September 7, 2016

Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Parish celebrates canonization of Mother Teresa

Regional
By Carolee McGrath

HOUSATONIC – On a picture perfect September evening, parishioners of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Parish in Housatonic streamed into the small church on Main Street, here, for the 5:30 p.m. Mass. But this was far from a typical Saturday. There was excitement in the air as people gathered to celebrate the canonization of Mother Teresa and a welcomed name change for the parish.

“Just hours from now, in St. Peter’s Square in Rome, thousands of pilgrims will flock to join in the Mass of canonization celebrated by Pope Francis, for a woman whose life is known by just two hallmarks: prayer and service,” Springfield Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski told the congregation during his homily. This was the bishop’s first visit to the village, which is part of Great Barrington.

“The woman after whom this parish is named and who will be raised to the altar of sainthood tomorrow has shown us a pristine example of what it means to live one’s life for others,” Bishop Rozanski continued.

Pope Francis will canonize Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Sunday, Sept. 4, in the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square. The ceremony also falls during the Jubilee Year of Mercy.

Longtime parishioner Doris Ptak said Mother Teresa, as so many still call her, showed people how to love and grow in faith.

“She was very human. I read things about her that she had lost faith at one time but then it came back to her because she helped all the people that were down trodden. She went for the ones who didn’t have anything,” said Ptak.

The Albanian nun founded the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India in 1950. She worked with the poor, the sick, the disabled and the forgotten. Her order has grown to more than 4500 religious sisters around the world. In 1979 she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Mother Teresa died September 5, 1997 at the age of 87.

Margaret Vorck is a parishioner at nearby St. Peter Parish.

“She was special because she was everything the world needed, someone who loved the poor, who really sacrificed themselves. She was an angel in disguise,” said Vorck.

Father William Murphy, the pastor of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Parish and St. Peter Parish in Great Barrington, said new signs will be put up in the coming days to reflect the new name, St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish.

He said his parish community tries to follow the saint’s example, by running a food pantry and a clothing closet at for those in need.

“She understood the idea of discipleship. She was not afraid to go out and do the work of the Lord and she answered to no one but the Lord,” said Father Murphy. He added Mother Teresa worked tirelessly to defend life. At the 1994 National Prayer Breakfast held in Washington, D.C., then Mother Teresa told the audience that “abortion is the greatest destroyer of love and peace.”

“She never watered down her remarks. She never gave an easy fluffy idea of theology. She always spoke the truth,” Father Murphy said.

“She did so with clarity and charity. The important thing was she spoke of the defense of the unborn tirelessly. She never gave up on that.”

The new St. Teresa of Calcutta parish will continue to celebrate the canonization following the 9 a.m. Mass Sunday morning with a reception at the Housatonic Community Center.

Others throughout the Diocese of Springfield will be watching and celebrating the canonization, which will air live on Catholic TV beginning at 4 a.m. and rebroadcast throughout the day.

Father Warren Savage, a lecturer for religious studies at Our Lady of the Elms College, met Mother Teresa when she spoke at the University of Massachusetts in 1985.  The Newman Catholic Center and the World Apostolate of Fatima organized her visit. Father Savage was the master of ceremonies.

“I was in awe when I saw Mother Teresa. Standing in the presence of this remarkable woman, you could just feel her holiness,” recalled Father Savage, who is also the chaplain at both Westfield State University and Amherst College.

“Her presence was very humble…she was totally absorbed in the prayer. I could sense this great devotion for our Blessed Mother, someone she confided in. Maybe she took some of her motherly instincts from her reflection on the Blessed Mother,” Father Savage said.

Father Savage worked with the Missionaries of Charity as a seminarian in Rome and after he was ordained at a health clinic in Haiti. He said nearly twenty years after St. Teresa’s death, the sisters of the congregation are living out the example of their founder. He said her canonization signals the need for all people to reach out to people in need.

“Interfaith wise, this is a golden moment to understand the life and message of Mother Teresa. It transcends culture, religious denominations, political belief, and philosophy. She is setting the bar high for anyone who wants to aspire to greatness. She says, ‘serve the poor, just serve the poor.’”

St. Teresa of Calcutta’s feast day will be Sept. 5.

For more on this story, tune into an upcoming edition of “Real to Reel,” the Diocese of Springfield’s television newsmagazine that airs Saturday evenings at 7 on WWLP-22NEWS.