If Job can question the plan of Providence and if Jesus can cry out “Father, Father, why hast thou forsaken me”, then Mother Teresa can, without tarnish or shame, be admired in the midst of her doubts and fears. In the matter of fact, such personal struggles may demonstrate proof of the miraculous in her life. Mother Teresa walked on her own Via Dolorosa.
Her personal writings expose the fact that not only did she doubt and question God, but she also doubted and questioned herself. That petite fragile woman demonstrates to all of us, even after death, that her strength came not only from her commitment to God and church, but also in the distribution of provision that a times she lacked.
She gave hope, when hope at times she had none. She gave faith when at night she wrestled with unbelief. She spoke on behalf of peace, when her soul was at war. She took care of the orphans when she felt abandoned by her heavenly father.
One of the qualifications for Sainthood requires validation of miracles in the midst of ministry. What greater miracle can one demonstrate than to give what at times, you may not have? Is this not what truly makes one a Saint? Is a Saint one that is perfect, flawless, faith filled and unmoved? Or could a Saint be a hungry soul who feeds, a doubting spirit who imparts belief, and an impoverished life filled by the very act of charity?
Mother Teresa is no longer that petite fragile woman in the midst of poverty. Today, she stands tall. Her journey teaches us that faith and fear at times walk together.
At the end of the day, she reached out to the poorest of the poor not exclusively at the impetus of her religion but also as a result of the fact that she knew first hand, in her soul, what it felt like to go to bed hungry, lonely and at war. Yet she kept on giving. Her struggles made her human; her actions may very well make her a Saint.
Please e-mail On Faith if you'd like to receive an email notification when On Faith sends out a new question.
Email Me | Del.icio.us | Digg | Facebook
