Anjeze+Gonxhe+Bojaxhiu+(Mother+Teresa)

=__**Introduction**__= “My citizenship is Indian. I am a Catholic nun. As to my calling, I belong to the world. As to my heart, I belong entirely to the heart of Jesus” (Parello). These are the powerful words expressed by one of the most well-known nuns named Mother Teresa. She is known throughout the world for all of her charity work and spreading her faith in God to others (Parello). Mother Teresa influenced the lives of many people in all countries throughout the world. Even though her life was dedicated to others, all the struggles, obstacles, accomplishments, and deeds she went through allowed her to live a fulfilling life.

=__**Personal Background**__= Agnes Gonhxa Boja, or best known as Mother Teresa, was a living angel (Guntzelman). She was always helping others and people in need. An example of her helping others would be becoming a geography teacher in Caluttal (Brijnath). Teresa also owned many charities’. She was born on August 27, 1910 and was the youngest of five children (The life of a Saint). Mother Teresa was one of the five children, yet only three survived. This allowed her to be very relatable and get along well with others. Teresa was always true to herself, yet she liked to push and challenge herself (Guntzelman). Although Agnes did work really hard in helping others, she did openly acknowledge herself (Cooke). She decided to become a Roman Catholic nun and dedicate her life to God. Teresa did not just dedicate her life to God she also wanted to be an example of God. Many people respected and acknowledge her (Parello). Mother Teresa moved and arrived in India in 1928. Since she spent a lot of her life time in India, that is why she considered herself Indian (Brijnath). Teresa was also familiar with art of Kolkata, or more known as Calcutta (Cooke). Agnes was a faith-based person as well (Winfield). She did not fear death because she believed that she would be united with God upon dying. Teresa’s appearance was a small wrinkled woman in white. Mother Teresa suffered from heart disease and all of its side effects. This caused her death in 1997 at the age of 87 years old (Parello).

=__**Personality Traits**__= This living soul was a small person physically but in other ways she was a strong and independent woman (Guntzelman). She possessed many character and personality traits that made her a very unique and fascinating individual. One of the most significant traits that she showed was deep compassion and sympathy for others. She always tried to help others in any way that she possibly could. Whether it was by giving them a meal, or praying for them, or simply listening to their stories, she did whatever she could to make a difference in their lives. Mother Teresa had her own personal problems as anybody else would, but she would still make an effort to make the best of herself (Brijnath). Since Teresa was a living saint she would be able to heal bodies and save their soul (Cooke). Another characteristic that Mother Teresa displayed throughout her life was hard work and dedication. Even though she had a very full and busy schedule, along with having to constantly travel around the world, she always gave her best effort in everything she did. She was always willing to learn new things and experience many different cultures around the world. Mother Teresa was becoming a sign of God’s love (The life of a Saint). Agnes seemed unstoppable when it came to helping the poor (Parello). Mother Teresa was always motivated to be a helpful angel that nobody could criticize her in good faith. She was known for her profound devotion and faith in God and spreading his word around the world. No matter how much Teresa would help, she would always be thankful on the little or big impact she did to other people’s lives (Brijnath).

=__**Obstacles**__= Mother Teresa was a very inspiring person to many people. However, she did have many obstacles that she was forced to overcome throughout her lifetime. One of the toughest hurdles she had to overcome was the death of her mother. Even with time, Mother Teresa found it very difficult to overcome this devastating loss. She found herself missing her mother many times throughout her life. Agnes was also a very mentally strong individual. For example, she left her family to fulfill her desire of helping other people around the world (The Life of a Saint). She sacrificed all of her free time in order to keep serving God and helping spread his word across the world. The stress and hardships of a very demanding schedule with very long hours also was another obstacle she had to overcome. Mother Teresa helped hundreds of people throughout her life, starting with the poor and poverty stricken people. Since Mother Teresa traveled to many different countries across the entire world, she risked catching different types of illnesses and diseases. Another obstacle that Agnes had to overcome was her poor ailing health as she got older. She ended up living in a nursing home in Calcutta where she could receive the medical help she needed. In the end, she needed respiration tubes to help her breathe. She would always fight against whatever obstacles would come in her way.

=__**Historical Significance**__= Our nun Mother Teresa was not just important to the people around the world, she was also important to the American history. Teresa visited ten through fifteen different countries worldwide (Brijnath). So many people believed in her that they gave her the name of a living saint (Parello). She impacted church leaders so much that they have been trying to turn her into an official saint of the church. Some of Mother Teresa’s accomplishments were making churches, shelters, missionaries, and temples (Winfield)(Brijnath). Teresa was honestly someone to honor in so many different ways (Guntzelman). This living saint was one of the world greatest examples to the history of religion. If Mother Teresa were to live still, she would have been making more than just thousands of people happier but maybe even millions of people. She made our history of our century with courage (The Life of a Saint). Mother Teresa would not think twice about lift up a dying and destitute person (Cooke). Thanks to Teresa visiting different places, she got to experience and see things through a different point of view. Mother Teresa was not just a blessing but she was also lessons to others. The fact that this saint loved teaching others different things, such as geography and history, allowed many people got to look at things with a different perspective. She is also very significant because she spread the idea of peace and faith throughout all the different countries she visited. Mother Teresa believed in resolving issues through peaceful talking and negotiations. She did not believe in war and fighting among people.

=__**References**__= [|Brinath, Rohit]."Mother Teresa:Vigil for a Saint." //India Today(New Delhi,India).// Sept.15 1996:104-106. //SIRS Issues Researcher.// Web.14 Oct. 2014. **SE #3** Cooke, Bill."The Myth and the Reality."//Free Inquiry// 6(2004):54. //eLibrary.// Web. 09 Dec. 2014. **SE#6** Guntzelman, Joan. //A Reatreat with Mother Teresa and Damien Of Molokai caring for those who suffer.// Cincinnati OH://St.Anthony Messenger,// 1999. Print. Oct.3. **SE#2** Guntzelman, Joan."The life of a Saint." //St. Anthony Messenger//. 01 Oct. 2003: 30. //eLibrary//. Web. 06 Nov. 2014. **SE#4** Parello, Jennifer."Mother Teresa: Saint of the Gutters." //World Book Year Books//. 2009. //eLibrary//. Web.17 Sep. 2014 **SE#1**
 * Winfield, Nicole.** "Public Views Mother Teresa Beatification." //Baxter Bulletin (Mountain Home, AR)//. Oct. 20 2003: n.p. //SIRS Issues Researcher.// Web.17 Nov. 2014. **SE#5**