Saint Teresa of Calcutta

Who is she?

Saint Teresa of Calcutta was a sister of Albanian origin whom the whole world lovingly called “Mother Teresa.” She lived among the poorest people in the city of Calcutta (now Kolkata), India, and founded the Missionaries of Charity to serve them.

Life story

She was born on 26 August 1910 in Skopje (now the capital of North Macedonia), into a Catholic family of Albanian origin, with the name Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu. Her father died when she was only eight. Her mother was poor but often invited poor people to share their meals, and taught her children: when you do something good, do it for God.

At 18, she joined the Loreto Sisters and was sent to India. In Calcutta, she taught for many years at a girls’ school. On 10 September 1946, on a train to Darjeeling, she felt Jesus calling her to serve the poorest of the poor.

In 1948, she left the school and exchanged her habit for a white sari with a blue border, like the clothes of poor women in India. She went into the slums. With no school building yet, she sat under a tree and wrote letters in the dirt with a stick to teach the children. Little by little, many young women came asking to work with her. In 1950, the Missionaries of Charity was founded.

The sisters opened a home to take in dying people abandoned in the streets, so that they could be washed, be loved and die in peace. The sisters also cared for people with leprosy, orphans and the poor everywhere. Each day of theirs began with Mass and a time of prayer before the Eucharist. She repeated the words of Jesus: “as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” (Mt 25:40).

In 1979, she received the Nobel Peace Prize and asked that the money for the celebration dinner be used to help the poor. She died on 5 September 1997 and was canonized by Pope Francis on 4 September 2016.

Why is she a saint?

Mother Teresa loved Jesus and recognized him in each poor and suffering person. For many years, she felt as if God were absent from her heart, but she kept praying faithfully, kept smiling and kept serving. She did small things with very great love.

A lesson for you

• Notice a classmate who is alone and go play with them.
• Start by helping in your own family: help your parents, look after your little brothers and sisters, check in on your grandparents.
• When you help someone, remember that you are doing it for Jesus himself.