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Did 'Mother Teresa' deserve beatification?

I've heard that she was truly a saint, and I've heard that she was something less-than.  I figured that the truth was probably somewhere in between, and dependent upon the interpretation and values of the person judging her life.

There is a paper soon to be published that dispels many of the myths surrounding this woman of charity, showing that her image was something created by the media - that she was stingy, and actually thought that the suffering of the sick and the poor was a good thing, and used that to justify limiting real aid to those who needed help the most.

She was quoted as saying, “There is something beautiful in seeing the poor accept their lot, to suffer it like Christ’s Passion. The world gains much from their suffering.”

Here's an article about the paper.

What is gained by elevating a person's status to "saint", when in real life, they really did very little to help those they were credited to helping? 

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jsbenkert

Asked by jsbenkert at 11:44 PM on Mar. 1, 2013 in Religious Debate

Level 37 (87,630 Credits)
Answers (26)
  • I am not going to debate whether she was or was not.
    #1 it is not up to me to judge
    and #2 I have no experience with her or in researching any of it myself.

    A person is beatified if there is reason they MAY qualify for sainthood. It is a long process and actual verifiable miracles must have been witnessed and recorded to become a saint.
    Hundreds of years ago most of the evidence was hearsay and of course the science was not sophisticated enough to really verify it as we can now. You work with what you have.
    IMO it will be very hard for Mother Theresa to become a saint at this time in history. Not impossible but extremely hard.
    Given my nature and what I have simply been told she was a good woman who chose to work with those who were suffering and
    sick and realizing that she could become just as ill as they were. I can go with a Blessed Mother Theresa until there is evidence (hard facts) one way or the other.
    Dardenella

    Answer by Dardenella at 12:03 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

  • It looks like there's plenty of evidence against her, if you read the article.
    jsbenkert

    Comment by jsbenkert (original poster) at 12:06 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

  • One article in a paper is not what I would call enough evidence either to make her a saint or a demon.

    I am not trying to be rude but this has gotten me curious why you would even care. It is fine that you do, I just wonder why is all.
    Dardenella

    Answer by Dardenella at 12:11 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

  • I came across this article, and find it interesting for a Religious Debate section topic.


    If you read the article, you would find that the authors of the paper have done extensive research.  I'm not demonizing the woman, I'm just asking why there was a push to declare her a saint, when a look at her life and what she actually stood for seems questionable.
    jsbenkert

    Comment by jsbenkert (original poster) at 12:13 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

  • I do see your point and the points the authors made and I do see there are many questions to be answered. To be perfectly honest it does not matter to the majority of Catholics in the US if someone becomes a saint or not. I will admit it was kind off fun knowing there was at least one considered in the US. It doesn't really mean anything to us except that saintly people do exist in theis world. So I suppose it might just be a beacon of hope .
    The term blessed or beatified is just one for anyone under consideration and it can be just as easily removed. Even those declared saints can be reconsidered and removed. I personally can't find a good reason to do that either though.

    Yes it is a good question for discussion.
    Again, though, Iseriously doubt that she will become a saint.
    Dardenella

    Answer by Dardenella at 12:23 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

  • that should be ..declared a saint
    Dardenella

    Answer by Dardenella at 12:23 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

  • I am not catholic. Hell I am not even Christian. But I am able to read. I actually had to stop several paragraphs into the article.
    It was such a hack piece.
    Even the movie "In The Name Of God's Poor" admitted/acknowledged the woman was nothing more than human. With a human's failings.
    I am curious why these persons attempted to dispel the myth of the saint
    feralxat

    Answer by feralxat at 12:28 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

  • I don't believe that paper. I have a family friend that was in a traveling Christian musical group (Celebrant Singers). She met Mother Teresa more than once and has always had kind, glowing, amazing words to say about Mother Teresa. My family friend's face just lights up every time she talked about her meetings and time with her.

    One story: MT had just had (another) heart bypass surgery. She was home and recovering and the Prime Minister wanted to pay a call to see how she was doing. MT put him off, claiming she was still pretty tired and needed her rest. The representative for the group called and asked if the group could stop by. She opened her doors with a huge smile and was happy to see them.
    Rosehawk

    Answer by Rosehawk at 1:15 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

  • She was quoted as saying, “There is something beautiful in seeing the poor accept their lot, to suffer it like Christ’s Passion. The world gains much from their suffering.”

    What that quote implies to me is not stinginess or hard-heartedness. It implies that the poor are inspiring to some in how they suffer their situations with dignity.

    I'm sure I'm about to get shredded again, nothing new; I think that for everything good in the world, religious or otherwise, there are always a few people who want to see it torn down. If we can tarnish such a woman as Mother Teresa, if we can sully her reputation, what a victory for cynicism!
    Ballad

    Answer by Ballad at 2:09 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

  • I don't know if Mother Teresa should be made saint.


    There is a lot to criticize about any person, and I'm sure she had many faults like the rest of us. Mother Teresa had to work within the framework of India. This article just seems to a lame attack on religion with very few  facts based on one study that lacks real research and an independent review.  I came away thinking the science blog really feels threatened by religion.  This would never pass as a scientific article in a science journal. 
    RyansMom001

    Answer by RyansMom001 at 5:50 AM on Mar. 2, 2013

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