August 27,1910 - September5, 1997
Mother Teresa, born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu in Skopje, Macedonia. She was a humanitarian and awarded the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize for her work with the poor. She took the name Teresa in 1928 after joining a religious order.
Instead of death and sorrow, let us bring peace and joy to the world. To do this we must beg God for His
gift of peace and learn to love and accept each other as brothers and sisters, children of God.....Mother Teresa in a letter to the Fourth Conference on Women
Mother Teresa spent her life taking care of what she called "the poorest of the poor" and was often quoted as saying that she saw the face of Christ in the needy, the poor and the sick. She regularly visited the scenes of diasaster, praying for the victims recovery and helping raise money for them.
"The world today is not only hungry for bread but hungry for love; hungry to be wanted, to be loved......We have been created to love and to be loved."
Mother Teresa created many homes for
the dying and the unwanted from Calcutta to New York to
Albania. She was one of the pioneers of establishing homes
for AIDS victims. For more than 45 years, Mother Teresa
comforted the poor, the dying, and the unwanted around the
world....Mother Teresa gained worldwide acclaim with her tireless
efforts on behalf of world peace.
Beginning in 1980, homes began to spring-up for drug
addicts, prostitutes, battered women, and more orphanages
and schools for poor children around the world. In 1985,
Mother Teresa established the first hospice for AIDS
victims in New York. Later homes were added in San
Francisco and Atlanta. Mother Teresa was awarded Medal of
Freedom, the highest U.S. civilian award. Mother Teresa traveled to help the hungry in Ethiopia,
radiation victims at Chernobyl, and earthquake victims in
Armenia. Her zeal and works of mercy knew no boundaries.
In November of 1996, Mother Teresa received the honorary
U.S. citizenship.
"Mother Teresa marked the
history of our century with
courage. She served all human
beings by promoting their
dignity and respect, and made
those who had been defeated by
life feel the tenderness of God.''
Pope John Paul II
Her work was almost always
praised. But her funding
methods met with some
criticism. Mother Teresa's
causes were financed by
public foundations, private
donors and scores of prizes.
A 1994 British television
documentary, "Hell's Angel:
Mother Teresa of Calcutta,"
accused her of accepting
contributions without
questioning the source,
including the likes of Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier.
Mother Teresa had a short response to such allegations: "No
matter who says what, you should accept it with a smile and do
your own work," she said.
May she rest in peace for her long and tiring journey is done.
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