September 4 became the day Mother Teresa became Saint Teresa 19 years after her death and the day was filled with praise and criticism for the Catholic Nun. With #fraudteresa hashtag trending online and many people coming out to share their stories about miracles they witnessed through her, the whole country was interested in the short statured nun who made a name for herself in and out of Kolkata’s streets. A Nobel Peace Prize winner who brought much repute and disrepute to the country, Saint Teresa ultimately has become a beacon of service to the poor and bringing the suffering of people to the limelight. With the beatification and canonization from Pope Francis complete, who himself found it difficult to call her Saint Teresa, Mother Teresa continues to inspire people to do good work.
Born Agnes Gonxhe Bojaxhiu on August 26, 1910, Mother Teresa, a Roman Catholic nun came to India in 1929 as a sister of the Loreto order. She died in 1997 in Kolkata, a city she adopted in 1946. Known to serve the “poorest of the poor” in the slums and gutters of the city, her ‘Missionaries of Charity order’ continues her work. More than 4000 sisters in their trademark blue-bordered white sarees keep the legacy of the humanitarian work alive.
Here’s a look at the journey of the woman who changed the way poor are treated in the country and shown mercy.
Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, the future Mother Teresa, at age 18 in Albania
Mother Teresa of Calcutta was born in Skopje (modern Republic of Macedonia). After living in Macedonia for 18 years, she moved to Ireland and later to India, where she spent most of her life.
At the center, behind Father Jambrekovic, the young Albanian-born Anjez Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, the future Mother Teresa of Calcutta, poses for a picture
Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the Head of the Sisters of Charity, working with some of the lepers in Calcutta, 7th December 1971
Mother Teresa in Calcutta, India, on Oct. 1, 1979
In this Oct. 25, 1979 file photo, Mother Teresa, left, talks with and blesses the orphans at her Sishu Bhavan (Children's Home) in Kolkata, India
The Roman Catholic nun Mother Teresa photographed with India's Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on 18 November 1972 in New Delhi
Newly installed former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee greets Nobel laureate Mother Teresa on May 17 at Vajpayee's residence in New Delhi
First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton meets with Mother Teresa at the opening of the Mother Teresa Home for Infant Children in Washington, D.C.,on June 19, 1995
Mother Teresa was awarded the Nobel Peace in Oslo, Norway on December 11, 1979
Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Institute, Prof. John Sanness, hands over the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize to Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa takes a couple minutes to herself at a prayer hall before going about her daily rounds.
Three soldiers stand at attention before the body of Mother Teresa, which is draped in the Indian national flag, on September 11, 1997, at St. Thomas's Church in Calcutta
Feature Image Courtesy: Bettmann Archive, Time.com
