TERESA OF CALCUTTA

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.48075/6gww5w41

Keywords:

Teresa of Calcutta. Charity. Human dignity. Spirituality. Care.

Abstract

This essay analyzes the life and mission of Teresa of Calcutta through the relationship between spiritual experience, charity, and human dignity. It asks how her encounter with Christ, especially in what she called the “call within a call,” became a concrete practice of tenderness and care for the poor, the sick, the abandoned, and the dying. Drawing mainly on her private writings and on her address to the United Nations, the essay examines her vocational journey, the founding of the Missionaries of Charity, and the development of a spirituality that unites contemplation and action. It argues that her legacy goes beyond philanthropy, because service to one’s neighbor is understood as recognition of the intrinsic value of the human person and as a concrete expression of Christian charity.

Author Biography

  • Rhuan Pablo Desanti, UNIOESTE

    Frei Rhuan Pablo Desanti, FMM, é religioso franciscano e acadêmico do curso de Bacharelado em Filosofia pela Universidade Estadual do Oeste do Paraná (UNIOESTE), campus de Toledo. Integra o grupo de pesquisa NEOKRISIS e desenvolve estudos nas áreas de Filosofia, Teologia e Hermenêutica, com especial interesse pelo pensamento de Joseph Ratzinger/Bento XVI e pela Logoterapia de Viktor E. Frankl. Atualmente, desenvolve pesquisas voltadas à hermenêutica da continuidade na interpretação do Concílio Vaticano II e às contribuições da Logoterapia para a formação integral de jovens universitários.

References

AGENZIA FIDES. ASIA/INDIA – 25 years after her death, Mother Teresa is for India an example of the following of Christ. Vaticano, 8 set. 2022. Disponível em: https://fides.org/en/news/72765-ASIA_INDIA_25_years_after_her_death_Mother_Teresa_is_for_India_an_example_of_the_following_of_Christ. Acesso em: 22 jun. 2026.

BÍBLIA. Português. Bíblia Sagrada. Tradução da Conferência Nacional dos Bispos do Brasil (CNBB). 2. ed. Brasília: Edições CNBB, 2019.

CALCUTÁ, Teresa de. Mother Teresa’s address to the United Nations. New York, 26 out. 1985. Disponível em: https://www.piercedhearts.org/purity_heart_morality/mother_teresa_address_united_nations.htm. Acesso em: 22 jun. 2026.

CALCUTÁ, Teresa de. Venha, seja minha luz: os escritos privados da Santa de Calcutá. Organização de Brian Kolodiejchuk. Tradução de Maria José Figueiredo. 3. ed. Rio de Janeiro: Petra, 2016. Tradução de: Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light.

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Published

14/09/2026

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 1 (2026): Inaugural Issue — July–December

Section

Dossiê: As mulheres da Igreja

Categories

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Copyright (c) 2026 Rhuan Pablo Desanti (Autor)

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