The Missionary Position summary

Have you ever heard of Agnes Bojaxhiu? Well, you might know her better by a name she adopted later in life: Mother Teresa.

She was born in Albania in 1910 to a religious Catholic family. At 18, she became a nun and, one year later, moved to India. By 1948, she was opening homes and hospices for the poor, the sick and the dying, first in Calcutta, then across the globe.

Teresa’s work with the poor was the subject of widespread praise in the Western press throughout her life, but, upon closer inspection, it’s clear that this fame rests on false premises. Here’s how.

Her initial rise to international fame followed the release of a 1969 BBC documentary featuring her work. However, the film was based on the incorrect assumption that Calcutta was one of the vilest places on earth. This idea was propagated by the wide dissemination of images depicting people asleep on sidewalks and trudging through overcrowded streets.

The reality was very different. Calcutta was no worse than other cities of comparable size in India or other developing nations. It was crowded and poor, but it was also full of hardworking people, excellent universities and vibrant culture. Nonetheless, the film’s depiction of the city as a living hell served to reinforce the saintly image of Teresa’s work at what she called her “House for the Dying.”

Not just that, but the same documentary depicted a supposed miracle, which was definitely not what it seemed. This so-called divine event occurred when a mysterious light, with no discernible source, appeared in a scene filmed in a darkened room at Teresa’s House for the Dying.

The narrator of the film, Malcolm Muggeridge, was sure it was a divine light and the first recording of a miracle performed by Teresa. This story was widely spread by the media and rapidly launched Teresa into stardom.

Years later, the cameraman, Ken Macmillian, said that the light was simply caused by new Kodak film, but by then the miracle was firmly planted in the public conscience, and Teresa was a household name in the West.