It’s Official: ‘Saint’ Mother Teresa... from ZENIT in Roswell, Georgia, United States for Sunday, 4 September 2016

It’s Official: ‘Saint’ Mother Teresa... from ZENIT in Roswell, Georgia, United States for Sunday, 4 September 2016
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It’s Official: ‘Saint’ Mother Teresa by Deborah Castellano Lubov
“I think, perhaps, we may have some difficulty in calling her “Saint Teresa”: her holiness is so near to us, so tender and so fruitful that we continual to spontaneously call her ‘Mother Teresa.'”
Pope Francis deviated from his prepared text to say this during his homily at the canonization of Blessed Mother Teresa, held in St. Peter’s Square this morning.
In his homily, Francis prayed, “May this tireless worker of mercy help us increasingly to understand that our only criterion for action is gratuitous love, free from every ideology and all obligations, offered freely to everyone without distinction of language, culture, race or religion.”
Mother Teresa loved to say, he recalled: ‘Perhaps I don’t speak their language, but I can smile.’
“Let us carry her smile in our hearts and give it to those whom we meet along our journey, especially those who suffer. In this way, we will open up opportunities of joy and hope for our many brothers and sisters who are discouraged and who stand in need of understanding and tenderness.”
God’s Will in Our Lives
The Holy Father also had the some 120,000 gathered for the canonization think about their own lives: “Our task is to perceive the call of God and then to do his will. But in order to do his will, we must ask ourselves, “What is God’s will in my life?”
He reminded them that, in order to ascertain the call of God, we must ask ourselves and understand what pleases God.
“God is pleased by every act of mercy,” he said, “because in the brother or sister that we assist, we recognize the face of God which no one can see (cf. Jn 1:18). Each time we bend down to the needs of our brothers and sisters, we give Jesus something to eat and drink; we clothe, we help, and we visit the Son of God (cf. Mt 25:40).”
Given this, the Jesuit Pontiff urged all faithful to translate that which they invoke in prayer and profess in faith into concrete acts.
No Alternative to Charity
“There is no alternative to charity: those who put themselves at the service of others, even when they don’t know it, are those who love God (cf. 1 Jn 3:16-18;Jas 2:14-18).”
However, he warned, the Christian life “is not merely extending a hand in times of need.” If it is just this, Francis warned, it can certainly still be “a lovely expression of human solidarity which offers immediate benefits, but it is sterile because it lacks roots.”
On the contrary, the Pope underscored, the task which the Lord gives us is the ‘vocation to charity.’
“Following Jesus is a serious task, and, at the same time, one is filled with joy; it takes a certain daring and courage to recognize the divine Master in the poorest of the poor and to give oneself in their service,” he said, adding: “In order to do so, volunteers, who out of love of Jesus serve the poor and the needy, do not expect any thanks or recompense; rather they renounce all this because they have discovered true love.”
Dispenser of Divine Mercy
“Mother Teresa, in all aspects of her life,” the Holy Father reflected, “was a generous dispenser of divine mercy, making herself available for everyone through her welcome and defense of human life, those unborn and those abandoned and discarded.”
“She was committed to defending life, ceaselessly proclaiming that “the unborn are the weakest, the smallest, the most vulnerable.”
Continuing to applaud the little sister, Francis noted, “She bowed down before those who were spent, left to die on the side of the road, seeing in them their God-given dignity; she made her voice heard before the powers of this world, so that they might recognize their guilt for the crime of poverty they created.”
Mercy Was Her ‘Salt’ and ‘Light’
For Mother Teresa, Francis explained, mercy was the “salt” which gave flavor to her work, it was the “light” which shone in the darkness of the many who no longer had tears to shed for their poverty and suffering.
“Her mission to the urban and existential peripheries remains for us today an eloquent witness to God’s closeness to the poorest of the poor,” he said.
Today, the Pontiff prayed, “I pass on this emblematic figure of womanhood and of consecrated life to the whole world of volunteers: may she be your model of holiness!”
Teresa’s Journey to Sainthood
In a private meeting with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, in the Vatican months ago, Pope Francis authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to promulgate a decree regarding a miracle attributed to the intercession of Blessed Teresa, known as Mother Teresa around the world.
Born Aug. 26, 1910, Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu would go on to found the Congregation of the Missionaries of Charity and the Missionaries of Charity. The order, which started in Calcutta and spread to more than 130 countries, ran hospices for those suffering from HIV/AIDS, leprosy, and tuberculosis. Known for her charitable works with the poor and sick, the soon to be canonized saint, died on Sept. 5, 1997.
Immediately following her death in 1997, the Catholic Church began her process of beatification. She was beatified by St. John Paul II in 2002, following the recognition of the miraculous healing of an Indian woman suffering from a tumor in her abdomen. Yesterday, Pope Francis signed off on the second miracle needed, which, according to the newspaper of the Italian bishops’ conference, L’Avvenire, regarded a man in Brazil in 2008 who had multiple brain abscesses, and who, within a day of being in a coma, was cured.
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On ZENIT’s Web page:
Pope’s Homily: https://zenit.org/articles/pope-francis-homily-at-canonization-of-blessed-teresa/
Full Translation of Angelus Address: https://zenit.org/articles/popes-angelus-address-at-canonization-of-mother-teresa/

