The Review: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Research Volume 9 Article 4 2007 A Voice of Peace: Mother Teresa Sidita Kushi St. John Fisher College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/ur Part of the History Commons, and the Religion Commons How has open access to Fisher Digital Publications benefited ou?y Recommended Citation Kushi, Sidita. "A Voice of Peace: Mother Teresa." The Review: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Research 9 (2007): 8-12. Web. [date of access]. <https://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/ur/vol9/iss1/4>. This document is posted at https://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/ur/vol9/iss1/4 and is brought to you for free and open access by Fisher Digital Publications at St. John Fisher College. For more information, please contact [email protected]. A Voice of Peace: Mother Teresa Abstract In lieu of an abstract, below is the first paragraph of the paper. "The fruit of silence is prayer; the fruit of prayer is faith; the fruit of faith is love; the fruit of love is service; the fruit of service is peace" (Collopy, 31). Service and love for the destitute were Mother Teresa's methods to bring the world one step closer to peace. The extraordinary nun lived a life of self-sacrifice within the Catholic Church. She sacrificed her health, comfort, family and all worldly goods to dedicate her every breath to improving the lives of the poor in India, Africa, Eastern Europe and the rest of the world. Her spirituality and duty to God strengthened her relentless actions against hate and poverty. This small woman aided all humans in need regardless of their backgrounds and beliefs. She created Houses for the Dying for the homeless and built hundreds of orphanages for lepers and those that society did not dare to notice (Spink, 103). This peacemaker's well-being was sacrificed many times ot meet the needs of suffering strangers. Mother Teresa's goal of bringing happiness to the destitute through self sacrifice promotes the elements of selflessness and love that are so important to the establishment of peace. She became a voice of peace through her loving care for ignored and suffering individuals. Mother Teresa was chosen as a voice of peace because her work concentrated on eradicating poverty, the most deadly act of violence. This article is available in The Review: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Research: https://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/ur/ vol9/iss1/4 Kushi: A Voice of Peace A Voice of Peace: Mother Teresa Sidita Kushi "The fruit of silence is prayer; the fruit of left her family with no means of financial security. prayer is faith; the fruit of faith is love; the fruit of Thus it was largely under her mother's insistence love is service; the fruit of service is peace" on the value of non-material riches of kindness, (Collopy, 31). Service and love for the destitute generosity and compassion for the poor that the were Mother Teresa's methods to bring the world foundations for Agnes's future apostolate were one step closer to peace. The extraordinary nun laid. Agnes' mother, Drana, took care of the poor lived a life of self-sacrifice within the Catholic in her community. She cared for an elderly Church. She sacrificed her health, comfort, family alcoholic woman every morning and welcomed and all worldly goods to dedicate her every breath the hungry to dine in her house every night. She to improving the lives of the poor in India, Africa, also took in six orphans as a part of her own Eastern Europe and the rest of the world. Her family. The hero of the poor credited her mother to spirituality and duty to God strengthened her the establishment of Agnes' moral duties and relentless actions against hate and poverty. This strong sense of community. Agnes's mother small woman aided all humans in need regardless advised her, "When you do good, do it quietly, as of their backgrounds and beliefs. She created if you were throwing a stone into the sea" (Spink, Houses for the Dying for the homeless and built 7). Mother Teresa's acts of kindness began with hundreds of orphanages for lepers and those that individuals. society did not dare to notice (Spink, 103). This Agnes readily went to church services at a peacemaker's well-being was sacrificed many very young age. She was educated first at a times to meet the needs of suffering strangers. convent-run primary school but then went to a Mother Teresa's goal of bringing happiness to the state school. She received her religious destitute through self sacrifice promotes the instructions from her home and her church. In her elements of selflessness and love that are so teens, the young peacemaker became a member of important to the establishment of peace. She a youth group in her local parish called Sodality. A became a voice of peace through her loving care private personal experience with God and her for ignored and suffering individuals. Mother involvement with church activities prompted Teresa was chosen as a voice of peace because her Agnes's interest in missionary work (Mother work concentrated on eradicating poverty, the Teresa of Calcutta). She believed it was her duty most deadly act of violence. to aid the weak, the poor and the unfortunate of Mother Teresa's early years were dominated the world through the grace of her God. by strife and conflict which influenced her to At the age of seventeen, Agnes responded to devote her life to peace. The Saint of Calcutta was her first call of a vocation as a Catholic missionary born Agnes Gonxhe Bojaxhiu on August 26, 1910 nun. The religious girl had never seen a nun before in Skopje, Macedonia. She was the youngest of but she soon joined an Irish order, the Sisters of three children of Albanian parents (Spink, 1). Loretto. This order was known for its missionary Throughout her youth, Agnes experienced the work for the poor in India. After a few months of devastation of the Balkan Wars as well as the training in Dublin, Agnes was sent to India, where isolation her family received because they were on May 24, 1931 she took her initial vows as a Albanians living in enemy territory. On November nun. From 1931 to 1948 Sister Teresa taught 28th, 1912, Albania gained its independence and geography and catechism at St. Mary's High the Bojaxhiu family held a large celebration in School in Calcutta. In 1944, she became the their home. Agnes' father, Nikola Bojaxhiu, made principal of St. Mary's. Yet she soon contracted no secret of his commitment to the Albanian tuberculosis and was unable to continue teaching. nationalist cause. Yet his commitment to the The selfless principal was sent to Darjeeling for unification of Kosovo with Albania caused his rest and recuperation and it was on the train to early death. Nikola was poisoned at a conference Darjeeling that she received her second call - "the in Belgrade in 1919 at the age of forty-five. Agnes call within the call" (Ascension Research). On was only eight years old when her father died and September 10, 1946, on the long train ride to Published by Fisher Digital Publications, 2007 1 The Review: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Research, Vol. 9 [2007], Art. 4 Darjeeling, Sister Teresa had a life-changing that through working for people who were not of encounter with the Living Presence of the Will of her race, religion or nationality, this Nobel Prize God. "I realized that I had the call to take care of winner transcended all barriers. "With her message the sick and the dying, the hungry, the naked, the she is able to reach through to something innate in homeless - to be God's Love in action to the every human kind— if for no other purpose than poorest of the poor. That was the beginning of the to create a potential, a seed for good...she Missionaries of Charity"(Ascension Research promotes peace in the most fundamental manner", Center). Mother Teresa did not question the order Sanness concluded, "by her confirmation of the she had received and quickly asked permission to inviolability of human dignity"(Mother Teresa of leave the Loreto congregation and to establish a Calcutta). Mother Teresa believed in suffering for new order of sisters. She received that permission the poor just like Jesus Christ has suffered for from Pope Pius XII in 1948 (Collopy, 31). Her humanity. In 1952, the first Home for the Dying goal for peace began by comforting the poor, the was opened in space made available by the city of untouchables and the dying. The sister was certain Calcutta. The order received permission from that if the unloved received the love they deserved, Calcutta officials to use a portion of an abandoned humanity would be at peace. temple to gather dying Indian men, women and The Angel of Calcutta affirmed, "I never children off the streets and allow them to spend judge anyone because it doesn't allow me the time their time of suffering in a loving environment. to love them" (Collopy, 31). Mother Teresa's The nuns tried to cure the sick and gave hope to service to peace and humanity lie in her ability to the dying. The order also found employment for provide love and warmth to the suffering masses the poor who survived their sickness and supplied of the world. She did not judge the most hardened them with food and shelter after their departure of criminals, nor the dirtiest of the poor.