Apparently, Mother Theresa had times when the presence of Jesus was not apparent and her heart grew cold. How typical of those who serve and serve and serve. The depth of the warmness of their deeds in matched only by the chill they feel in their hearts.
This is why God throughout the scriptures call us to Sabbath with Him. The first Torah (instruction) given to Adam and Eve in the Garden was to Sabbath. It was not given in stone, but rather by example. The first thing they saw God do was rest.
Mary and Martha ring a bell? Martha served and served and grew cold. Mary sat and was warmed by the gospel.
When will those of us who are called to serve realize that Sabbath is essential to our lives with God and our service of others?
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Phil,
First of all, I like the new design for your website. Very cool!
Now that I have said that, I am going to lean into you pretty thick. Everyone has a crisis of faith. If you don’t then you’re perfect and therefore God. Please send me a picture of yourself so that I can put it on my iconostasis and start praying to you!
I expected this kind of treatment from the media who harped on and on about this when it was first revealed. Their constant analysis was that if Mother Theresa had doubts about God, then there is no God and the Roman Catholic Church is now exposed for the fraud the media want it to be! I did not expect this same kind of treatment from a pastor of the flock of Christ.
HOw can you dare say that Mother Theresa was never warmed by the Gospel? Her work was the message of Christ in the Gospels that we are called to serve our Lord by serving others since everyone is made as the image of God, the icon of Christ! And you dare to say that both she and her work are Gospel-less.
Today the Western Church commemorates St. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo Regius. (The Eastern Church commemorates him on June 15). Talk about not a crisis, but crises of faith? Do we condemn him? Do we remove the title saint from his name (though I’m sure some Lutherans do)? Do we remve him from the commemoration list? NO! Then why do we do this for Mother Theresa? Did she ever boast of her works? Was she putting faith in herself before God? She may have had a crisis of faith and considering what she was doing, working with the most destitute people on earth in the most appalling codiditions, it can make anyone have that. Fortunately, Christ always calls us back to the fold as he did with the adulterous woman, the Cannanite woman, St. Photini (the Samaritan Woman at the well) the Publican, the Prodigal, St. Augustine, Mother Theresa and yes, even Martin Luther.
Unless you have some special knowledge of what Mother Theresa was thinking, I suggest you say no more.
My $4.38.
I must not have worded my post well. I agree that her experience is quite common, and one with which I am familiar. The main point I tried to make is that often people believe that in serving they will be filled with the warmth of the gospel. But rather it is in sitting at Jesus’ feet that one is filled with the Spirit to recognize God’s presence. In my original post which got deleted on accident in the updating of the site, I more clearly stated that I knew her crisis of faith. That is why I ask the last question with the pronoun “we.” I was trying to relate and suggest reasons for this common struggle of those who are in Christ. Sorry if I failed. I did not mean to speak poorly of her in this post at all. Her inner thoughts were all too familiar.
Phil,
I will offer my apologies and ask for forgiveness. After reading your post featuring the corrections, I know that you were not coming from the angle that I thought you were. Of course, I have known you for many years and I should know better that you would never condemn someone like this unless you had ample proof and that person was under your direct care as a spiritual child.
It is an interesting thing that having become Orthodox, I seem to be defending the Catholics more and more. Not because they have everything right, mind you, but because, it seems, far too many people wish to discredit Catholicism in any way they can. And what better way then by going after someone as dearly loved by the Catholic Church and even the non-Catholic world as Mother Theresa? This attack comes from two sides–the atheists and the Evangelicals. Atheists want to do anything to discredit God and belief in God. Evangelicals can’t get past their own 1/2 inch thick theology in understanding God’s revealed glory and so condemn Catholicism. Now, if something had come up about Pope John Paul II’s crisis of faith, we’d never hear the end of it.
Frankly, to me, this is a non-story. It’s only given more fuel by those who for whatever reason hate Catholicism and Catholics (even themselves sometimes).
Mother Theresa, without doubt, was filled with the Gospel to do those things which Christ commanded. She did them not only because it is a command of Christ, but because she loved our Lord and God and Saviour, even if that love suffered a crisis and that love is only but a fraction of a percent of the love our Lord shows each and every day.
I resonate with Chris when he says that this is a “non-story”. If a Christian has a time in their lives where they don’t feel as close to God, I’d say they’re normal. That’s why it’s so (!) important to have faith that isn’t rooted in feeling or circumstance. We know God is active and present even when we only see and feel coldness and silence.
As far as *why* she felt that way… we’re left to conjecture. It could be that she was sidetracked by everything she was doing, as you suggest. It could be some serious spiritual warfare. Or it could be that she was human and fallible and imperfect and wavering. It makes me a little sad, but I love seeing her human-ness and I love the beautiful lesson that even when we feel impotent or distant from God, God works through us.
As much as it’s a “non-story” to me, I think it’s interesting that the world thinks it’s news. Mother Teresa is on the same level as God in many people’s minds. A world that finds an invisible God so hard to accept sees His works through the humility of an old woman, which is beautiful… but then it transfers its concept of deity to what it sees. The world doesn’t know what to do with someone who is holy and fallible, sainted and silenced.
That last sentence in literary gold Hink. Otherwise, I guess I will let this non-story rest with your and Chris’ comments.