Religion and Theology

How does a lamp burn It burns by constantly refilling it with oil .That is the same way that love operates. Human beings are compared to the lamps. The drops of oil are the daily acts of faithfulness that men commit in their day to day lives. For the lamp to get burning, one has to fill it continuously with oil without getting tired. Love also operates in the same way as it does not get tired. It is through the act of keeping our lamps burning that we recognize the lord in our life (Teresa, Benenate  Durepos, 2002). Several individuals in the world have dedicated their lives to their society, with strict guidance of the religious traditions they believe in. This research paper seeks to discuss the life of Mother Teresa in relation to the Catholic tradition, and how her works demonstrated her religion.

History of Mother Teresa
She was her own person, obedient, independent and challenged several preconceived expectations and notions. She always listened and followed what her conscience directed her, even if it was the opposite of what was expected by the society. Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu was her real name. She was born in Skopje Yugoslavia in 1910 and was the youngest in a family of five. She was brought up in an average family setting (Guntzelman, 2010). Her call to a religious life started when she was a senior in high school. Later, she joined the Loreto Sisters of Dublin whose purpose was to educate young girls. The name Mother Teresa was gotten after she made vows in the Loreto Convent. She was named after a saint, Teresa of Avila and Teresa of Lisieux. Most of her work involved working in the slums of India, where she performed acts of charity in Gods name (Ruth, 1999). According to (Teresa, Benenate  Durepos, 2002), Teresa gave up the work in Loreto Convent and began working in the streets of Calcutta. She followed the call of Christ and went to work in the slums where she served the poor.

 Mother Teresa exemplified the Christian Religion of the Roman Catholic Church
Mother Teresa was behind the formation of the Missionaries of Charity, where she worked with the poor. The aim of this group was to quench the thirst of the Messiah on the cross through acts of laboring for sanctification and salvation of the poor. The thirst for Jesus was revealed in all her life, service and prayer. Satiating the longing for Jesus for souls and love was the motivation for all her works. This she did through following the teachings of Jesus in the Holy Bible (Guntzelman, 2010).
 
Prayer as a Christian religion tradition
Prayer is in all things, in all gestures (Teresa, Benenate  Durepos, 2002). The Holy Bible has a lot of teachings on prayer. Jesus taught the twelve disciples how to pray. He taught them the famous Lords Prayer. In the book of Luke 22 46, Jesus questions the disciples on sleeping. He cautions them and tells them that they should wake up and pray. The Catholic Church believes in the teachings of prayer. Similarly, Mother Teresa followed the teachings on prayer in her charity work and all her life. According to the Roman Catholics, prayer is not supposed to have so many words. What matters most is the hearts desire as a person prays. Anyone who wants to pray well must pray frequently, as it is a direct communication with God. The more a person prays, the more he or she is drawn to the Lord (Teresa, Benenate  Durepos, 2002).

Mother Teresa exemplified the life of prayer. In order to maintain a balance between action and prayer, Mother Teresa led the Missionaries of Charity in a two hours session of prayer. Mother Teresa was so faithful to the hours of prayer. All her days started with meditation, prayer and the Holy mass. She also received Jesus in the Eucharist. Eucharistic adoration is also another tradition of the catholic religion. She never missed it except for serious reasons. She would spend her time in prayer even after tiring and long journeys. The Catholic tradition holds Mary mother of Jesus dear to their hearts, as she is the mediator between the Catholics and Christ. The Roman Catholics also pray using the rosary. Mother Teresa used the rosary as one of the most crucial methods of prayer. According to her, Mary mother of Jesus helped her to explore the mysteries of Christ. Mother Teresa was often seen with her rosary in her hands. This demonstrated the close connection that she nurtured with Mary Mother of Jesus (Kolodiejchuk, 2003).

Love to all mankind
Love is a vital teaching of the Bible. The Roman Catholics follow it strictly, and believe in the teachings of love. Mother Teresa stated that Love each other as God loves each of you, with an intense and particular love. Be kind to each other It is better to commit faults with gentleness than to work miracles with unkindness (Teresa, Benenate  Durepos, 2002).The Holy Bible in the book of John 13 35 states that By this evidence, everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another (Teresa, Benenate  Durepos, 2002).

Mother Teresa demonstrated love through the good deeds that she performed. She left the Loreto community after receiving her call. After getting permission from the Pope, she worked with the poor in several slums. The members of Missioners of Charity were supposed to take the vows of chastity, obedience and poverty. They also pledged to serve the poor. Mother Teresa helped in washing clothes for the poor in Calcutta until she became aged. She served the destitute and dying with medical supplies, food and companionship. She opened a home called Pure Heart, which was a dwelling for the destitute and dying people in Calcutta. She also extended her works to five continents. Mother Teresa received international recognition after she got the Nobel peace Prize award in 1979. She was however not comfortable in being in the limelight. For her, being in the limelight was difficult than bathing a leper (Tucker, 2000).

In all her life, she ministered to various types of suffering people. She provided shelter and found homes for the orphans. She fed the naked, run mobile dispensaries and family planning clinics. She also cared for several lepers. She did not own much she walked barefoot most of the times and slept on the floor of a dormitory, just like the people she served. She used cold water from a pump, and owned only two cotton saris (Kjos, 2007).