Pope’s Angelus Address at Canonization of Mother Teresa by ZENIT Staff
Here is a ZENIT translation of Pope Francis’ Angelus address following the canonization of Mother Teresa, held in St. Peter’s Square this morning:
***
Before the Angelus:
While we prepare to close this celebration, I wish to greet and thank all of you who have taken part.
First of all, all the Missionaries of Charity, who are the spiritual family of Mother Teresa. May your holy founder always watch you on your way and help you remain faithful to God, to the Church and to the poor.
With grateful deference, I greet the distinguished authorities present, in particular those of the countries linked to the figure of the new saint, as well as the official delegations and the numerous pilgrims who have come from these countries on this happy occasion. God bless your nations.
With affection, I greet all of you, dear volunteers and workers of mercy. I entrust you to the protection of Mother Teresa: May she teach you to contemplate and adore Jesus Crucified every day in order to recognize Him and serve Him in our need brothers and sisters. We also ask this grace also for all those who have joined us through the media, in every part of the world.
At this time, I would like to remember how much you serve others in difficult and risky environments. I am thinking especially of so many religious who give their lives unsparingly. We pray especially for Spanish missionary nun, Sister Isabel [Sister Isabel Sola Macas], who was killed two days ago in the capital of Haiti, a country so tormented, for which I pray for an end to such acts of violence and for greater security for all. We also remember other sisters that recently have experienced violence in other countries.
We do this by turning our prayers to the Virgin Mary, Mother and Queen of all saints.[Original text: Italian] [Translation by Deborah Castellano Lubov]

Pope Francis’ Homily at Canonization of Blessed Teresa by ZENIT Staff
Here is the Vatican-provided translation of Pope Francis’ homily at the canonization of Blessed Mother Teresa, held in St. Peter’s Square this morning:
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“Who can learn the counsel of God?” (Wis 9:13). This question from the Book of Wisdom that we have just heard in the first reading suggests that our life is a mystery and that we do not possess the key to understanding it. There are always two protagonists in history: God and man. Our task is to perceive the call of God and then to do his will. But in order to do his will, we must ask ourselves, “What is God’s will in my life?”
We find the answer in the same passage of the Book of Wisdom: “People were taught what pleases you” (Wis 9:18). In order to ascertain the call of God, we must ask ourselves and understand what pleases God. On many occasions the prophets proclaimed what was pleasing to God. Their message found a wonderful synthesis in the words “I want mercy, not sacrifice” (Hos 6:6; Mt9:13). God is pleased by every act of mercy, because in the brother or sister that we assist, we recognize the face of God which no one can see (cf. Jn 1:18). Each time we bend down to the needs of our brothers and sisters, we give Jesus something to eat and drink; we clothe, we help, and we visit the Son of God (cf. Mt25:40). In a word, we touch the flesh of Christ.
We are thus called to translate into concrete acts that which we invoke in prayer and profess in faith. There is no alternative to charity: those who put themselves at the service of others, even when they don’t know it, are those who love God (cf. 1 Jn 3:16-18; Jas 2:14-18). The Christian life, however, is not merely extending a hand in times of need. If it is just this, it can be, certainly, a lovely expression of human solidarity which offers immediate benefits, but it is sterile because it lacks roots. The task which the Lord gives us, on the contrary, is thevocation to charity in which each of Christ’s disciples puts his or her entire life at his service, so to grow each day in love.
We heard in the Gospel, “Large crowds were travelling with Jesus” (Lk14:25). Today, this “large crowd” is seen in the great number of volunteers who have come together for the Jubilee of Mercy. You are that crowd who follows the Master and who makes visible his concrete love for each person. I repeat to you the words of the Apostle Paul: “I have indeed received much joy and comfort from your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you” (Philem 1:7). How many hearts have been comforted by volunteers! How many hands they have held; how many tears they have wiped away; how much love has been poured out in hidden, humble and selfless service! This praiseworthy service gives voice to the faith – it gives voice to the faith! – and expresses the mercy of the Father, who draws near to those in need.
Following Jesus is a serious task, and, at the same time, one filled with joy; it takes a certain daring and courage to recognize the divine Master in the poorest of the poor and those who are cast aside, and to give oneself in their service. In order to do so, volunteers, who out of love of Jesus serve the poor and the needy, do not expect any thanks or recompense; rather they renounce all this because they have discovered true love. And each one of us can say: “Just as the Lord has come to meet me and has stooped down to my level in my hour of need, so too do I go to meet him, bending low before those who have lost faith or who live as though God did not exist, before young people without values or ideals, before families in crisis, before the ill and the imprisoned, before refugees and immigrants, before the weak and defenceless in body and spirit, before abandoned children, before the elderly who are on their own. Wherever someone is reaching out, asking for a helping hand in order to get up, this is where our presence – and the presence of the Church which sustains and offers hope – must be”. And I do this, keeping alive the memory of those times when the Lord’s hand reached out to me when I was in need.
Mother Teresa, in all aspects of her life, was a generous dispenser of divine mercy, making herself available for everyone through her welcome and defence of human life, those unborn and those abandoned and discarded. She was committed to defending life, ceaselessly proclaiming that “the unborn are the weakest, the smallest, the most vulnerable”. She bowed down before those who were spent, left to die on the side of the road, seeing in them their God-given dignity; she made her voice heard before the powers of this world, so that they might recognize their guilt for the crime – the crimes! – of poverty they created. For Mother Teresa, mercy was the “salt” which gave flavour to her work, it was the “light” which shone in the darkness of the many who no longer had tears to shed for their poverty and suffering.
Her mission to the urban and existential peripheries remains for us today an eloquent witness to God’s closeness to the poorest of the poor. Today, I pass on this emblematic figure of womanhood and of consecrated life to the whole world of volunteers: may she be your model of holiness! I think, perhaps, we may have some difficult in calling her “Saint Teresa”: her holiness is so near to us, so tender and so fruitful that we continual to spontaneously call her “Mother Teresa”. May this tireless worker of mercy help us increasingly to understand that our only criterion for action is gratuitous love, free from every ideology and all obligations, offered freely to everyone without distinction of language, culture, race or religion. Mother Teresa loved to say, “Perhaps I don’t speak their language, but I can smile”. Let us carry her smile in our hearts and give it to those whom we meet along our journey, especially those who suffer. In this way, we will open up opportunities of joy and hope for our many brothers and sisters who are discouraged and who stand in need of understanding and tenderness.[Original text: Italian] [Vatican-provided text]
Thanks to Francis, Pizza Lunch to 1500 Poor, 

