Biography of Mother Teresa — Mother Teresa, born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, was a Catholic nun who dedicated her life to serving the poor in Kolkata. She founded the Missionaries of Charity and is remembered worldwide for her compassion.
Early Life
Mother Teresa was born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu on 26 August 1910 in Skopje, in present-day North Macedonia. From a young age, she felt a calling to serve the poor. This feeling became an important part of her life and later guided her toward religious service. Her early years in Skopje came before she joined the Sisters of Loreto and began her journey toward India. The desire to help poor people remained closely connected with her work throughout her life and became the foundation of her later service.
The calling she felt during her youth shaped the direction of Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu’s life. Her journey eventually took her from Skopje to India, where she would spend many years working and serving people in need. Her early interest in serving the poor became more than a personal feeling as she moved toward religious life. In time, she became known as Mother Teresa, a name closely connected with care for poor people and those needing support.
Becoming a Nun and Going to India
Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu joined the Sisters of Loreto and was sent to India in 1929. This was an important step in her religious journey and brought her to a country where she would spend much of her life. After arriving in India, she began working as a teacher. Her religious life and teaching work became the beginning of her long connection with Kolkata and the people she would later serve.
Mother Teresa taught at a school in Calcutta, now known as Kolkata. Teaching became part of her early work in India before she decided to work directly among the poorest people in the city. Her years with the Sisters of Loreto connected her religious life with education. The experience she gained in Kolkata eventually preceded a major change in her work, when she left the convent in 1948 to serve people living in poverty.
Work Among the Poor in Calcutta
In 1948, Mother Teresa left the convent to work among the poorest people in Calcutta. This decision marked a major change in her life and brought her directly into work with people who needed care and support. Her earlier calling to serve the poor now became the focus of her daily work. Kolkata became the central place for this service, and her activities there later developed into a larger organisation dedicated to helping people in need.
Her work among the poorest people in the city included caring for the sick, the dying, and orphans. These groups became an important focus of the service associated with Mother Teresa. Her work moved beyond teaching and religious life into direct care for people facing serious difficulties. The decision she made in 1948 therefore became a defining stage of her journey and eventually led to the creation of the Missionaries of Charity.
Missionaries of Charity
Mother Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950. The organisation became closely connected with her work among people in need. Its activities included providing care for the sick, the dying, and orphans. The foundation of the organisation gave her service a wider structure and allowed the work she had begun among the poorest people in Kolkata to continue through an organised effort focused on care and support.
The Missionaries of Charity became an important part of Mother Teresa’s life and work. The organisation’s service focused on people who needed care, including the sick, the dying, and orphans. Its creation followed her decision in 1948 to leave the convent and work among the poorest people in Calcutta. Through the organisation, her early calling to serve poor people became connected with a continuing programme of care in Kolkata.
Awards and Recognition
Mother Teresa received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. This was an important international recognition of her work and brought wider attention to her service. The following year, in 1980, she received the Bharat Ratna. These honours became major parts of her public recognition during her lifetime. Her work in Kolkata and through the Missionaries of Charity had already become closely associated with caring for people who were sick, dying, or without family support.
The Nobel Peace Prize and Bharat Ratna were among the major honours connected with Mother Teresa’s life. She received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 and the Bharat Ratna in 1980. Her work continued to focus on care for the sick, the dying, and orphans. These recognitions reflected the international and national attention given to her service. Her religious journey, beginning with the Sisters of Loreto and continuing through the Missionaries of Charity, remained central to her public life.
Legacy
Mother Teresa died on 5 September 1997 in Kolkata. Her life had included her birth as Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu in Skopje, her decision to join the Sisters of Loreto, her arrival in India in 1929, and her later work among the poorest people in Calcutta. She founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950 and became known for caring for the sick, the dying, and orphans. Her death marked the end of a life devoted to religious service and care for people in need.
Mother Teresa was beatified in 2003 and canonized in 2016. These events became important parts of her lasting legacy. Her life in India included teaching at a school in Calcutta, leaving the convent in 1948, and establishing the Missionaries of Charity. She also received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 and the Bharat Ratna in 1980. From her early calling to serve the poor to her work in Kolkata, her life remains closely associated with service and care for disadvantaged people.
Quick Facts about Mother Teresa
- Born: Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, 26 August 1910, Skopje
- Order: Sisters of Loreto (joined), Missionaries of Charity (founded 1950)
- Honours: Nobel Peace Prize (1979), Bharat Ratna (1980)
- Died: 5 September 1997, Kolkata
Timeline of Mother Teresa’s Life
- 1910 – Born in Skopje
- 1929 – Sent to India
- 1948 – Began working among the poorest in Calcutta
- 1950 – Founded Missionaries of Charity
- 1979 – Nobel Peace Prize
- 1997 – Passed away in Kolkata
- 2016 – Canonized
Why Mother Teresa’s Story Matters Today
Mother Teresa’s life shows how compassion can turn into organised service for people who are often forgotten. Students and volunteers can learn from her focus on dignity, care and direct action for those in need.
Recommended Book on Mother Teresa
If you want to read more about Mother Teresa, the book Mother Teresa: An Authorized Biography by Kathryn Spink is a good place to start. You can search for it on Amazon India here: Buy Mother Teresa: An Authorized Biography on Amazon
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Mother Teresa?
She was a Catholic nun who founded the Missionaries of Charity and worked among the poor in Kolkata.
When did Mother Teresa win the Nobel Peace Prize?
She won it in 1979.
Where did Mother Teresa die?
She died on 5 September 1997 in Kolkata.
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