A good part of the world we live in today, is broken, battered, bruised and brutalised. Hate, violence and war; the discrimination, demonization and denigration of the ‘other’ seems to be the ‘new normal’.
From Gaza to Ukraine, from Manipur in India to Tijuana in Mexico, the world is in turmoil: in desperate need of healing, compassion and peace. Yearning for an alternative; struggling for change; looking with hope for a new dawn! In the context of today’s reality, St. Teresa of Calcutta (still lovingly referred to as ‘Mother Teresa’) comes as a symbol of faith, a vessel of compassion, a beacon of hope, someone who embodied the best of Christian values and who today challenges our world to emulate her!
Mother Teresa died on 5 September 1997, at the age of 87 years. For more than 45 years before that, she reached out and ministered to the poorest of the poor, the dying destitute, the abandoned, the orphaned, the sick, in fact, all those who were excluded and lived on the peripheries of a heartless society. The Missionaries of Charity, which she founded, continue this selfless work today – all over India and in many parts of the world. In the midst of the heavy bombing by the Israeli regime on Gaza, they have refused to vacate the place and leave those whom they have been caring for, to the horrors of this inhuman war!
Mother Teresa has left us with a rich legacy that the world desperately needs to mainstream today. These include Contemplation, Compassion, Courage, Conviction and Commitment.
Contemplation: Mother Teresa was contemplative in action. She drew her spiritual strength from her closeness with Jesus, her Divine Master and His Sacred Heart. For her, contemplation was seeking the face of God in everything, everywhere, and in everyone, recognizing His presence in all of life's happenings. She described her own contemplative practice as gathering the whole universe in the heart and allowing divine grace to flow to all of creation, making it a missionary and universal pursuit. In sum and substance, she was a woman of prayer, which sustained her throughout her life as a missionary of charity.
Compassion: If one were to attribute a core competency to Mother Teresa, it would be the single characteristic of being a compassionate person. She radiated this quality in a way few humans have ever done and will ever do; her love for the marginalised and the vulnerable, the excluded and the exploited, particularly for the poorest of the poor, was boundless. She was able to give without counting the cost. It was her ability to be compassionate towards others that motivated her to found the Missionaries of Charity. She was effusive in her compassion for others. For her, compassion for others was all that mattered.
Courage: Mother Teresa was a courageous woman. It does takes courage to answer a call and Mother Teresa demonstrated this value many times over. As a very young European, she left the distant shores of her country to come to serve in India. Living in India in those days was not easy, yet she opted for a tougher life, literally ‘pitching her tent’ among the poorest of the poor in the slums of Calcutta. She faced several obstacles throughout her life, but she faced them squarely, proving that she was truly a woman endowed with prophetic courage. She spoke truth to power, to the high and the mighty and the hearts of some did melt for the greater good!
Conviction: Mother Teresa was a woman of conviction. She demonstrated a strong and unwavering belief in spiritual truths, values, or principles that deeply influenced her actions and decisions. Several examples in her life show this. She was always convinced that even though she would not feel God's presence in her life, He would never abandon her. Sometimes, there was absolutely no food for the next meal to feed the many inmates in her care. She was convinced that God would provide for her. From out of the blue, someone comes in to ensure the next meal and more!
Commitment: For Mother Teresa, there was never looking back. Once she put her hand to the plough, she never looked back, whatever the difficulties and whatever the consequences she might face ahead. Her commitment to the cause to which she espoused herself is legendary. Commitment was the hallmark of this great saint. She remained a committed person till the very end. This unflinching commitment was her way of proceeding. Everyone admired her for that!
Today, more than ever, our world cries out for Contemplation, Compassion, Courage, Conviction and Commitment. No amount of gimmicks and high-profile publicity can generate these qualities. Through her simple lifestyle, Mother Teresa embodied these non-negotiable values. In a most unassuming manner, she taught the world the importance of embracing these values. These are what the world needs urgently at this moment!
Her death anniversary is her Feast day in the Catholic Church and as a tribute to her, the day has also been designated as ‘The International Day of Charity’, by the United Nations. Significantly, it is also ‘Teachers Day’ in India, the birth anniversary of a former President of India, Dr Radhakrishnan, who was a visionary statesman and a great educationist. Mother Teresa herself was a great teacher, who even today teaches us all the need and importance to internalise and actualise the values of Contemplation, Compassion, Courage, Conviction and Commitment.
Mother Teresa’s favourite prayer was the prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi, a prayer which in a way was a manifesto of her life and her mission here on earth. We pray:
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me bring love.
Where there is offence, let me bring pardon.
Where there is discord, let me bring union.
Where there is error, let me bring truth.
Where there is doubt, let me bring faith.
Where there is despair, let me bring hope.
Where there is darkness, let me bring your light.
Where there is sadness, let me bring joy.
O Lord, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love,
for it is in giving that one receives,
it is in self-forgetting that one finds,
it is in forgiving that one is forgiven,
it is in dying that one awakens to eternal life.
Mother Teresa is truly a Saint for our times; someone who challenges each one of us to live our responsibility as disciples of Jesus in our broken world today!
(Fr. Cedric Prakash SJ, an Indian Jesuit, is a human rights, reconciliation, environmental & peace activist/writer. He can be contacted at [email protected])