Needy After Mother Teresa Canonization Mass by ZENIT Staff

Pope Francis, who has admitted to missing normal outings for a slice of pizza since he was elected Pontiff, is offering some 1,500 poor and needy a pizza lunch in the Vatican after Mother Teresa’s Canonization Mass this morning.
According to Vatican Radio, this Italian favorite will be served in the atrium of the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall to those needy coming, especially from the houses of the Sisters of Mother Teresa, who have come from all over Italy including Milan, Bologna, Florence, Naples and all the houses in Rome, at night in coaches.
These individuals were also invited to this morning’s Canonization Mass.
Those serving the guests include some 250 Sisters of Mother Teresa, 50 Brothers of the congregation for men and other volunteers.

Gospel for Sunday, Sept. 4 by ZENIT Staff
LK 14:25-33
Great crowds were traveling with Jesus,
and he turned and addressed them,
“If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother,
wife and children, brothers and sisters,
and even his own life,
he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me
cannot be my disciple.
Which of you wishing to construct a tower
does not first sit down and calculate the cost
to see if there is enough for its completion?
Otherwise, after laying the foundation
and finding himself unable to finish the work
the onlookers should laugh at him and say,
‘This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.’
Or what king marching into battle would not first sit down
and decide whether with ten thousand troops
he can successfully oppose another king
advancing upon him with twenty thousand troops?
But if not, while he is still far away,
he will send a delegation to ask for peace terms.
In the same way,
anyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions
cannot be my disciple.”

FORUM: On Mother Teresa’s Canonization by Fr Louis M. Thevalakara OSJ
This article was written by Fr Louis M. Thevalakara OSJ, a doctor in Canon Law, who has worked at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith since 1992:
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Canonization is a public and formal act of the Roman Supreme Pontiff. By this declaration the Church attests to the sanctity of a Christian who heroically puts into practice in his or her life the teachings of Jesus Christ, the Savior of mankind. This solemn declaration is made during the Holy Mass.
After a lengthy examination by the Church regarding how the candidate practiced the three theological virtues of faith, hope and charity, we proceed to this solemn celebration. The Canonization ceremony begins with a formal request by the Prefect of the Congregation for Saints addressed to the Holy Father. Following the presentation of the candidate, the canonization process reaches its culmination as the Holy Father solemnly declares the candidate’s name to be included in the list of the saints to be venerated in the Universal Church.
Since 1992, I have had the privilege of taking part in numerous canonization celebrations in Rome. Today marks the fourth instance of an Indian candidate being canonized. Today I am especially proud to say that I knew her personally, as I had the blessing of meeting her on a few occasions. I have always been deeply moved by her fidelity and merciful countenance. I remember fondly an encounter that I had with the Mother while at table in India, when she reminded us of the food that we waste regularly in our meals, the food that the poor could have had.
While this is a time of great celebration, we should remember that the most fitting way to honor our Mother would be to find Jesus’ presence in the poor, irrespective of caste or creed, and to serve them as she did.
While serving the poor, Mother never neglected her prayer life. Often, her mission to the poor was marked by trials that served to increase her trust in Jesus Christ, as she clung to the feet of Jesus on the Cross, even in the midst of darkness.
May the Church in India receive abundant blessings through the intercession of Saint Theresa of Calcutta. This day is very truly a recognition of the poor of this world, who may be proud of their new saint.
Rome, Fr. Louis Thevalakara, o.sj.
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