Mother Teresa had earned her sainthood
Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the nun who selflessly dedicated her life to helping the poor, will be made a saint of the Roman Catholic Church at a ceremony on Sept. 4.
Pope Francis made the announcement on Tuesday at a meeting of cardinals to give the final approval to several sainthood causes. This makes the humanitarians canonisation the second fastest in modern history after that of Saint John Paul II.
The Albanian born nun died in 1997 at the age of 87, leaving behind a legacy. Her original community of about a dozen nuns helped the poor on the city's streets before spreading throughout the world, including to Ireland. She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 for her work with the poor, sick and dying. There has been some contention to her sainthood however, with many criticizing her opposition to birth control and accusing her of religious imperialism.
Despite the nay-sayers, Mother Teresa was beautified in 2003, giving her the terms ‘blessed’. The church defines saints as those believed to have been holy enough during their lives to now be in heaven and capable of interceding with God to perform miracles. She has been credited in the church with two miracles, both involving the healing of sick people.
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