Do you want to know more about the life of Mother Teresa? If so, you have come to the right article. It will inform you of various facts about Mother Teresa so that you will have more insights about his life. However, before we get into the facts, why don’t you read a little background about Mother Teresa.
Who is Mother Teresa?
Mother Teresa is best known for all the work she did to help the poor. However, this article will show that Mother Teresa was more than just a nun who helped the poor people. Mother Teresa made her way into this world on August 26, 1910, in Kosovo Vilayet, Ottoman Empire, which is now present-day Skopje, Republic of Macedonia. Her parents, Nikollë and Dranafile Bojaxhiu, named their daughter, Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu. From the days of her childhood, Mother Teresa became interested in the work of missionaries and by the age of 12, realized that she wanted to live a religious life. She took the name Teresa on May 24, 1931, when she took her first religious vows.
Interesting facts about Mother Teresa
1. She did not consider August 26th to be her true birthday.
While Mother Teresa was born on August 26, 1910, she did not consider this to be her real birthday. The reason for this was because of her passion for religion. The day after her day of birth, August 27, 1910, was the day she was baptized into her faith. This was also the day that Mother Teresa considered to be her true birthday.
2. Her family was financially secure.
The belief among many people is that Mother Teresa became so passionate about helping the poor because she grew up poor. However, this is not true. In fact, Mother Teresa’s family lived well. While they were not extremely rich, they did have enough money to cover expenses and owned two homes.
3. Mother Teresa considered her home to be India.
She left home at 18 to start her religious journey of becoming a nun. At the age of 19, she moved to India where she stayed. While she was not born and raised in India, she considered India to be her home for the rest of her life. In fact, Mother Teresa often stated that by blood she was Albanian but by citizenship, she was Indian.
4. She never saw her family members again.
This is an unfortunate Mother Teresa facts, but when Mother Teresa left home at the age of 18, she was never able to see her parents or siblings again. In fact, she never saw any of his family members for the rest of her life. Her life becomes completed dedicated to her faith, life as a nun, and work towards helping the less fortunate.
5. She was a teacher.
Not only did Mother Teresa spend her life dedicated to the Lord, but she also spent her life teaching. She received a position teaching at Loreto Convent School in Eastern Calcutta in the mid-1920s. After teaching there for two decades, she received a promotion and became the school’s headmistress in 1944.
6. She started Missionaries of Charity.
After receiving permission from the Vatican, Mother Teresa established a new congregation called the Missionaries of Charity in 1950. Today, it is known in the Catholic Church by the name of Saint Teresa of Calcutta. With over 4,000 members today, the missionaries work to take care of the mentally ill, handicapped, poor, former prostitutes, those diagnosed with AIDS, the elderly, sick children, and abandoned children.
7. Mother Teresa received a Nobel Peace Prize.
On October 17, 1979, Mother Teresa was awarded one of the highest honors in the world when she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize. This award was given to her because of all her work she did with the poor, helping build homes for orphan children, and other missionary work. Upon receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, Mother Teresa became the first woman in India to accept the award.
8. She received a call within a call.
In 1946, Mother Teresa stated that she received a call within a call. She stated that Jesus came to her in a vision and told her that she needed to abandon her teaching role and job as headmistress. Then, he told her to head to the streets of Calcutta where she would help the poor and the sick.
9. She continued to unofficially teach in Calcutta.
After she arrived in Calcutta, Mother Teresa immediate started her calling as she began to help the poor, sick, and the children. One of the ways she helped the children was by teaching them how to read and write. Even though she had no supplies to teach, she would teach the children how to write by writing words in the dirt.
I hope that these facts about Mother Teresa were helpful to you. For more information, visit historical figures page.