Mother Teresa
World History Honors
Scrapbook
Maisie O’Meara
Childhood
• Born on August 26, 1910 in Skopje, Macedonia to mother, Drane, and father, Nikola
• Birth name: Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu
• Youngest of three children
• Father died when she was eight and left family in financial debt
Young Gonxha
Nikola
Childhood
• Was a member of the youth group at her parish called Sodality
• Felt a strong call from God at age 12
• Drane, her mother, encouraged Gonxha’s vocation
• Gonxha knew she was going to be a missionary
Drane
Gonxha
Path to Becoming “Mother Teresa”
• Received First Communion when she was five and a half
• Was confirmed in November of 1916• Involved in religious formation at her parish
First Communion
Confirmation
Path to Becoming “Mother Teresa”
• Left home at 18 years of age to join the Sisters of Loreto in Ireland
• Trained in Dublin for a few months• Made initial vows to become a nun on May 24, 1931• Received name “Sister Mary Teresa” after St. Thérèse of
Lisieux
Sisters of Loreto
St. Therese of Lisieux
Work
• Taught at St. Mary’s High School in Calcutta from 1931 to 1943
• Became school’s principal in 1944
• 1948-received permission from convent to leave school and devote time to help the poor
• Started a school for slum children
Cathedral in Calcutta
School in the slum
Work
• September 10, 1946-she received her inspiration from Jesus
• Lord told her that the poor had been neglected and needed cared for
• Jesus asked her to create a religious community to be of service to the poor
• October 7, 1950-established Missionaries of Charity
The poor inCalcutta
Missionaries of Charity
Work
• Took a nursing course with Medical Mission Sisters in Patna• Went back to and lived with Little Sisters of the Poor while working
in slums• She took care of families
– Washed children’s sores– Cared for elderly– Nursed a woman dying of hunger and TB
Medical Mission Sisters Little Sisters of the Poor
Mother Teresa’s Establishments
• Missionaries of Charity officially established in the Archdiocese of Calcutta on October 7, 1950
• 1960’s-Mother Teresa sent Sisters to other parts of India to serve the poor
• 1965- she was encouraged by Pope Paul VI to open a house in Venezuela
India
Missionaries of Charity
Mother Teresa’s Establishments
• Eventually there was a house in every continent
• From 1980 on a house was opened in every communist country– Soviet Union– Albania – Cuba
Soviet Union
Albania
Mother Teresa’s Establishments
• 1963-established Missionary of Charity Brothers
• 1976-established Contemplative Sisters
• 1979-established Contemplative Brothers
• 1984-Missionary of Charity Fathers
Missionary of Charity Brothers
Missionary of Charity Fathers
Mother Teresa’s Establishments
• Co-Workers of Mother Teresa and Sick and Suffering Co-Workers– People of various faiths and nationalities with whom she shared her
spirit of prayer and kind, humble works
• Lay Missionaries of Charity• Corpus Christi Movement for Priests
– For those who had a charitable spirit like her
Co-Workers of Mother Teresa
Corpus Christi Movement for Priests
Last Years
• March 1997- elected her successor as Superior General of the Missionaries of Charity
• Met Pope John Paul II one last time• Died September 5, 1997
Pope John Paul II
Mother Teresa’s Funeral
Accomplishments
• Mother Teresa’s sisters reached 4,000 members
• 610 foundations established in 123 countries
• Indian Padmashri Award in 1962
• Pope John XXIII Peace Prize in 1971
Sisters
Pope John XXIII
Accomplishments
• Nehru Prize in 1972– For her great
promotion of international peace
• Nobel Peace Prize in 1979
• Balzan Prize in 1979
Receiving Nehru Prize
Receiving Nobel Peace Prize
Accomplishments
• Was honored a state funeral by the Government of India• Body was buried in the Mother House of the
Missionaries of Charity• Less than two years after death-Pope John Paul II
permitted opening of her Cause of Canonization
Mother House of the Missionaries of Charity
Mother Teresa’s Tomb
Legacy
• Tomb almost immediately became a popular spot of pilgrimage and prayer for all people
• Society of missionaries that she started have spread all over the world• Became one of the most significant symbols of compassion to the world• Will always be remembered as one of the greatest “Mothers to the Poor”
Mother Teresa
“I want you to be concerned about your next door neighbor. Do you know your next door neighbor?”- Mother Teresa