Twelve years after heading on the path of sainthood, Mother Teresa is likely to be canonized by the Vatican in September 2016. The saint of the gutters, as she was fondly called, dedicated her life to the service of the poor in her adoptive country of India.
The spokesperson of the Syro Malabar Church, Paul Thelekat, sounded the news in Kochi on Monday.
According to the Times of India, Fr Nigel Barrett, spokesperson of the archdiocese of Bombay, was awaiting a formal notification from Rome. He said the announcement of sainthood had only been a matter of time. “Pope John Paul II had beatified Mother Teresa in 2003 and awarded her the title of Blessed at the time. Canonization is the next step,” he said.
Nuns at the Missionaries of Charity, which she had founded, were overjoyed at the news. Eleven sisters who serve in the Vile Parle centre made a pretty picture of smiling faces as the good news arrived. “Thanks be to God,” said the seniormost nun. “This is a joyous occasion. I must say though that it is a mere formalization of what we have known and believed all along. We knew she was a saintly person and her canonization affirms our faith.”
The 17 nuns at the Byculla centre sent up a prayer of gratitude as well. Sr Magdalita, who is visiting from Akola, said, “I have eaten, worked and slept with Mother Teresa in Kolkata where she would advise us to remain beneath the cross, that is be humble in service. Even when she won the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1979 she said she accepted on behalf of the poor.”
The honour comes shortly after the RSS’s allegations of conversion. “We did not react because the charges were not true. We believe her detractors will understand in time. If conversion was our agenda we could have converted the entire world given that we have a presence in so many countries,” said a nun at the Byculla centre.
Gordon D’Souza, president of Bombay Catholic Sabha, said, “Hers was such a clear-cut case for sainthood that we wonder why it took so long. She already carried a halo around her without there being a need of one instituted by man. She showed by example that caring for the marginalized should be the foremost religion.”
Abraham Mathai, president of the Indian Christian Voice, organizes an annual awards ceremony in her name. He said Mother Teresa had brought a smile to the face of lepers, destitutes and AIDS victims. “Her message of love towards fellow human beings holds the key for peace in our polarized world,” he said. TNN
