Mother Teresa was a Catholic nun and missionary who dedicated her life to serving the poor and sick in India. She was born on August 26, 1...
Mother Teresa was a Catholic nun and missionary who dedicated her life to serving the poor and sick in India. She was born on August 26, 1910, in Skopje, Macedonia, as Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu. Her parents were Albanian and devoutly Catholic.
At the age of 18, Agnes joined the Sisters of Loreto, an Irish community of nuns who ran missions in India. She arrived in Calcutta (now Kolkata), India, in 1929, and taught at a school for girls in Darjeeling for 17 years.
In 1946, Mother Teresa received a "call within a call" from Jesus to serve the poorest of the poor. She left the convent and set up the Missionaries of Charity, a religious congregation dedicated to serving the sick and destitute. She began by providing care for the homeless, the sick, and the dying in the streets of Calcutta.
In 1952, Mother Teresa opened the first home for the dying, called Nirmal Hriday (Pure Heart), where people could come and die with dignity. She soon expanded her work to other parts of India and the world. Her organization grew to include over 4,000 sisters and brothers serving in more than 100 countries.
Mother Teresa was known for her simplicity and her love for the poor. She lived a life of selflessness and service, often going without food or sleep in order to help those in need. She received numerous honors and awards for her work, including the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979.
Mother Teresa died on September 5, 1997, at the age of 87. She was canonized by the Catholic Church as a saint on September 4, 2016. Her legacy lives on through the Missionaries of Charity, which continues to serve the poor and sick around the world.
