New Mother Teresa Pilgrimage?

[sillydoll]

http://clericalwhispers.blogspot.com/20 ... urope.html

The foreign minister of Macedonia, Antonio Milososki, was in India last week to oversee the transfer of a Mother Teresa relic. A part of Mother Teresa -- some say her hand -- will be transported to Macedonia to be placed in her birthplace, Skopje, as a relic in a commemorative house that the government there has just built for her, said Milososki. The transfer has been done under established traditions closely supervised by the Roman Catholic Church, Milososki said.
The government there hopes to turn Skopje into a place of pilgrimage.

 

[Arn]

Why would a pilgrimage to Skopje be a success...

- Mother Teresa is known throughout the world by Christians, non Christians and non religious alike.
- In 1962, Mother Teresa received the Philippines-based Ramon Magsaysay Award for International Understanding, given for work in South or East Asia.
- The 1969 documentary Something Beautiful for God, which was filmed by Malcolm Muggeridge and his 1971 book of the same title. Muggeridge credits his meeting with Mother Teresa for his conversion to Catholicism.
- In 1971, Paul VI awarded her the first Pope John XXIII Peace Prize, commending her for her work with the poor, display of Christian charity and efforts for peace. She later received the Pacem in Terris Award (1976)
- The Nobel Peace Prize in 1979
- The United Kingdom and the United States each repeatedly granted awards, culminating in the Order of Merit in 1983, and honorary citizenship of the United States received on November 16, 1996.
- Universities in both the West and in India granted her honorary degrees. Other civilian awards include the Balzan Prize for promoting humanity, peace and brotherhood among peoples (1978), and the Albert Schweitzer International Prize (1975). (The above tics taken from http://mother-theresa.blogspot.com/ Please go there for additional information on Mother Teresa)

The most compelling reason is probably that Mother Teresa is memorable, not only from her great works among the very least of us, but because Mother Teresa lived among us and we can still see and touch the great benefits of her work.

Now why Skopje?

Skopje, Macedonia's capital city, is the largest and most diverse city in the country. Skopje has been occupied by many different peoples since the beginning of time. This is evidenced by the several Byzantine churches and monasteries around the city, also by a few Roman sites, such as Scupi and Skopje's Aqueduct. (You can find more here: http://wikitravel.org/en/Skopje#Learn )
Unlike the Pilgrimage to Santiago there is currently no governmental plan to establish an infrastructure to support a series of routes to Skopje. If properly marketed, considering Mother Teresa’s international popularity, it’s likely that such a plan could be put into play. A listing of inexpensive hostels can be found here: http://hostels.bootsnall.com/

 

[sillydoll]

I think its obscene!!
Surely they can allow her to Rest In (one) Piece instead of cutting her body up into little pieces, shipping them around the world to be set into ornate, bejewelled reliquaries. I'm sure she would be horrified to be resting in a cross of gold, silver and jewells! Yech!!

 

[Theo]

Hi,

A picture of Mother Teresa statue in the center of Skopje :

Théo

 

[sillydoll]

That is lovely Theo.
Perhaps the people of Skopje should motivate to have her laid to rest in her home town - in one piece - like James of Compostela!

 

[Anniesantiago]

:::laughing:::: I agree with Sillydoll.
I think it's ridiculous to chop somebody up... I remember seeing St. Catherine's head in Italy, and another head (can't remember the guy's name), and a finger, and thinking.. sheesh! It's a bit creepy, isn't it! It reminds me of that old John Prine song... Apologies ahead of time if anyone thinks it's blasphemous, but ...it IS funny!

Woke up this morning.
Put on my slippers.
Walked in the kitchen and died.
And oh what a feeling!
When my soul went thru the ceiling.
And on up into heaven I did ride.
When I got there they did say John it happened this way.
You slipped upon the floor and hit your head.
And all the angels say, just before you passed away, these were the very last words that you said.

Chorus:
Please don't bury me, down in that cold cold ground.
No, I'd rather have em' cut me up and pass me all around.
Throw my brain in a hurricane and the blind can have my eyes.
And the deaf can take both of my ears if they don't mind the size.


Give my stomach to Milwaukee if they run out of beer
Put my socks in a cedar box just get em' out of here
Venus de Milo can have my arms look out! I've got your nose.
Sell my heart to the junkman and give my love to Rose

Repeat Chorus:

Give my feet to the footloose careless, fancy free.
Give my knees to the needy don't pull that stuff on me.
Hand me down my walking cane it's a sin to tell a lie.
Send my mouth way down south and kiss my ass goodbye.

Repeat Chorus:

 

[Deleted member 397]

It seems ghoulish to me and harks back to the relic stealing days of the past. Reminds me of the 2 rival religious centres that both claimed to have the head of John the Baptist-one explained it by saying it was his head when he was a young man the other said it was his as an old man.

 

[MermaidLilli]

funny funny song.
The idea of her hand somewhere else is kind of creepy, especially for the person who has to cut it off.
Nah,
In one piece, thank you
Lillian