Mother Teresa - "Come Be My Light" - Introduction

I've been trying to read Mother Teresa's "Come Be My Light," a collection and discussion of her letters, but with all the great stuff going on, like PBS's "The War," my son's football game, other kids activities, and my chest infection last week, I just haven't had time or strength.

I finally have a few moments which I hope to spend by beginning my discussion of this important book.

Mother Teresa's "mission statement," says the book is:

If I ever become a Saint -- I will surely be one of 'darkness.' I will continually be absent from Heaven -- to light the light of those in darkness on earth" (:1).

The book is an exploration of Mother Teresa's interior life (:2), not a theological study. The author/compiler Brian Kolodiejchuk focuses on three important aspects of her life. 1) A private vow she made while a nun; 2) mystical experiences prior to the founding of the Missionaries of Charity; 3) her experience of many years of spiritual darkness.

The book is structured around these three aspects. First (chapters 1-2), we read of her initial devotion to Jesus and her internal life. Second (chapters 3-7), we read of her "call within a call," i.e., after her devotion to missionary work, she received, she believed, from Christ a more narrow call, namely to found a new mission. This time of her life was apparently characterized by experiences of particular inspiration (I haven't read these chapters yet). Finally (chapters 8-13), we will read of what it cost Mother Teresa to obey this "call within a call."

Some Random Comments:

1) Brian K. (:4) mentions Malcolm Muggeridge's observation that Mother Teresa glowed with a kind of "luminosity," yet at the same time, suffering intense spiritual darkness privately. I find it amazing that this follower of Jesus did not understand that her public perception did not match her own internal experience. I wonder if there is some kind of spiritual principle at work here. Does God hide from a believer the aroma of Christ that s/he might be spreading? Is there something that would perhaps detract from the glory that redowns to Christ if the believer had a clear understanding of how her/his life testifies to God's grace? If so, perhaps we should be slower to doubt God's work in our lives.

2) I was struck by one statement she makes in a letter to her spiritual director. She asks for all the documents she had given to him in which she had expressed her deepest thoughts. She writes, "I want the work to remain only His" (:5). I admire this passion to bring credit to God alone.

3) A final issue to think about, at least, is the ethics of publishing the letters and documents of someone who had no desire to have them published, and in fact, specifically requested that they NOT be published. It is true that some people who attempt to look "humble" are in fact not so humble; Mother Teresa's life certainly argues against that interpretation. Others are genuinely humble, but don't understand that their exprience(s) could benefit many, many other believers. Those in authority in Mother Teresa's case decided something else: she belonged to the Church, not just to herself. I wonder if she would have agreed. Do YOU agree? In what sense do we as individual believers "belong to the Church?" How would we live differently if we really believed that?

Birthday Money!

OK, so how did I spend that birthday money? Although my birthday is in July, I only recently got around to spending it. Here's what I bought:

1. _The Sand Pebbles_ (dvd)

I've already written about this movie - awesome!

2. _10th Anniversary_, the Statler Brothers (cd)

I'm an "uber-fan" of the Statlers, especially their older stuff, with Lew Dewitt in the group. Not many cds left from that time (1969-1982).

3. _The Drama of Scripture: Finding Our Place in the Biblical Story_, by Craig G. Bartholomew and Michael W. Goheen.

A great book dealing with the "drama of redemption." I had a copy of this book, and read it, but then gave it away to a student. Excellent preparation for teaching "Progress of Redemption" (someday).

4. _Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light: The Private Writings of the "Saint of Calcutta"_, by Mother Teresa and Brian Kolodiejchuk.

I plan to read this through, do some comparing of Mother Teresa with Amy Carmichael, and hopefully write a few meaningful posts on the subject.

Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith: a Grab Bag of Responses

The response to the Time magazine article about Mother Teresa's crisis of faith has elicited responses from nearly every quarter. I've gathered links to a wide variety of perspectives, including Catholic - a seminary professor and a discussion list - Evangelicals - a seminary president and several prominent scholars and thinkers - a philosophy professor, a liberal Christian, two atheists, an editorialist, and even an essay on an Islamic website. Let's not forget the name of the book that is causing all the stir. Here's the bibliography: "Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light" (Doubleday: 2007), by Mother Teresa and Brian Kolodiejchuk (ISBN-10: 0385520379; ISBN-13: 978-0385520379). You can order it from Amazon.com.

I've checked all the links, so they should work. I'm still fascinated that so many people are fascinated with this story. Here's the list, with a few comments:

The original article in Time magazine, entitled "Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith," by David Van Biema, is found here.

Here's an essay in the conservative journal "First Things: The Journal of Religion, Culture, and Public Life." It is entitled “The Dark Night of Mother Teresa,” by Carol Zaleski.

I begin a list of responses by Evangelicals with one of the guys of the Torrey Honors Institute at Biola: “Why Was Mother Teresa Sad?” by Fred Sanders.

Rick Phillips' response, “Mother Teresa’s Redemption,” is found here.

Al Mohler's response, “Trust Christ, Not Feelings,” is found here. See also his blog.

Chuck Colson responds with, "Suffering Servant: The Letters of Mother Teresa."

Rod Dreher, editorialist for Dallas Morning News, responds here.

NT/Jesus scholar Scot McKnight has a good discussion on his blog, "Jesus Creed." Here's the link.

Christian pastor/philosopher/professor Phil Steiger of Colorado Springs, CO, responds here.

Liberal Christian theologian Willis E. Elliot responds with an essay entitled, "Faith + Doubt = Progress."

Prominent atheist Christopher Hitchens offers criticism of Mother Teresa and the Roman Catholic Church with an essay entitled, "Teresa, Bright and Dark."

“Mother Teresa – The Scandal of her Faith,” by Dr. Anthony Lilles, Academic Dean, St. John Vianney Theological Seminary, Denver, CO, responds directly to Hitchens.

America's favorite "village atheist," Sam Harris, responds with an essay called “The Sacrifice of Reason."

I have three good discussion lists. First, Netscape. Then Catholic Answers Forum. And finally, Crosswalk had a good discussion, but now the link I had to it is dead. Try searching Crosswalk.

The interesting Islamic response is from Muslimmatters.org. Read the essay, with responses, "What to Make of Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith."

Doubt: A Severe Mercy?

Today I read an interesting article in Time magazine online about a new book about the secret life of spiritual doubt in the life of Mother Teresa. The book is called Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light (Doubleday). The book contains letters Mother Teresa wrote over several decades to her confessors and spiritual advisors in which she admits to deep, almost paralyzing spiritual darkness. Fascinating. I haven't read the book, so I'm not endorsing it, but the article paints an endearing portrait of someone in deep spiritual pain.

The author of the article discusses possible causes. Was it because God isn't really there? (so the atheists claim) or was it because of some inability of Teresa to receive love? Or, was it a "severe mercy," something Teresa needed to keep her humble or to enable her to more closely understand Christ's sacrifice? The article is worth reading, and I think we should discuss the topic of doubt. Have you had doubts? Have you sensed that God was distant? Are there possible benefits that doubt can bring into our lives?