How Mother Teresa's Calling Transformed a Life of Service

Mother Teresa, born Anjeze Gonxhe Bojaxhiu in Skopje on 26 August 1910, became one of the most recognised figures in humanitarian work. Her journey began in poverty-stricken Calcutta, where she first encountered the suffering that would shape her life's mission. From an early age, she felt drawn to missionary service, particularly in Bengal, where she later dedicated herself to the poorest communities.

At eighteen, she left her hometown to follow her religious calling. She travelled first to Ireland, then to India in 1929, where she took her initial vows in 1931 under the name Teresa, inspired by Thérèse de Lisieux. By 1944, she had become headmistress at a Loreto convent school in Calcutta, but the extreme poverty around her left a deep impression.

In 1946, during a train journey, she experienced what she described as a profound inner calling—a directive to abandon convent life and serve the poor directly. Four years later, she left her teaching role to establish the Missionaries of Charity. The order began modestly, but its impact grew rapidly.

Her first major project, the Kalighat Home for the Dying, opened in 1952. It provided medical care and dignity to those nearing death in destitution. Over time, the Missionaries of Charity expanded globally, forming new branches and recruiting laypeople as co-workers. Even before the order's official recognition in 1963, it had eight independent houses, mainly in Italy, Germany, Argentina, and Brazil.

Mother Teresa's work extended far beyond Calcutta, with hospices and relief centres appearing worldwide. Her focus remained steadfast: offering compassion to those society had forgotten.

Mother Teresa's legacy endures through the Missionaries of Charity, an organisation that continues to serve the marginalised across the world. Her decision to leave a secure teaching position for a life among the poor reshaped charitable work in the 20th century. Today, her name remains synonymous with selfless devotion to humanity's most vulnerable.