“Mother Teresa: No Greater Love” by the Knights of Columbus marks 25 years since her death. It shows the life and legacy of the saint of the marginalised through the work of the Missionaries of Charity in the slums of the world. The movie will be released on 3 October in 900 movie theatres across the United States and Canada.
Vatican City (AsiaNews) – A new documentary on Mother Teresa of Kolkata (Calcutta) was premiered yesterday in the Vatican. “Mother Teresa: No Greater Love” marks the 25th anniversary of the saint’s death (5 September 1997).
Produced by the Knights of Columbus with archival material from the Missionaries of Charity, the movie tells the life of the religious, with interviews and reports from some of the communities where the Sisters of Charity carry out their service.
The documentary also looks into the stories of how her charism continues to work around the world, from the remotest villages in the Amazon to the Bronx, from slums in Kenya to Cracolândia (literally Crackland in Portuguese), an area in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) characterised by a high incidence of drug trafficking and use.
Directed by David Naglieri, the 115-minute production will be shown in more than 900 movie theatres in the United States and Canada on 3 October.
“The intent was above all to tell the story of Mother Teresa to a generation that is too young to have heard about her directly,” said Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly.
“Some young nuns were finally able to see the Mother 'in action' during the premiere,” said Brian Kolodiejchuk, a Missionary of Charity and postulator of the cause of canonisation.
“At the end of the documentary, Calcutta is everywhere; everyone can experience Mother Teresa’s love by doing extraordinary things in the everyday things.”
Even Archbishop Card Sean O'Malley of Boston offered his own memories of Mother Teresa, whom he met as a young friar.
“Mother Teresa’s life,” he said, “was about showing the merciful face of God, assuring people that they are loved, because it is only when people know that they are loved, that they believe our message.”
"This documentary,” added Sister Myriam Thérèse, regional superior of the Missionaries of Charity, “will be a source of inspiration even for those who never met her. It is great to be able to see what God has done in her and what he continues to do even in those who have followed in her footsteps.
"The Mother believed in our nothingness, in the fact that without God we could not do anything. Everything is born from attachment to the person of Jesus, from union with God in prayer, in the Eucharist and in the poor.”
Hence, "I think that Mother Teresa calls on all of us to continue to be open to God's love and to give it in our service to the poor. This will also bring light and hope to today's world."