Mother Theresa At Work
Mother Theresa of Calcutta could teach us Catholic men at work a thing or two. She wasn't a man, but boy could she work! I think she's as inspiring an example for how us Catholic men should work as you can find - even as her work seems so different from the work most of us do each day.
Today's the anniversary of Mother Theresa's death. It's also her feast day. She died twelve years ago. That day, the Cathedral of St Patrick in New York City had simple holy cards spread out so that you could take one. I took one that day and still have it.
The Cardinal at the time, John O'Connor, was a friend of Mother Theresa. You would see pictures or videos of him with her from time to time. He always spoke affectionately of her and supported and appreciated her work in New York City where her order, the Missionaries of Charity, had a house.
Pope John Paul II also knew Mother well. The two of them were apparently quite close. He declared her Blessed on December 20, 2002, not very long after she died. In speaking of her on October 19, 2003, he refers to " the image that shows the new Blessed clasping a child's hand in one hand while moving her Rosary beads with the other." It is a clear image of prayer and work in action.
This image reminds me of the great challenge we face each day: to pray and work as best we can.
No one I've ever known worked as hard as she (certainly not me!). She was relentless and untiring in her fight for the right to a dignified life for all from the unborn to the old and poorest of the poor. Her work was far more exacting, far more daunting, than the work (I would dare say) any of us face each day.
In addition, she faced a spiritual darkness through much of her life, even up to the day she died, where she felt like God had abandoned, even rejected her. We only learned of this after she died. She revealed it in some writings she left behind.
She considered this a gift - a way for her to share in the rejection the poor people she worked and prayed with must have felt in their lives. Just think about that for a moment. She thought it was a gift! Think of it especially the next time you want to complain about some problem you have at work, when things aren't going just the way you want.
Sometimes when I face a day of work, I wonder how I'll be able to work and pray constantly, as I know I should. Maybe I'm just not feeling well that day (for example, I've had a terrible pinched nerve in my neck the last couple of days). Maybe I've got a particularly daunting project to tackle, or I'm just feeling plain old lazy.
Whatever the reason, our prayer and work can be a stiff challenge at times. But we have an intecessor in heaven who can help us. Today, or every day for that matter, we can think about Mother Theresa and ask for her help.
Today's the anniversary of Mother Theresa's death. It's also her feast day. She died twelve years ago. That day, the Cathedral of St Patrick in New York City had simple holy cards spread out so that you could take one. I took one that day and still have it.
The Cardinal at the time, John O'Connor, was a friend of Mother Theresa. You would see pictures or videos of him with her from time to time. He always spoke affectionately of her and supported and appreciated her work in New York City where her order, the Missionaries of Charity, had a house.
Pope John Paul II also knew Mother well. The two of them were apparently quite close. He declared her Blessed on December 20, 2002, not very long after she died. In speaking of her on October 19, 2003, he refers to " the image that shows the new Blessed clasping a child's hand in one hand while moving her Rosary beads with the other." It is a clear image of prayer and work in action.
This image reminds me of the great challenge we face each day: to pray and work as best we can.
No one I've ever known worked as hard as she (certainly not me!). She was relentless and untiring in her fight for the right to a dignified life for all from the unborn to the old and poorest of the poor. Her work was far more exacting, far more daunting, than the work (I would dare say) any of us face each day.
In addition, she faced a spiritual darkness through much of her life, even up to the day she died, where she felt like God had abandoned, even rejected her. We only learned of this after she died. She revealed it in some writings she left behind.
She considered this a gift - a way for her to share in the rejection the poor people she worked and prayed with must have felt in their lives. Just think about that for a moment. She thought it was a gift! Think of it especially the next time you want to complain about some problem you have at work, when things aren't going just the way you want.
Sometimes when I face a day of work, I wonder how I'll be able to work and pray constantly, as I know I should. Maybe I'm just not feeling well that day (for example, I've had a terrible pinched nerve in my neck the last couple of days). Maybe I've got a particularly daunting project to tackle, or I'm just feeling plain old lazy.
Whatever the reason, our prayer and work can be a stiff challenge at times. But we have an intecessor in heaven who can help us. Today, or every day for that matter, we can think about Mother Theresa and ask for her help.
Comments