-three thousand people from the streets of Calcutta, of whom approximately fifty percent have died.".
Acquittal in an Indian court
This year, the congregation has experienced great joy. In a landmark ruling in a ruling that brings an eight-year legal battle to a close, the Civil Court of Ranchi (the capital of Jharkhand) has acquitted a nun from the Missionaries of Charity, who was imprisoned for more than a year, and two other people accused of child trafficking in 2018. Sister Mary Prema, who was the superior at the time, denounced the “widespread myths, distorted information, and fake news” that were published.
Monsignor Theodore Mascarenhas, former secretary general of the Catholic Bishops“ Conference of India (CBCI) and bishop of Daltonganj, described the ruling as ”a triumph of truth, perseverance, and faith.”.
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