Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.” Mother Teresa
Lessons from Mother Teresa
Commitment to a cause – In 1950, Mother Teresa branched out from the main church and started her own diocesan congregation which subsequently became Missionaries of Charities. In her own words the purpose of Mission of Charities was to care for “the hungry, the naked, the homeless, the crippled, the blind, the lepers, all those people who feel unwanted, unloved, uncared for throughout society, people that have become a burden to the society and are shunned by everyone.” She built the foundation from scratch and in her lifetime there were 610 missionaries operating in 123 countries being managed by more than 4000 nuns. She dedicated her life and energy to providing loving care to the homeless and sick all around the world.
Crises of faith – In her letters to the mentors of the church she had written about her self-doubt about her mission and the existence of God. In one of her letters she wrote “Where is my faith? Even deep down … there is nothing but emptiness and darkness … If there be God—please forgive me. When I try to raise my thoughts to Heaven, there is such convicting emptiness that those very thoughts return like sharp knives and hurt my very soul … How painful is this unknown pain—I have no Faith. Repulsed, empty, no faith, no love, no zeal, … What do I labor for? If there be no God, there can be no soul. If there be no soul then, Jesus, You also are not true.”
These letters show her despair on the task she had set out for herself. In India, in those times 90% of the population was below poverty line (according to World Bank estimates). After seeing so much suffering and pain on a daily basis her efforts to do good for humanity must be appearing minuscule to her. Her courage and commitment carried her through all the doubts. She despite the crises of faith continued her efforts to give relief to the poor.
Persevering through criticism –Mother Teresa was bestowed many awards in India and internationally. She received the Noble Peace Prize and Bharat Ratna (the highest civilian award of India) for her humanitarian work. Gallup polls indicated she was the single most admired person is USA for a number of years in 1990’s and the most admired person of the 20th century.
With the recognition came the criticism. Her critics blamed her for lack of transparency and mismanagement of funds, stating that the funds were used to create more convents instead of eradicating poverty. Other allegations were that she accepted donations from people with questionable reputations, did not provide proper medical help to the patients, ensured nuns compliance through punishment, etc. Some people even questioned her theology and stated that she fantasized poverty. Without doubt as any other human being she may have made some incorrect decisions in her life. She endured all the criticism and persevered by doing humanitarian work. Her actions spoke louder than the words of her critics.
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Mother Theresa