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The Call
Both before Nikola's death and especially after it, the
Bojaxhiu family held tightly to their religious beliefs.
The family prayed daily and went on pilgrimages
annually.
When Mother Teresa was 12 years old, she began to
feel called to serve God as a nun. Deciding to
become a nun was a very difficult decision.
Becoming a nun not only meant giving up the chance
to marry and have children, it also meant giving up
Becoming a Nun
It took more than two years to become a Loreto nun.
After spending six weeks in Ireland learning the
history of the Loreto order and to study English,
Mother Teresa then traveled to India, where she
arrived on January 6, 1929.
After two years as a novice, Mother Teresa took her
first vows as a Loreto nun on May 24, 1931.
As a new Loreto nun, Mother Teresa (known then
only as Sister Teresa, a name she chose after St.
Teresa of Lisieux) settled in to the Loreto Entally
convent in Kolkata (previously called Calcutta) and
began teaching history and geography at the convent
schools.
Usually, Loreto nuns were not allowed to leave the
convent; however, in 1935, 25-year-old Mother
Teresa was given a special exemption to teach at a
school outside of the convent, St. Teresa's. After two
years at St. Teresa's, Mother Teresa took her final
vows on May 24, 1937 and officially became
"Mother Teresa."
Almost immediately after taking her final vows,
Mother Teresa became the principal of St. Mary's,
one of the convent schools and was once again
restricted to live within the convent's walls.
of
Founding
the
Charity
Missionaries
International Recognition
Just before the Missionaries of Charity celebrated its
10th anniversary, they were given permission to
establish houses outside of Calcutta, but still within
India. Almost immediately, houses were established
in Delhi, Ranchi, and Jhansi; more soon followed.
For their 15th anniversary, the Missionaries of
Charity was given permission to establish houses
outside of India. The first house was established in
Venezuela in 1965. Soon there were Missionaries of
Charity houses all around the world.
As Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity expanded
at an amazing rate, so did international recognition
for her work. Although Mother Teresa was awarded
numerous honors, including theNobel Peace Prize in
1979, she never took personal credit for her
accomplishments. She said it was God's work and
that she was just the tool used to facilitate it.
Controversy
With international recognition also came critique.
Some people complained that the houses for the sick
and dying were not sanitary, that those treating the
sick were not properly trained in medicine, that
Mother Teresa was more interested in helping the
dying go to God than in potentially helping cure
them. Others claimed that she helped people just so
she could convert them to Christianity.
Mother Teresa also caused much controversy when
she openly spoke against abortion and birth control.
Others critiqued her because they believed that with
her new celebrity status, she could have worked to
end the poverty rather than soften its symptoms.