Sep 5 – Feast of St. Teresa of Calcutta
Mother Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu (born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), honoured in the Catholic Church as Saint Teresa of Calcutta, was an Albanian-Indian Roman Catholic nun and missionary. She was born in Skopje (now the capital of North Macedonia), then part of the Kosovo Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire. After living in Skopje for eighteen years, she moved to Ireland and then to India, where she lived for most of her life.
In 1950, Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charity, a Roman Catholic religious congregation that had over 4,500 nuns and was active in 133 countries in 2012. The congregation manages homes for people who are dying of HIV/AIDS, leprosy and tuberculosis. It also runs soup kitchens, dispensaries, mobile clinics, children’s and family counselling programmes, as well as orphanages and schools. Members take vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience, and also profess a fourth vow – to give “wholehearted free service to the poorest of the poor.”
Teresa received a number of honors, including the 1962 Ramon Magsaysay Peace Prize and 1979 Nobel Peace Prize. She was canonised on 4 September 2016, and the anniversary of her death (5 September) is her feast day. A controversial figure during her life and after her death, Teresa was admired by many for her charitable work. She was praised and criticized on various counts, such as for her views on abortion and contraception, and was criticized for poor conditions in her houses for the dying. Her authorized biography was written by Navin Chawla and published in 1992, and she has been the subject of films and other books. On 6 September 2017, Teresa and St. Francis Xavier were named co-patrons of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Calcutta.
– Wikipedia
1 Ths 5:1-6,9-11
Lk 4:31-37
So give encouragement to each other, and keep strengthening one another, as you do already.
Social media is a relatively new platform which grew in popularity over the past twenty years. The speed in which it ‘exploded’ is phenomenal. One of the things that always makes me amused is the word ‘social’, used to define it. In its original conception, it was meant to bring together people who have common interests. This can transcend geographical and time boundaries. Indeed, there is a growing number of people who feel closer to their online community than they do to a physical community.
The readings of today remind us of the importance of community. A community is supposed to bring together different groups of people who support and grow in character together. This means that there needs to be an alignment towards a common purpose. Indeed, I believe strongly that sometimes members in a volunteer or interest group have greater alignment of purpose than employees in a company. Modern day leadership literature talks about team-bonding and norming but as Christians, our common purpose is to focus towards the service of Jesus Christ.
All Christian communities should have Christ as the center of their consideration, and this is something which distinguishes us from other secular organisations. The reason why we go to church is because we draw strength from the community of worship. It is true that we could be part of an online community, but it does not have the same strength of bonds as a physical group. May we continue to discover what God has in store for us and to embrace the challenges which come with it.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Nicholas Chia)
Prayer: Jesus, may we discover the importance of your presence in building a community.
Thanksgiving: We give thanks for all those who love us as we are.
OXYGEN 
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