Mother Teresa Book

Recently I spoke of someone being maligned for writing a book. Around that same time a national magazine article was maligning Mother Teresa of Calcutta because of a book that is coming out about her.

Fr. Benedict Groeschel says, in the First Things blog:
"The unfortunate publicity and distortions to the point of calumny that have surrounded the publication of the book Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light, edited by Fr. Brian Kolodiejchuk, M.C., the postulator of her cause, have caused confusion to many and much pain to the Missionaries of Charity and their close friends."

Fr. Groeschel goes on to explain the "dark night of the soul" that Mother Teresa suffered in the midst of her work as being comparable to that of St. John of the Cross and St. Therese of Lisieux. I would add: Perhaps it is comparable in some way to the feeling of Jesus on the Cross, when he cried out, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

Some of the greatest saints wanted nothing better than to suffer to save souls, and to be as much like Christ as possible. And there's a whole theological science to the "dark night" which God allows to some great souls. I felt I understood this some, after reading about the dark night of the soul of St. Therese of Lisieux in her autobiography, The Story of a Soul. I understood with my heart. But I don't understand it well enough with my mind to explain it. It's no wonder that the secular press doesn't understand. I'm wondering, too, if they read the entire Mother Teresa book, or just picked out a few sentences. I have a feeling that if we read the book prayerfully, we would understand a greater depth and generosity to the life of Mother Teresa than we even knew before.

Since I haven't read the book yet, I should probably stop talking now and let you read the book for yourself; and maybe you'd like to see the rest of what Father Groeschel says too. You can read his post by clicking here.



Hat tip to Jean.