Mother Teresa

Her Mother was her role model because her mother became a nun after Mother Teresa's father passed away.

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Modern people, and most people who call themselves Christians, think that going to Church on Sunday, saying some things, and being nice to people is what it is all about. They are completely missing the mark. Those kind of things are just the tip of the iceberg. Mother Teresa helped others by loving God above all things, putting Him first in her life, and doing His Will no matter how painful it was for her, and it was very painful.

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Mother spent most of her life in a dark night with no real feeling or personal knowledge of God. This is very common with the founders of religious orders, they are strong enough in their faith to make their way through life totally depend on Faith, Hope, and Charity: the three cardinal virtues bestowed on us in Baptism. She sacrificed herself completely for God, and was called a saint and a prophet for it.

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Mother Theresa helped others the way we are all called to help others, by getting up in the morning, and taking some time to give to God first. She spend an hour in Adoration before the Blessed Sacrament, went to Holy Mass, received Our Blessed Lord in the Eucharist, and went to confession frequently, and regularly. And, then, when she had done these things, she went out and lived her faith by seeing her God in every individual in front of her, especially the poor, the sick, the aged, and the abandoned. She served God by serving Him in them - which is nothing more nor less than she lived the Gospel with every breath in her body.

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Mother Teresa showed compassion for those who were less fortunate than she was. She gave them food, lifted their spirits, and helped them survive. She is and was considered a hero to many people. After her death, she was put on the short list for canonization, and in 2012 I believe she has already had one miracle attributed to her, and has been beatified. Of course, she loved children.

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The Church often says that the only real way to help people, the way to become a good spouse, parent, teacher, or whatever, is to become a saint. Mother Teresa believed and lived this. She helped the poor by becoming a saint.

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The various ways that she accomplished that was that she always did the Will of God even when she didn't feel as if God was there or approving of her. She cared for the poorest of the poor.

She established hospices and hospitals for the sick and dying, she started in Calcutta as she started a new religious order, the Missionaries of Charity, which spread throughout the world. Today the Order still cares for the poorest of the poor, the sick and dying. Mother Theresa and her nuns went out into the streets and picked up the dying homeless to bring them to her hospice. They clean them, feed them, pray with them, and serve them so that they spend their last days or hours in dignity. She and her Order treat those dying of AIDS, the lepers, the untouchables, those whom nobody else will love and care for. She saw Our Blessed Lord in everyone of them, in disguise, pleading for our help and love. She treated them as she would treat Our Blessed Lord, Himself.

The international Red Cross movement began by a chance occurrence. In 1859, a Swiss businessman, Henry Dunant, traveled to northern Italy to obtain a business document. In Italy, he happened to witness a one-day battle between Austrian and French armies outside the town of Solferino. He was horrified to see that 9,000 wounded soldiers were left without any medical attention, and he organized local villagers to help care for the wounded.

After returning home to Geneva, Dunant could not forget what he had seen, and, in 1862, he published his memoir of the event titled A Memory of Solferino. The book was a huge success and influenced a Geneva charity society to join with Dunant to form International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which met for the first time in February 1863.

Later that year, the committee held an international conference to bring together governmental and private aid organizations. (This combination of public and private support became an essential element of the Red Cross.) The 1863 conference led to ten resolutions that outlined the goals and organization of the ICRC.

The ICRC wanted every country to form its own Red Cross committee to address their needs and to work in concert through the ICRC. The first Red Cross societies were created in Belgium, Prussia, Denmark, France, Italy, Spain, and other European countries in 1863. The American Red Cross was founded by famous Civil War nurse Clara Barton in 1881. Almost every nation in the world has formed its own Red Cross or Red Crescent (as it is called in Muslim countries) organization.

Each national group supports the fundamental principles of the movement, which are humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality.

Many of these principles are at the heart of the Geneva Convention of 1864 (also known as the Treaty of Geneva), created by the ICRC. This document mandated that hospitals and medical personnel be treated as neutral parties during war and that wounded must be cared for, regardless of nationality. The Geneva Convention was the start of international humanitarian law and has had enormous influence around the world.

She fully gave her life to God, following Jesus' example of sacrificial love.

Philippians 2:3-8 (NIV)

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant,

being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death -

even death on a cross!"

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Mother Teresa (26 August 1910 - 5 September 1997), born Agnesë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu (pronounced [aɡˈnɛs ˈɡɔndʒe bɔjaˈdʒiu]), was an Indian Catholic nun of Albanian origin who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata, India in 1950. For over 45 years she ministered to the poor, sick, orphaned, and dying, while guiding the Missionaries of Charity's expansion, first throughout India and then in other countries. Following her death she was beatified by Pope John Paul II and given the title Blessed Teresa of Calcutta.

By the 1970s, she was internationally famed as a humanitarian and advocate for the poor and helpless, due in part to a documentary and book Something Beautiful for God by Malcolm Muggeridge. She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 and India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, in 1980 for her humanitarian work. Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity continued to expand, and at the time of her death it was operating 610 missions in 123 countries, including hospices and homes for people with HIV/AIDS, leprosy and tuberculosis, soup kitchens, children's and family counselling programs, orphanages, and schools.
She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979.
In 1979.

Judging by Mother Teresa's work among the poor of Calcutta, the passage that comes to mind is the teaching of Jesus in Mathew's gospel, Chapter 25: 31-46:

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

"The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'

"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'

"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'

"He will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'

"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

Mother Teresa was a Roman Catholic and followed all the beliefs and teachings of her Church.

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• She was a Christian and a catholic nun. She has written at least one book but a number of books have been written about her. She has been known for her work with the poor and the sick. She placed her entire life and destiny in the hands of God. Just after the death of her father, she became fascinated with the lives of the saints. She was a remarkable woman. She was very devoted to Jesus in the blessed sacrament of the Church. She would get up every morning before light and spend a couple of hours with Jesus in prayer. "By blood, I am Albanian, by citizenship, an Indian, by faith, I am a catholic nun. As to my calling, I belong to the world. As to my heart, I belong entirely to the heart of Jesus." At the age of 12, she felt strongly to the call of God. She knew she had to be a missionary to spread the love of Christ. On May 24th, 1931, she took her vows as a nun. What influenced Mother Teresa was in her Nobel lecture, Mother Teresa said: I think that we in our family don't need bombs and guns to destroy to bring peace- just get together, love one another, and bring that peace, that joy, that strength of presence of each other in the home. And we will be able to overcome all the evils that are in this world.

• The Bojaxhui family worshipped in the Roman Catholic Church in the sacred Heart in the Skopje which played an important part in their life. Both Agnes and her sister Age sang beautifully in the Church choir although Agnes had a weak chest and suffered from chronic coughs (probably why she died of heart failure). They 'lived' as much in the church as they did at home. As Agnes grew older, she had many talks about her future with important people of the Church who were Monsignor Janez Gnidovec who was the Bishop of Skopje at the time and Father Franjo Jambrekovic who became pastor of the sacred heart in 1925.

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The answer is not obvious to modern people as they did not understand Mother Theresa, because they do not understand real Christianity. Mother Theresa, a Catholic nun who entered the Sisters of Loretto in Ireland to become a teaching nun, was sent to India to teach. Later, moved with compassion, and the love of God, she received a "call" from God to help the poorest of the poor. The rest of her life was spent in "darkness" which I discuss below.

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Modern people, and most people who call themselves Christians, think that going to Church on Sunday, saying some things, and being nice to people is what it is all about. They are completely missing the mark. Those kind of things are just the tip of the iceberg. Mother Teresa helped others by loving God above all things, putting Him first in her life, and doing His Will no matter how painful it was for her, and it was very painful.

.

Mother spent most of her life in a dark night with no real feeling or personal knowledge of God. This is very common with the founders of religious orders, they are strong enough in their faith to make their way through life totally depend on Faith, Hope, and Charity: the three cardinal virtues bestowed on us in Baptism. She sacrificed herself completely for God, and was called a saint and a prophet for it.

