Mother Teresa

Born Agnes Gonxha in Albania, Mother Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charity and spent much of her life in Calcutta, caring for the sick and poor.

Mother Teresa

They call her the ‘Angel of Mercy’. She was the  symbol of compassion worldwide; she didn’t think twice before touching a leper on the road or cleaning a wound on an unfortunate soul. She was equally at ease breaking bread with the homeless at Nirmal Hriday, her adopted neighborhood in Bombay, or standing toe-to-toe with world leaders exhorting them to do good. The world knows her as Mother Teresa. Social workers all around the world have drawn inspiration from her work and commitment to her cause.

Mother Teresa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and, in 2003, ‘beatified’ by the Vatican, making her just one step below sainthood, confirming her status as one of the Christian faith’s most iconic figures.

Similarly, when one pays a visit to Mother House, the heart of the 58-year-old Missionaries of Charity founded by Mother Teresa, one doesn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Sisters in the well recognized blue-bordered white saris go about their work. Locals come in ones and twos, bow in front of a statue of the woman they fondly call Maa and go inside the small chapel where her body has been resting for 13 years. In the chapel a group of sisters are kneeling, singing hymns.

However researchers have discovered a more sinister aspect to the life and work of Mother Teresa after her death. Concerns have been raised over her ‘suspicious’ financial arrangements, which saw large sums of money transferred to her ‘secret’ bank accounts.

Mother Teresa

The missionaries set up by Mother Teresa have also been called into question were unfit for their inhabitants, calling them ‘homes for the dying’ due to their poor hygiene and a shortage of food, care and medication.

The researchers believe a lack of money cannot be the reason for the poor conditions however, as Mother Teresa raised hundreds of millions of pounds during her lifetime, although much of that money apparently appears to have vanished into several ‘secret’ bank accounts reportedly kept by the nun.

The researchers also questioned why, despite openly offering prayers and medallions bearing depictions of the Virgin Mary, Mother Teresa provided no direct or monetary aid to victims of a number of natural disasters in India. There are also several cases of Mother Teresa denying essential pain killers to her patients dying on the death bed, exhorting them to feel the pain of Christ during his crucifixion, allowing themselves to become better followers of the faith.

Whatever the truth may be, the important lesson to take away from this is that one should challenge and question the supposed ‘truth’ that is taught to us. It is always necessary to scratch the surface and not blindly accept all the major discourses of today. It is only through the spirit of self-reflection that we will be able to develop as individuals.