Exactly one century ago today, Macedonia gave our tired little globe one of its greater gifts. In the village of Skopje, two Albanian parents celebrated the birth of Agnes Gonxha Bojakhiu. How could they have known that this tiny baby would one day become a venerated nun, a helper to many, an example to all... Today is the 100th anniversary of Mother Teresa's birth. Working at first by herself, then with the help of dedicated others, Mother Teresa began relentlessly caring for "the least of these" --- those who were dying in the back alleys of urban Calcutta. She opened a hospice unit, called Pure Heart, and simply cared for those who were dying, alone and forgotten, too poor to receive help.
One dying man, resting in the arms of this beloved nun, famously told her "I have lived like an animal, but now I am dying like an angel..." His experience was shared by thousands of others who were treated with dignity, receiving genuine love from caregivers motivated only by a desire to serve Christ.
In the name of religion, many mistakes have been made in the past. We can be certain that more mistakes are ahead in the future. Yet set against the backdrop of greed, politics, legalism, self-righteousness --- and other sins of religion --- at times one encounters the true life of faith, being lived simply and honorably.
Mother Teresa's life reminds us of this. Parents giving birth today, 100 years later, may hope their daughter grows up to become a CEO, or their son an electrical engineer. These are noble aspirations to be sure. But what if a parent, cradling a newborn on this day, simply breathed the hope that this new son or daughter would grow up to emulate Mother Teresa, who herself emulated Christ by taking up the basin and the towel, and serving others....
