 Teresa Banner
- The cross represents Mother Teresa's great faith
in Christ.
- So much so, that she founded the Religious Order
known as the Missionaries of Charity.
- The larger figure holding the smaller figure
represents Mother Teresa supporting another in
need.
- She recognised that no matter how poor, disabled
or insignificant an individual may be, they all
deserve the deepest respect and care.
- The motto asks us to continue our good work for
Christ
Mother Terresa - The Story
Mother Teresa, winner
of the Nobel Peace Prize, died on September 5, 1997,
in her convent in India. She was 87. Born Agnes Gonxha
Bojaxhiu in 1910 in Skopje, Yugoslavia, she joined
the Sisters of Loreto in 1928. She took the name "Teresa" after
St. Teresa of Lisieux, patroness of missionaries.
In 1948, she came across a half-dead woman lying
in front of a Calcutta hospital. She stayed with
the woman until she died. From that point on, she
dedicated the majority of her life to helping the
poorest of the poor in India, thus gaining her the
name "Saint of the Gutters." She founded
an order of nuns called the Missionaries of Charity
in Calcutta, India, dedicated to serving the poor.
Almost 50 years later, the Missionaries of Charity
have grown from 12 sisters in India to over 3,000
in 517 missions throughout 100 countries worldwide.
In 1952, she founded the Nirmal Hriday Home for
the Dying in a former temple in Calcutta. It was
there that they would care for the dying Indians
who were found on the streets. Mother would see Jesus
in everyone she met. It didn´t matter whether
they were dying of AIDS or Leprosy. She wanted them
to be able to die in peace and with dignity. For
over 50 years, she worked selflessly helping the
poor. That devotion towards the poor won her respect
throughout the world and the Nobel Peace Prize in
1979.
Mother Teresa was a living saint and she will be
greatly missed. Eternal rest grant unto her Lord,
and may perpetual light shine upon her. May she rest
in peace. Amen.
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