.

Mother Theresa helped others the way we are all called to help others, by getting up in the morning, and taking some time to give to God first. She spend an hour in Adoration before the Blessed Sacrament, went to Holy Mass, received Our Blessed Lord in the Eucharist, and went to confession frequently, and regularly. And, then, when she had done these things, she went out and lived her faith by seeing her God in every individual in front of her, especially the poor, the sick, the aged, and the abandoned. She served God by serving Him in them - which is nothing more nor less than she lived the Gospel with every breath in her body.

.

Mother Teresa showed compassion for those who were less fortunate than she was. She gave them food, lifted their spirits, and helped them survive. She is and was considered a hero to many people. After her death, she was put on the short list for canonization, and in 2012 I believe she has already had one miracle attributed to her, and has been beatified. Of course, she loved children.

.

The Church often says that the only real way to help people, the way to become a good spouse, parent, teacher, or whatever, is to become a saint. Mother Teresa believed and lived this. She helped the poor by becoming a saint.

.

The various ways that she accomplished that was that she always did the Will of God even when she didn't feel as if God was there or approving of her. She cared for the poorest of the poor.

She established hospices and hospitals for the sick and dying, she started in Calcutta as she started a new religious order, the Missionaries of Charity, which spread throughout the world. Today the Order still cares for the poorest of the poor, the sick and dying. Mother Theresa and her nuns went out into the streets and picked up the dying homeless to bring them to her hospice. They clean them, feed them, pray with them, and serve them so that they spend their last days or hours in dignity. She and her Order treat those dying of AIDS, the lepers, the untouchables, those whom nobody else will love and care for. She saw Our Blessed Lord in everyone of them, in disguise, pleading for our help and love. She treated them as she would treat Our Blessed Lord, Himself.

mom - from mamma

mamma

1570s, reduplication of ma-, nearly universal among the I.E. languages. Probably a natural sound in baby-talk, perhaps imitative of sound made while sucking. In educated usage, the stress is always on the last syllable. In terms of recorded usage in English, mum is from 1823, mummy 1839, momma 1884, mom 1894, and mommy 1902.

In popular usage (Nun) is believed to be a contraction, like Tractor is from the older Traction engine, of (renunciant) as they have renonced the secular world, reside in cloisters and convents, etc. this seems to be the most likely etymology.

Middle English, from Old English nunne, from Late Latin nonna.

Note: Canonize means to be declared a saint.

As for St. Teresa there are a few Saint Teresa(s) that were canonized/declared saints:

Saint Teresa of Avila (known as Saint Teresa of Jesus): canonized: March 12, 1622 by Pope Gregory XV

Saint Therese of Lisieux (known as The Little Flower of Jesus): canonized: May 17, 1925 by Pope Pius XI

Saint Teresa of the Andes (Teresa de Jesus de Los Andes): canonized: March 21, 1993 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (known as Edith Stein): canonized: October 11, 1998 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart: canonized: March 19, 1934 by Pope Pius XI

At about the age of twelve, Mother Teresa realized that she wanted to live her life with the poor and God. She discussed this with a Father she assisted in church and asked him how she could be sure about it. He replied that if the thought of it makes her happy, then it is it. And he added: "the deep inner joy that you feel is the compass that indicates your direction in life". At 18, she decided to be a nun. When she discussed this with her mother, her mother spent a whole day alone in a room and when she came out, she held her daughter's hand in hers and told her: "Put Your hand in His and walk all the way with Him."

She left Skopje on September 26, 1928 to become a nun. Many of her friends, relatives and neighbors accompanied her to the station and that was the last time she saw her mother. Other girls who were on the same mission joined her along her journey. Agnes and her colleague landed at Rathfarnham, Dublin and they went to the house of the Loreto Sisters. She stayed at the convent for a few months and then started her journey to India on December 1, 1928. Before sailing for India, Agnes had changed her name from Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu to Sister Mary Teresa of the Child Jesus - after Teresa of Lisieux, the 'Little Flower'.

