Mother Tereesa (Ethical Issues) - 3804 Words

Mother Teresa is known across the globe as the brave and selfless servant of the poor and sick of Calcuttas slums. She was also much more: a bold social advocagte, and even a thoughtful theologian. In 1994, just three years before she would pass away, Mother Teresa spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. The focus of her presentation was a condemnation of abortion, given in the presence of the pro-choice administration of President Bill Clinton (First Lady Hilary Clinton was also in attendance) and Vice President Al Gore. Mother Teresas treatment of abortion is in the context of a series of fascinating ethical and ecclesiological reflections that reveal the intriguing insight of her thoughts on love, family, the†¦show more content†¦I have carved you in the palm of my hand. She speaks of her work with mothers and orphans in the slums of Calcutta: We are fighting abortion by adoption -by care of the mother and adoption for her baby. She and her nuns, she ex plained, would spread the word throughout the town that they would take any child that was considered for abortion. From our childrens home in Calcutta alone, she claimed, we have saved over 3000 children from abortion. These children have brought such love and joy to the adopting parents and have grown up so full of love and joy. Mother Teresa continues her reflections and delves into issues of the use of contraception, and ultimately ends her address with a return to her axiomatic point that God (and Christ) must serve as the foundation for ethical decisions and reasoning. He must be the example by which humans live, think, act, and judge their actions: If we remember that God loves us, and that we can love others as He loves us, then America can become a sign of peace for the world. From here, a sign of care for the weakest of the weak -the unborn child- must go out to the world. If you become a burning light of justice and peace in the world, then really you will be truest to what the founders of this country stood for. God bless you! Works Cited Mother Teresa, Whatever You Did Unto One of the Least, You Did Unto Me. The National Prayer Breakfast, Washington, D.C., February, 1994.