Mother Teresa also taught the children of the slums. She never had the equipment that was needed and therefore wrote on the dirt. She strove to make the poor children literate, and taught them hygiene. Mother Teresa also took a nursing course and went to Calcutta to practice her nursing. Throughout her life, Teresa found a stream of the poor peoples needs in the people she met, and never stopped to help them (Guntzelman, 2010).

A Biblical story is told of a woman who gave all she had in the synagogue offering basket. She only had a cent, and the rest of the members had a lot of money. She is said to be the best giver, as she gave all that she had. The Catholic religion teaches so much on giving. Mother Teresa followed this example to the latter. She demonstrated giving through the acts of love that she performed (Teresa, Benenate  Durepos, 2002).

The relationship between fame and suffering
Christians are called to endure suffering just as Christ did. He was crucified on the cross and carried all the sins of mankind by shedding his blood. He went through a lot of agony in his life of service. For the Roman Catholics, redemption work never comes to an end. The triumphant cry of Jesus on the cross It is finished is never gotten. They believe in the message of carrying the cross or paying the price. Most critics are against this belief, as they argue their notion of the suffering of Christ is not right (Endtimespropheticwords, 2008).

There are times Mother Teresa and the Missionaries failed to provide medication on principle. The reason for doing this was to share in Gods suffering and to make up for the sins of the world. According to her, the suffering of the poor was something beautiful as the world got an example of the nobility of suffering and misery. She likened the suffering of these kinds of people and that of Jesus Christ on the cross. Therefore, suffering was termed as a gift from God to the individual that was suffering, and it was the continuous redemption work. On one instance, Mother Teresa told a man writhing in pain that Jesus was kissing him because he was going through suffering. The furious man did not hear of it, and told Mother Teresa to tell Jesus to stop kissing him (Endtimespropheticwords 2008).

Liturgy and action
Liturgy means the words of a certain religion which are often put into practice. One of the Catholics liturgical beliefs is to preach the gospel and human progress, there is neither opposition nor separation (Catholic Insight, 1996).Vatican II had stated that The liturgy is the summit to which all the churchs activity is directed, and, at the same time, the source from which all her power flows. Mother Teresa had a way of life which made liturgy the day to day focus. She was so involved in the message of evangelization to the whole world, and she dedicated her life to the poorest of the poor. Her aim was to preach the gospel of Christ using the watchword Whatever you do to the least of these, my brethren, you do to me (Mathew 2540) (Catholic Insight, 1996).

Another liturgical statement that was used was that of being smothered .Roman Catholics believe that being smothered is part of a Christians life. Being smothered means being suffocated or deprived something necessary in life. She also suffered as she supported those who suffered in her Christian work. She went through a lot of suffering, as she was also poor during her initial years of service. She however adhered to the liturgical words, which stated that the life of the saints had to go through smothering (Catholic Insight, 1996).

Mother Teresa and her interfaith compromise
Mother Teresa stated that all religions, including the Muslims and the Hindus were members of the same family, and were all children of God. According to her, every Christian was supposed to preach by actions and examples and not by words only. According to her, the first church reformation was that of creeds, and it divided the church and the world. The second Catholic Church Reformation was that of deeds. According to her, deeds unified the church and the world in general. Mother Teresa stated that the deeds of the Christians needed to be seen in the way they dealt with other religions. She said that if the Christians never showed love to the other religions, they would be equated to hate and intolerance. She criticized the persecution of the Burmese and Chinese Christians on the basis of their faith. The work of Mother Teresa in relation to unity of religion provided a good ground for UNESCO in the formation of its declarations related to the role of religion. The declaration had its drive as deeds, and not creeds (Catholic Insight, 1996).

The practice of mother Teresa on interfaith compromise sped up the transformation of the church. There was an alliance of the World Evangelical Alliance, the Council of Churches and the Vatican. The purpose of the alliance was to establish a decree that would ensure that there was a good relationship between the different world religions. The alliance proposed that the preachers had to be told that all religions were equal, and none had a monopoly on truth. According to Mother Teresa, they assisted all those in need, regardless of their religious affiliation. They also never tried to convert those of other religions by force, but instead worked to witness to the unfailing love of Christ and the presence of God (Catholic Insight, 1996).

 According to Mother Teresa, love was supposed to be shown to all people. God created mankind so that he should be faithful, and not successful. Results are not what God is concerned about, but faithfulness. Man is supposed to do small things with great love. Great love should start from the heart, and from home. Afterwards, it should spread to all people in the world. In fact, Jesus stated that all human beings would be judged from love (Balado, 1997).

Lessons learnt from the life of Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa passes a message to all Christians it is only the unity with Christ that can bring about bearing of fruits in a persons life and others in the society. Holiness is not supposed to be perceived as a luxury but a duty for all Christians. She left a message of love for all people, regardless of their race, status or religion (Kolodiejchuk, 2003).

Conclusion
There is no doubt that Mother Teresa practiced the tradition of the catholic tradition to the latter. She will forever remain in the hearts of those who value charity work, and are faithful to their religion.