Mother Teresa to be named as co-patron of Archdiocese of Calcutta

The move will be made in commemoration of the first anniversary of Mother Teresa's canonisation

"On 6 September we will have at 5.30 pm a holy mass in the cathedral (The Cathedral of the Most Holy Rosary) and the Archbishop is going to declare Mother Teresa as co-patroness of the Archdiocese," Sister Prema, Superior-General of the Missionaries of Charity, told media.

Meanwhile, an All-India Exhibition of Painting and Sculpture on St Teresa of Kolkata was inaugurated by Sr. Prema, Superior-General, of the Missionaries of Charity, at the Abanindranath Tagore Gallery, Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), hereon Monday.

The two-day (Sept 4 and 5, 2017) exhibition is being organized by Kolkata-based Indian National Forum of Art and Culture (INFAC) as a tribute to Mother Teresa on the first anniversary of her canonization.

Inaugurating the exhibition in presence of a host of eminent personalities from various fields, Sr. Mary Prema spoke about how Mother Teresa touched the hearts of millions of people worldwide with her simplicity, love and kindness.

“Mother exuded joy and peace wherever she went. An unflinching faith in God was her driving force,’’ she said.

Pointing out that Mother saw Kolkata as her home and looked forward to returning to this city despite her busy international travel schedule, Sr. Prema expressed happiness that Kolkata-based INFAC was hosting the Exhibition.

“Ours is a cultural organisation and we wanted to commemorate the first anniversary of Mother Teresa’s canonization with something that constitutes one of our core activities. That is how we struck upon the idea of the Exhibition,’’ said Tapash Gan Choudhury, Chairman of the INFAC’s Board of Trustees.

The Exhibition is being organized under the aegis of INFAC’s Young Artists’ Forum. The initiative is supported by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, and city-based creative firm Church Art.

“We wanted relatively-unknown artists to share space with their better-known counterparts in giving creative expression to their thoughts on the life and work of Mother Teresa. We hope this Exhibition will achieve this objective somewhat,’’ said the President of INFAC’s Young Artists’ Forum, Tapan Pathak.

It was special moment for her followers when  the Vatican city had witnessed the canonisation of Mother Teresa on Sept 4, 2016.

Pope Francis had bestowed the title of saint to her.