Mother Teresa is a saint! Her miracles are finally going to be authorized by the Catholic Church in a ceremony of canonization or sainthood. As leader of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Francis will declare sainthood onto Mother Teresa, Catholic nun out of Calcutta (now called Kolkata) in India. Pope Francis will oversee this ceremony on September 4, 2016 at the Vatican, Rome. This announcement came out of The Vatican early Tuesday, March 15.
In December 2015, Pope Francis spoke of this upcoming event when Mother Teresa’s second miracle was recognized. To be sainted, two miracles have to be performed and then recognized by the church. In 2003, Pope John Paul II recognized Mother Teresa’s first miracle, as highlighted by CNN. In fact, Pope John Paul II’s push for Mother Teresa’s sainthood has actually been described as bending the rules of Roman Catholic procedure. This was the healing of a brain tumor in a man living in India. The second miracle was acknowledged by Pope Francis in December 2015, and has now facilitated her canonization. This miracle was described as the “miraculous healing” of a man with debilitating brain abscesses in Brazil, according to People Magazine.
Although Albanian by birth, the majority of Mother Teresa life – 87 years – were spent working in impoverished areas of Calcutta, India. There, she founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950, dedicated to the less fortunate members of the Indian society. Her work has been recognized throughout India and her values have influenced numerous charities worldwide.
For many, Mother Teresa’s sainthood is a long awaited formalization, as her work has long been seen as the work of a saint. The New York Times on March 15 reported that this is some 13 years after Mother Teresa received beatification – where the Pope declared that she was in a state of bliss in death. While beatification is the first step to being canonized or declared a saint, this was over a decade ago and long overdue. As it is, this religious honor would be bestowed just a day before the 19th anniversary of Mother Teresa’s death.
Fortunately, Mother Teresa’s work did get recognition and charity donations while she was alive. For example, she received the internationally acclaimed Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. She dedicated this award to volunteers of the people like herself: the speech she delivered was one of encouragement and for continued progress in what she declared as the work of Jesus.
In accepting the Prize in 1979, Mother Teresa expressed the basis of her faith and work. She said “…let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love, and once we begin to love each other naturally we want to do something.”
