Mother Teresa’s legacy in the Americas and the World

By Norma Montenegro Flynn

( Version en español )

Learning about Mother Teresa’s inspiring life is like looking inside a heart overflowing with kindness and love in its purest form.

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta was a humble and gentle religious sister who dedicated her whole life to help “the poorest of the poor” in India, Latin America and throughout the world. Mother Teresa left this world 15 years ago. However, her legacy continues alive in the hearts of those who are inspired by her humble ways and the magnificence of her deeds.

Journalist and author David Van Biema in his essay, “Cosas ordinarias, amor extraordinario: Mother Teresa and Latin America” tells the story of the charitable works of Mother Teresa throughout Latin America. Her sisters help people in places like Tijuana, Mexico, where Missionaries of Charity operate a soup kitchen, a home for the elderly and a shelter for migrants. Today there is even a shrine dedicated to Mother Teresa. Van Biema also describes her journeys through Venezuela, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Brazil and El Salvador, among other Latin American countries.  

Van Biema goes inside the world of this religious sister who exemplified kindness and compassion at its finest in his book, “Mother Teresa: The life and works of a Modern Saint.”  Blessed Teresa went to the slums and places that others would rather avoid. She helped the sick and fed the hungry and the poor. She also planted seeds throughout the world, inspiring men and women who continue following in her footsteps and find the biggest spiritual nourishment in helping those in extreme poverty conditions.

That spiritual nourishment is found when one learns about what motivated Mother Teresa to complete her greatest mission in life: to serve God by helping those in need. 

Click here to read the essay: “Cosas ordinarias, amor extraordinario: Mother Teresa and Latin America”
Click here to see pictures of Mother Teresa: www.facebook.com/USCCBEspanol