Thanksgiving for St. Teresa of Kolkata Offered at St. Patrick’s Cathedral

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Celebration of the canonization of St. Teresa of Calcutta continued with a Mass of Thanksgiving at St. Patrick’s Cathedral celebrated by Cardinal Dolan on Sept. 10.

Sisters from the Missionaries of Charity, the religious order founded by St. Teresa in 1950, now with more than 5,000 sisters around the world, were the special guests at the Mass. The sisters were dressed in their white saris with blue trim and occupied for the first several pews to the right of the altar.

Sept. 10 also marked the 70th anniversary of “Inspiration Day’’ when Mother Teresa received a call within a call to leave the Sisters of Loreto and devote her life to the poor.

“The Mass was absolutely beautiful and it was a grace, gift and blessing,’’ said Sister M. Clare, M.C., assistant to the superior for the Missionaries of Charity at St. Rita’s Convent in the Bronx that was the first home for the sisters in North America and also serves as the North American Regional House for Eastern United States and Eastern Canada.

“We were overwhelmed with the continuous joy from Mother’s canonization. It was beautiful to see all the priests there and parishioners from our parish in the Bronx were there, too.”

On the left side of the altar was the official canonization painting of St. Teresa by American artist Chas Fagan, which was displayed on the façade of St. Peter’s Basilica for the canonization on Sept. 4.

The Missionaries of Charity read the readings, and they delivered the prayers of the faithful in English, Spanish, French, Albanian, Bengali and Polish.

“I’m misty-eyed that I’m here today with all the sisters and religious people around me,’’ said JoJo Monsanto of Manhattan. “It’s really overwhelming and I’m so thankful I’m here today. The fact many people are coming here for the Mass of Thanksgiving for the canonization of Mother Teresa is like the manifest of people loving Mother Teresa.”

New Rochelle’s Elizabeth Outes and Peekskill’s Pedro Campoverde are both volunteers who work with the Missionaries of Charity. Campoverde volunteers at the Queen of Peace Home and Outes at the Horizons Juvenile Detention Center, both in the Bronx.

“The sisters are so amazing,” Ms. Outes said. “They spend their lives loving people in their practice every day. It’s nice to be around them, talk with them and spend time with them.”

Cardinal Dolan opened the Mass by welcoming and thanking the Missionaries of Charity.

“We’re celebrating the canonization of Mother Teresa,” the cardinal said. “The overall Church rejoices and New York rejoices as well. Missionaries of Charity, how grateful we are for your presence and how much we congratulate you, how much we love you and how much we rejoice with you in this grand occasion for the canonization of your foundress.”

Cardinal Dolan also thanked the priests and bishops and visiting religious dignitaries, including Archbishop Bernardito Auza and Archbishop Christophe Pierre, as well as the members of the Order of Malta and Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. Archbishop Auza is the Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, and Archbishop Pierre is the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States.

Archbishop Pierre delivered a 15-minute homily, reflecting on the readings and relating them to the life of St. Teresa, calling her a servant of the poorest of the poor. The poorest of the poor are not necessarily people without money, but individuals suffering from abandonment, loneliness and a shortage of love, the nuncio said.

“We give thanks to God for the life and service of St. Teresa of Kolkata,” Archbishop Pierre said. “In the second reading, we heard that if we love one another, God will work within us. This is essentially what Mother tried to do, to love each person no matter how great or small, so that God might live in them.

“Mother teaches us that no person—no matter how poor or how far from God they might be—is to be thrown away.”

Archbishop Pierre followed with a timely reference to Sept. 11.

“On this vigil of the terrible attacks 15 years ago of the World Trade Center in this very city in which so many lives were senselessly lost, you cannot be different to the assaults against love,’’ he said.

Cardinal Dolan followed the homily by thanking Archbishop Pierre and referring to his words about Sept. 11.

“For us New Yorkers, your words had a special effect,” Cardinal Dolan said. “(Sept. 11) is a very solemn anniversary. Thank you for reminding us even though we’ll be thinking of death, destruction, violence and hatred. Mother Teresa reminds us of life, light, reconciliation and love. We need to hear that in the city on 9/11.”

The Mass of Thanksgiving was a continuation of the celebration of the canonization of St. Teresa in the New York metropolitan area, which included a Mass at St. Rita’s Church on Sept. 5 and several days of events at the United Nations.

The Missionaries of Charity also have an exhibit of memorabilia and photos at St. Rita’s Church in the Bronx. Movies on the life of St. Teresa will be shown each Saturday at 3 p.m. through Oct. 8. Two sisters are available at the exhibition to answer questions and distribute prayer cards.

“There is rejoicing for us when people see us. They wave to us from their cars and inside stores. They’re all rejoicing,’’ said Sister Clare in regard to people celebrating the canonization of St. Teresa with the Missionaries of Charity.

“I did not realize it would have such an impact.”