Mother Teresa to be made saint after 2 miracles
MOTHER Teresa will be made a saint by Pope Francis for her ‘miraculous’ work, the Vatican confirmed yesterday.
The Pope has cleared the way for sainthood next year by recognising a second miracle she apparently performed on a seriously ill man in Brazil 11 years after she died.
To become a saint, a figure must have performed two miracles – and have those miracles recognised by the Catholic church. No date was set for the canonisation, but Italian media have speculated that the ceremony will take place in the first week of September — to coincide with the anniversary of her death and during Francis’ Holy Year of Mercy. Known as ‘ the Saint of the Gutters’, the nun, who died in 1997 aged 87, became synonymous with charitable work for the poor.
Sunita Kumar, a spokesman for Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity religious order said the nuns were ‘ over the moon’ about the decision.
Mrs Kumar, who works for the charity in Calcutta, India, where Mother Teresa lived and worked, explained: ‘We thought her whole life was a miracle.’
Thomas D’Souza, the Archbishop of Calcutta said the news was ‘ the best Christmas gift one can get.’ ‘We are grateful to God and we are extremely happy,’ he added. Confirming the move, the Vatican said yesterday: ‘ The Holy Father has authorised the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to proclaim the decree concerning the miracle attributed to the intercession of blessed Mother Teresa.’
The Macedonia-born nun was beatified in 2003 by the late Pope John Paul II – which is the first step towards sainthood.
He had waived the normal five-year waiting period for her beatification process to begin, launching it a year after she died. Beautification requires one miracle, which was recognised as her healing of an Indian woman suffering from an abdominal tumour. Mother Teresa’s second miracle involved the ‘inexplicable’ healing of a Brazilian man who was suffering from a viral brain infection that resulted in multiple abscesses.
However, she came under fire earlier this year when the head of Hindu nationalist group Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, claimed she was primarily interested in religious conversions.
Mohan Bhagwat, said: ‘ It’s good to work for a cause with selfless intentions.
‘But Mother Teresa’s work had an ulterior motive, which was to convert the person who was being served to Christianity.’ Princess Diana met Mother Teresa at the Sisters of Mercy church in New York in June 1997. Both women died five days apart later that same summer.
‘Best Christmas gift one can get’