Mary Teresa, as she was then called, reached Kolkata in January 1929 but went on to Darjeeling to become a Loreto beginner. In May, she received the 'holy habit' (the religious dress of Loreto) and began to learn Bengali and Hindi. She worked as a teacher in a convent in Darjeeling for some time and then moved to Kolkata. She taught in schools in Kolkata too and her affectionate disposition, people called her "Ma".

On May 24, 1937, Mary Teresa finally took vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience for life. From that very day, she was renamed as 'Mother Teresa'.

On 10th September 1946, on a train journey, she got what she terms as a "call within a call". She felt she heard the call of God to leave the Convent and help the poor while living amongst them. She discussed this call with a father, Van Exem. And she had to wait to get permission from the Archbishop, her Mother Superior and the Pope to leave the Loretto sisters but still be a part of the Roman Catholic church. She finally received the permission in August 1948, to leave Loreto Order. She was given the 'induct of exclaustration' (meaning - allowing her to leave the Convent and remain as a religious, committed to her vows and under the obedience of Archbishop).

On the evening of August 16, Mother Teresa removed her old religious habit (dress) and wore a new habit of her future 'Missionary of Charity' Order. Her new dress consisted of a simple, cotton, white sari with blue stripes (blue was the color of Virgin Mary) alongwith white habits to be worn under the sari.

At midnight of August 16, Mother Teresa left Loreto Order with only a ticket to Patna and just Rs.5 for other expenditure. In Patna, she worked in the Holy Family Hospital and gained some medical knowledge. She returned from Patna and formed new rules of her 'Missionaries of Charity' in Kolkata. As per the rules of Missionaries of Charity the nuns who would join the Order, would live, dress and eat like the poorest of the poor. They would have to take utmost care of the poor people.

Sister Teresa went to the slums and the streets of Kolkata, to talk with the poor, to help them. She helped them wash the babies, to clean the wounds. The poor people were astonished at the European Lady who was helping them. She began to teach the poor children how to read and write, how to wash and to have some hygiene.

Her first residence cum-office of Missionaries of Charity was a small room on the first floor of Little Sisters of the Poor's Institution in Kolkata. She slept with the Sisters of the Poor. God was her great refuge for strength and material support. She always had faith in him that he would always find the right medicine, clothes, food and a place to receive the poor to be able to help them, make them feel wanted.

On 19th March 1949, a Bengali girl, from a well-off family and former student of Mother Teresa, came to stay with Sister Teresa and help her. She was the first to join her in her work. Soon, other girls followed: in May they were three, in November five, next year seven. Mother Teresa thinks of starting a congregation. On October 7th, 1950, the Papal in Rome approves of the "Constitutions of the Society of the Missionaries of Charity". Thus the Missionaries of Charity began with just twelve members.

However, every year, the number of sisters in it was increasing and so are the volunteers and the people that they need to care for. The society grew in work and number. Mother kept praying for vocations and the work kept growing. In 1965, Pope Paul VI granted Mother Teresa's request to globally expand her order. Now her work spread across the world. Whether it was in Ethiopia feeding the hungry, the ghettos of South Africa or it was her native country Albania when the communist regime collapsed, Kolkata's Mother Teresa "the living saint" was there. In 1982, at the height of the siege in Beirut she convinced the parties to stop the war so she could rescue 37 sick children trapped inside. Mother Teresa went all over the world to help people, rescue children, advise her sisters; to organize and to talk. Her sisters are present in every continent serving the poor and lost.

Mother Teresa became a symbol of untiring commitment to the poor and suffering.

Today Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity has 570 missions all over the world, comprising of 4000 nuns, a brotherhood of 300 members and over100,000 lay volunteers operating homes for AIDS, leprosy and tuberculosis patients; soup kitchens, children's and family counseling programs, orphanages, and schools.