Uncle Doc's Life is For The Living: LIVING WITH LOVE-Lessons from the life of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta.

….“Well, on that fated
morning of their meeting (a morning that

would change him for the rest of his
life) he met her as she

was working out in the streets with sick and poor
people

in a ghetto like he had never seen before, amid stench,

filth, garbage,
disease, and poverty that was just unbelievable.

But what struck Muggeridge
more than anything else,

even there in that awful squalor and decadence, was the deep, warm glow on Mother Teresa’s face and the deep, warm love in her eyes.”

The above quotation taken from the writings of Rowland Croucher, relates to the experience of Thomas Malcolm Muggeridge, the famous English author, satirist,
left wing intellectual and committed life-long agnostic, after an encounter
with Blessed Teresa of Calcutta about
whom he was doing a documentary in 1970 . Muggerdge was a formidable figure who
commanded prodigious literary and rhetorical skills and the respect of the
world’s leaders, famous and infamous, and who up to that point, was a vocal and
committed non-religious. Yet, he was so overwhelmed by this experience that
subsequently in 1982, at the age of 79 years he converted to Catholicism and
became a dedicated disciple of the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. In
everything he subsequently wrote or spoke of, he never hesitated to credit this
decision directly to his encounter with Mother Teresa.

This experience is by no means unique or unusual. It is

but one of many thousands of examples of how this

gentle, simple, caring lady of Albanian origin, who was

born in a small obscure town in Macedonia in 1910 and

who from a very early age decided to devote her life in

the service of God through caring for the least cared,

most helpless, and neediest of people. After traveling to

various centers including a short stay in Ireland to

learn English, she went to India in 1929 and entered

the Convent of Loreto where she began her novitiate

and taught at the school, taking her vows in 1937.
1937. She continued to teach at the school for more than

10 years with great success but felt compelled to

do something to alleviate the abject poverty

all around her. In 1947, she gave up the security

of the convent and the school to “answer the call

to help the poor by living among them” and began

her activities in streets of Calcutta, India. By 1950,

her efforts were so successful, she founded the

Missionaries of Charity, and by the time she died

in 1997 it had expanded to 123 countries where

there were in excess of 600 missions devoted

to the poor, sick, orphaned and dying.

For over 45 years she devoted her life to this

service, driven by her love for her fellow humans

and her service to her God.

Even when she gained international acclaim as

a humanitarian and a universal advocate for

the poor, the sick and the helpless, and was awarded

all the most prestigious awards from nations around

the world, she never lost the humility of spirit and the

all consuming love for her God and his people that

had been the driving force of her entire life.

I personally, can attest to this, as a result of a very

brief and fleeting encounter. The aura of love and

caring that surrounded this beautiful spirit was all

consuming and has remained with me for more than

thirty years after the episode. Indeed she was

someone who had truly found deep and profound

peace and was not afraid to share her vision

of unconditional love and service.

To me, Mother Teresa was the absolute pinnacle

of the meaning of pure love. She expressed this

simply and most dramatically, in the following terms:

“The success of love is in the loving;

- it is not in the result of loving.”

Too often have we all tended, consciously or unconsciously
to associate sharing for king of reward or
gain. We invariably attempt to place a value on it
and expect some kind of meaningful return. If we
offer our love to someone, we expect, at
minimum, an acknowledgement or
appreciation of our efforts. We become upset
and disappointed when there is no response.
The lesson from Moither Teresa is clear and
unambiguous. Love, to be truly effective
must be given unconditionally, without
strings attached, and no expectation of a response.
Anything less than this is not true love and
should not be categorized as such.
The Greeks refer to this form of love as Agape,
which literally means unconditional love,
a unique expression that is clearly distinguished
by its nature, its character and its intention.
It has strong roots in the Holy Bible and its
prominent reference in the words of
John 3: 16:

For God so loved the world, that he sent his only
begotten Son;

That whosoever believes in him, shall never perish,

But have everlasting life.”

If
God, in his infinite mercy, is willing to sacrifice his Son, Jesus Christ, to save the world, how
could there be any greater expression of love? And how could any one who truly
believes in God and who is genuinely determined to serve him and his people in
need, in his holy name can afford to do otherwise?

This is the fundamental reasoning
that has sustained and reinforced Mother Teresa’s commitment and has driven her
to try harder and harder to carry out her vocation. In fact, despite all her
amazing record of service and success, there were times when she became despondent
and depressed because of her concern that she was not fully complying with God’s
expectation and in fact, that God was displeased with her actions. But to the
rest of the world, she will always be respected for the work she performed, the
service to the sick and needy she provided, and above all, the message that she
taught us all that: