"I was to leave the convent and help the poor while living among them. It was an order. To fail would have been to break the faith."
These were the words of a lady who gave a new dimension to humanity by choosing to help those whom she termed 'poorest among the poor.' Mother Teresa was not just a messenger from God to those whose life she changed forever for the better but also a role model to millions of women all across the globe.

Born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu to Nikollë and Drana Bojaxhiu on 26 August, 1910, she was always fascinated by the stories of the lives of Missionaries and their services, especially in Bengal. As she was growing up, her passion for humanity kept increasing and she finally left home at the age of 18 to join the Sisters of Loreto and commit herself to a religious life.

Agnes initially went to Loreto Abbey in Rathfarnham, Ireland to learn English which would help her teach school children in India. She came to India in 1929 and started teaching at St. Teresa's School. She took her first religious vows in 1931 and opted for the name Thérèse de Lisieux, the patron saint of missionaries. But due to the unavailability of the name, she opted for the Spanish spelling, Teresa.

Teresa took her solemn vows in 1937 while serving as a teacher at the Loreto Convent School in eastern Calcutta. Although she enjoyed teaching at the school, her mind was always at a state of unrest due to the increasing poverty around her. The Bengal Famine of 1943 and the Calcutta Riots of 1946 further plunged the city into despair, leaving an indelible mark on her mind.

Finally, on September 10, 1946, Teresa experienced 'the call within the call' while travelling by a train from Calcutta to Darjeeling for her annual retreat at the Loreto Convent. That was the eventful day when Teresa realized her true mission in life and began her journey from being simply Teresa to becoming Mother Teresa.

In 1948, Teresa abandoned her traditional Loreto habits and started her missionary work with the poor, clad in a simple white cotton sari with a blue border. She soon adopted Indian citizenship and versed herself with basic medical training in Patna. Teresa then ventured into the slums to attend to the needs of the destitute and starving. She was soon joined by a group of young women who laid the foundations of a new religious community to help the 'poorest among the poor.'

Although her initial years were fraught with difficulties and frustrations, when she even had to resort to begging for survival, she never lost hope and continued her efforts to help the poor and the homeless. Her efforts soon gained momentum and attention from higher authorities, even attracting praise from the then Prime Minister of India.

Teresa got the Vatican permission in 1950 to begin the diocesan congregation which would later become the famous 'Missionaries of Charity.' The mission was simple - to help the poor, the hungry, the homeless, the blind, the lepers and the crippled; people who have become a burden to the society and have been shunned by everyone.

Teresa, however, did not restrict herself only to India. In 1982, she travelled through the war zone at the height of Siege of Beirut, during the 1982 Lebanon War, with a handful of Red Cross workers to rescue 37 children trapped in a devastated hospital. She also assisted and volunteered for the hungry in Ethiopia, radiation victims in Chernobyl and earthquake victims in Armenia. In 1991, she returned to her homeland and opened the Missionaries of Charity Brothers home in Tirana, Albania.

Mother Teresa was bestowed with many top honours all across the globe for her selfless efforts to help the 'poorest of the poor' including the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 and Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in 1980. Following her death in 1997, she was beatified by Pope John Paul II and given the title of 'Blessed Teresa of Calcutta'.

Today, the Missionaries of Charity consists of over 4500 sisters across 133 countries. Mother Teresa may have left this world more than a decade ago but her legacy lives on, giving the light of hope to the poor and the homeless, and inspiration to many young women all around the world.

Team MSN She