Mother Teresa
ONE
Born in Albanian in 1910 Mother Teresa entered the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a.k.a. Sisters of Loretto in 1928. From 1931 on she worked in Bengal India as a teacher for girls from wealthy families. However, she wanted to give Jesus something without reserve so in 1942 she made a vow to give to God anything He may ask, and not to refuse him anything.
On Tuesday September10, 1946, on a train bound for Darjeeling, she had a mystical encounter with Christ. She saw a big crowd of people who cried out to her “Come, come, save us, bring Jesus to us.” And then she heard the voice of Jesus pleading with her, “Come, come, carry Me into the holes of the poor. Come be My light.” This double invitation from the crowd of poor and from Jesus echoed through her life.
Again Jesus spoke to Mother Teresa with words that cut her to the heart: “You have come to India for Me. The thirst you had for souls brought you so far. Are you afraid to take one more step for your Spouse, for me, for souls? Is your generosity grown cold? Am I a second to you? You did not die for souls. That is why you don’t care what happens to them. Your heart was never drowned in sorrow as it was My Mother’s. We both gave our all for souls and you? You are afraid that you will lose… (who you were), you will be wanting in perseverance. Nay - your vocation is to love and suffer and save souls and by taking this step you will fulfill my Heart’s desire for you. That is your vocation.”
From that day forward her aim was to bring souls to God and God to souls. She writes: “The Aim of our society is to satiate the thirst of Jesus on the Cross for love of souls by working for the salvation and sanctification of the poor in the slums.”
TWO
At the time of the Inspiration Jesus made it known to her that she would suffer much: “Our Lord knows that I am at His service, He can do with me just whatever He wishes.”
She also knew that the success of the work is not realized in spite of the difficulties and sufferings but precisely because of them. That could lead her to say, “Grab the chance to offer something to Jesus.”
However, she was confident that their suffering would bear fruit: “Our work for souls is great but without penance and much sacrifice it will be impossible.”
Jesus saved the world by accepting with trust and offering up with love his sacrifice on the cross. We brought suffering into the world by our sin. Jesus has transformed our suffering and made it possible for us to unite our sacrifices and sufferings to the Power of His cross and in this way we can help him rescue souls from hell and help them to heaven.
St John Paul II wrote “Suffering is a call. It is a vocation. Christ says: Follow me! Come! Take part through your suffering in this work of saving the world, a salvation achieved through my suffering! Through my cross!” Salvifici Doloris 19
This is what could lead St. Paul to write “It makes me happy to suffer for you, as I am suffering now, and in my own body to do what I can to make up all that has still to be undergone by Christ for the sake of his body, the Church.” Colossians 1:24
All we have to do is accept and offer up those things we did not choose, do not like and cannot change!
Mother Teresa: Accept what He gives and give what He takes with a big smile
THREE
Mother Teresa relied on Jesus in the Eucharist and Mary through the Rosary. She was convinced that the work of comforting those in the greatest need would be impossible without the continual grace of Jesus received every day in the Eucharist and a deep life of prayer. Jesus would have to do everything, she would say, we have just to follow.
Mother Teresa was very devoted to Consecration to Mary and the Rosary. The Rule of the Missionaries of Charity was never to go to the slums without first praying the Rosary, so they prayed the Rosary in the streets as they walked to take care of the poor. Mother Teresa would say: “Cling to the rosary…for without Our Lady we cannot stand!”
FOUR
Mother Teresa spoke of three types of poverty: material, social and spiritual. She would say “Calcutta is everywhere.” And “The greatest, most serious form of poverty is spiritual.” To live life without food, water, shelter or health care is bad. But to live life without a relationship with God, without His life in one’s soul is far worse. Physical poverty will end. Spiritual poverty, to live without God, can go on forever.
So we must ask ourselves: Who are the people we live with, are friends with, interact with, who do not have the light of Jesus?
Can you hear Jesus calling you: Come, come, carry me into the holes of the poor? Come be My light.
Can you hear the big crowds: Come, come save us, bring us to Jesus.
Wilt thou refuse?
FIVE
Mother Teresa was adamant: “We will not wait for souls to come to us; we will go in search of them.” So she left the comfort and security of her convent, walking through the gates with five rupees, the equivalent of 5 pennies, to go out into the dark holes of the slums to bring the light of Jesus to souls steeped in darkness, abandonment and sin.
We cannot wait for souls to come to us. We must take the initiative and go out of our comfort zones and take risks for the good of others.
Strive to live genuine friendship with your spouse, kids, grandkids and friends.
Pray for them. Offer sacrifices for them. Share life together. Be genuinely interested in them. Seek to know, understand, love and care for them by asking good questions that flows into conversation. Then ask them if you can share the Rosary podcast with them. Or invite them to listen and pray the podcast with you. Then ask them what caught their attention. It doesn’t matter if they liked or disliked, understood or didn’t understand the meditation. The point is to reflect and then discuss, leaving them free to think however they want. There is great power in meditating on the Rosary because we instantly come into the presence of Mary who puts us in contact with Jesus. Then we have the five points of meditation to cause us to reflect and it gives us something to talk about.
It doesn’t need to be more complicated than that.
Live this simple way of live of invitation, hospitality, genuine interest in the other, then invitation to listen to the Rosary podcast together, ask what caught their attention and let the conversation flow while giving them freedom in their thinking.
This works for any age or type of person.
Can you hear Jesus calling you: Come, come, carry me into the holes of the poor? Come be My light.
Can you hear the big crowds: Come, come save us, bring us to Jesus.
Wilt thou refuse?