Mother Teresa is widely praised for doing charitable works, caring for the sick, and

condemning abortion. She founded the Missionaries of Charity, a religious congregation that
cares for people dying of leprosy, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS. This congregation also runs soup
kitchens, mobile clinics, orphanages, and schools. Mother Teresa recently became a saint of the
Roman Catholic Church, 19 years after her death. Pope Francis has proclaimed her a saint on
September 4 in front of Saint Peters masses. This reignited criticism of Mother Teresa and her
congregation.
Mother Teresa has lived with compassion and strong dedication to her calling of aiding
impoverished people all around the world. With her skills, she managed to build international
organizations of missionaries whose goal centered on her cause. Starting as a nun at the age of
18, Mother Teresa dedicated herself to teach girls belonging to the poorest families, educating
and relieving them from poverty. However, as she found her calling to aid Calcuttas poorest and
sickest people, she left the convent, established a home for the dying and founded Missionaries
of Charity, a new congregation. The growing recognition of her work helped in collecting
abundant donations, later on used for establishing a leper colony, an orphanage, a nursing
home, a family clinic, mobile health clinics and a home to care for HIV/AIDS patients. She also
travelled to different places, aiding children of any religion. Besides disagreeing with Irelands
end to ban divorce and remarriage, she was also against contraception and abortion,
considering the latter as a destroyer of peace. She received numerous awards such as Jewel
of India and Nobel Peace Prize for helping those in suffering. Five years after Mother Teresas
death, a miracle was recognized and she was beatified as Blessed Teresa of Calcutta by Pope
John Paul II. Mother Teresa became a human figure of inspiration for those in doubt of their
beliefs as she was before. Moreover, her countless charitable works made her one of the
greatest humanitarians of the 20th century. Many consider her a living symbol of selflessness;
however, the canonization of Mother Teresa resurfaced past researches, questioning the truth of
her life and works.