Monday, December 21, 2015

Fwd: Mother Teresa: Why the Catholic missionary is still no saint to her critics


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During an event on 17 December to mark his 79th birthday, Pope Francis attributed a second miracle to Mother Teresa, the late Roman Catholic missionary who has become an international icon for her charitable work. It's an important move, effectively paving the way for the nun to become a saint, the highest honor bestowed by the Roman Catholic Church.
Among Mother Teresa's many fans — most of whom view her canonisation as inevitable and perhaps even overdue — the announcement is being met with celebration. However, it will probably also bring new fuel to the difficult and sometimes bitter debate about the merits of Mother Teresa's charitable work and the nature of her legacy.
In India, where Mother Teresa carried out the majority of her work, that legacy has already been called into question once this year. In February, the head of the Hindu nationalist group Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) sparked outrage when he criticised her intentions.
"It's good to work for a cause with selfless intentions. But Mother Teresa's work had ulterior motive, which was to convert the person who was being served to Christianity," RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat said at the opening of an orphanage in Rajasthan state, the Times of India reported. "In the name of service, religious conversions were made. This was followed by other institutes, too."
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