Have you heard of Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu? Probably not but you probably know who she is. She was born in 1910 in Skopje, Macedonia and her father was a well-respected businessman who provided well for the family. However, he died when Agnes was only 8 leaving Agnes' mother to provide for the family and the financial security they once had wasn't there anymore.Agnes' mother was deeply devoted and religious and provided for the family through an embroidery and cloth business and obviously left an impact on little Agnes. By the time Agnes was 12 she knew she wanted to devote her life to God. She left home at the age of 18 to go to Ireland to join the Sisters of Loreto and in 1931 she took her vows as a nun. Agnes chose her name in honor of Terese of Lisieux and Teresa of Avila…yes, Agnes was Saint Mother Teresa.
She holds a special place in my heart and darling daughter and I attended a special mass to honor her canonization on September 5, 2016. And Saint Mother Teresa has touched darling daughter's heart too as she has selected her to be her patron saint as she goes through the Confirmation process. I couldn't imagine a better woman to guide my child's faith!Saint Mother Teresa was devoted to the poor…the poorest of the poor…and stuck to her guns while following God's lead even when the going got tough. And it did. It did get tough.
During Lent, darling daughter and I watched the movie The Letters, which went into Saint Mother Teresa's life and I never knew that she carried an emptiness in her heart as she followed God. Personally, this too touched me especially since during this Lenten season I was deeper in my struggle to overcome/fight depression related to PTSD and was turning to God for guidance and help. There was a sort of comfort to be found that someone, like Saint Mother Teresa, could leave such a profound impact on society while following God even when she may have felt alone and lost.
And to wrap up this post, I wanted to share perhaps some less known facts about Saint Mother Teresa, who I would imagine wouldn't like to be focused on today so please, in respect to her, acknowledge the light of God working through her to help us grow in faith and to see the needs of others. - Saint Mother had to petition to leave the convent to go out and serve the poorest of the poor in Calcutta. She forego wearing the traditional nun's habit and opted to wear a sari so she would "fit in" better when she worked in the slums.
- Saint Mother Teresa refused to accept the traditional Nobel honor banquet and asked that it's budget, $192,000, be given to the poor in India.
- Saint Mother Teresa taught daughters of the wealthy history and geography at St. Mary's for 15 years but later her teaching moved to teaching the poor to read and write using sticks she found on the ground.
- Saint Mother Teresa lived to be 87 but last saw her family when she was 18 years old and left to go to Ireland to follow God's calling.
Quote from Saint Mother Teresa: "Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies."
