On Mondays, I answer questions frequently asked by those considering a return to the Catholic Church. How do I know this stuff? I was away for more than 30 years myself, and am the co-author of When They Come Home: Ways to Welcome Returning Catholics, a book for pastors and parish leaders interested in this ministry.
Why did Mother Teresa of Calcutta become a saint? I’ve heard a lot of bad things about her.
Teresa wasn’t perfect. She probably would have been the first one to tell you that. And yes, there
were criticisms of the conditions of her clinics, her relationships with less than savory world leaders, and her very strong desire to win conversions to Catholicism.
She and her congregation also saved and continue to save a lot of lives, and made and make the final moments for those who are dying a bit more bearable.
The Catholic Church teaches we are all saints in the making; we are all called to holiness. The lives of those who are proposed for the formal canonization process are examined as they progress (or don’t) from being declared a servant of God to venerable to beatification to canonization. Typically, canonization requires martyrdom or two proven miracles caused by the candidate’s intercession, though the pope also can declare someone as a saint without the proven miracles.
With the exception of Mary, who was born without the taint of original sin, there’s never been a canonized saint yet and never will be who didn’t sin during his or her time on earth. What makes Teresa and the others worthy of emulating and praying with is the work that they did after their acknowledgment of their shortcomings, armed with the Lord’s forgiveness and their faith in His goodness. May we all learn to do the same.
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