Finding Calcutta

"Find the sick, the suffering and the lonely right there where you are. . . . You can find Calcutta all over the world, if you have the eyes to see." --Mother TeresaLifelong educator Mary Poplin, after experiencing a newfound awakening to faith, sent a letter to Calcutta asking if she could visit Mother Teresa and volunteer with the Missionaries of Charity. She received a response saying, "You are welcome to share in our works of love for the poorest of the poor." So in the spring of 1996, Poplin spent two months in Calcutta as a volunteer. There she observed Mother Teresa's life of work and service to the poor, participating in the community's commitments to simplicity and mercy. Mother Teresa's unabashedly religious work stands in countercultural contrast to the limitations of our secular age.Poplin's journey gives us an inside glimpse into one of the most influential lives of the twentieth century and the lessons Mother Teresa continues to offer. Upon Poplin's return, she soon discovered that God was calling her to serve the university world with the same kind of holistic service with which Mother Teresa served Calcutta.Not everyone can go to Calcutta. But all of us can find our own meaningful work and service. Come and answer the call to find your Calcutta!



Mary Poplin (Ph.D., University of Texas) is a professor of education at Claremont Graduate University in California, where she has served as director of the teacher education program and dean of the School of Educational Studies. Poplin conducts research inside urban classrooms and schools that promote both justice and accountability. She teaches courses on pedagogy, history and philosophy of education, as well as Christian principles related to these areas. She is also a frequent speaker at Veritas Forums and for both Protestant and Catholic retreats across the country.

Introduction: Telling the Truth About Mother Teresa


1. Getting There


2. A Day in the Life of a Missionary of Charity


3. A Pencil in God's Hand


4. Whatever You Did for the Least of These, You Did for Me


5. The Church as Flawed and Finite


6. Do All Things Without Complaining or Disputing


7. It All Belongs to God


8. There Is Always Enough


9. The Vow of Poverty and Service to the Poor


10. The Vow of Obedience


11. The Vow of Chastity


12. Small Things with Great Love


13. Prayer Is Our First Work


14. The Missionaries and Miracles


15. If We Say We Have No Sin, the Truth Is Not in Us


16. Here God's Grace More Abounds


17. Sometimes We Get Lost When We Look at Numbers


18. Don't Give In to Discouragement


19. Mother Teresa's Dark Night of the Spirit


20. The Humor of Mother Teresa


21. Spreading the Fragrance of Christ


22. It Matters Not, He Is Forgiven


23. Fighting Abortion with Adoption


24. Give Until It Hurts


25. Revolutionaries for Love


26. Mother Teresa and the Body of Christ


27. The Uniqueness of Christ


28. Leaving Calcutta


29. Finding Calcutta


30. My Thoughts Are Not Your Thoughts


Epilogue: Fall More in Love with Jesus Every Day

"Finding Calcutta is a must read for anyone interested in learning more about Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta and understanding the dynamics behind their work and service."



"Mary Poplin's pilgrimage of discovering Christ among the most vulnerable of the world's poor is an accessible and inspiring invitation to us all. Her honesty, thoughtfulness and reflections are an important provocation for those who find their realities separated from our sisters and brothers who suffer today. Mary does an excellent job of building the bridges between the insulated and isolated lack of experience of poverty in academia and the oppression and injustice on the streets of one of the world's poorest cities. Her interactions and stories of Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity are a true glimpse of grace and a sweet reminder that God is with and among those who suffer most. Honest, thoughtful and reflective, Finding Calcutta will challenge you to love more freely where you find yourself." weniger anzeigen expand_less