Mother Teresa, also known as Saint Teresa of Calcutta, was a Catholic nun who dedicated her life to serving the poor and sick. She was born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu on August 26, 1910 in Skopje, Kosovo Vilayet (then part of the Ottoman Empire, now the capital of North Macedonia).
At the age of 18, Agnes left her home in Skopje to join the Sisters of Loreto, an Irish order of nuns, in Dublin, Ireland. She took the name Sister Mary Teresa after St. Therese of Lisieux, the patron saint of missionaries. In 1929, Sister Mary Teresa was sent to Calcutta, India, where she taught at St. Mary's High School for Girls.
In 1946, while on a train trip to Darjeeling, Sister Mary Teresa experienced a profound spiritual transformation that she referred to as "the call within a call." She felt a strong desire to leave the convent and serve the poor and sick on the streets of Calcutta. In 1948, with the permission of her superiors, Sister Mary Teresa left the convent and began working with the poor and sick in Calcutta's slums.
Over the next several decades, Mother Teresa (as she came to be known) dedicated herself to serving the poor, sick, and dying in Calcutta. She founded the Missionaries of Charity, a religious order of nuns that was dedicated to helping the poor, and opened hospitals, orphanages, and homes for the sick and dying. Mother Teresa's work with the poor and sick earned her international recognition and numerous awards, including the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979.
Mother Teresa continued to serve the poor and sick until her death on September 5, 1997. Today, she is remembered as a symbol of selfless service and compassion, and her work has inspired millions of people around the world to follow in her footsteps and serve others. In 2016, Pope Francis declared Mother Teresa a saint, recognizing her selfless dedication to helping the poor and sick.
