Interfaith leaders honour Mother Teresa

Interfaith leaders honour Mother Teresa

Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh and Muslim leaders have gathered with Catholics at the tomb of St Teresa of Calcutta to pray for her intercession. The leaders - who met at invitation of the Catholic Archdiocese of Calcutta (Kolkata) and the Missionaries of Charity - prayed that they might emulate her commitment to the poor.

"Although St Teresa has left us, we can all emulate her," said Maulana Mubarak Karim Jawahar, president of the Quran Research Society. Buddharakhsit, a Buddhist leader described St Teresa as a "pure soul" who "earned respect" through her life, while Jagmohan Singh, representing the Eastern Region Sikh Mission acclaimed her "godly mercy."

Archbishop Thomas D'Souza of Calcutta recalled that representatives of various faiths were present at St Teresa's canonisation on September 4, 2016, in Rome. Speaking at the interfaith prayer meeting last Friday, he said: "In a small way, in this holy room where St. Teresa's tomb is, representatives of different faiths have come together to celebrate"

On Sunday, Catholics in Kolkata embarked on a three-kilometre 'Mother Teresa Walk' that began at her former convent and ended at her "final resting place". Her tomb is inside the headquarters in Kolkata of the Missionaries of Charity.