Mother Teresa sainthood: Faithful flock to Vatican
- The much-anticipated canonisation will take place almost exactly 19 years after her death
- Pope Francis will lead a canonisation ceremony on Sunday in the square
FollowHundreds of thousands of people from across the globe have gathered in Rome to watch Mother Teresa be officially declared a Saint of the Catholic Church.
The much-anticipated canonisation will take place almost exactly 19 years after she died, marking a speedy rise to sainthood for the Albanian-born nun.
Known during her life as the "saint of the gutters", primarily for her work in the Indian city of Kolkata, Mother Teresa welcomed the diseased, destitute and dying into shelters she founded with opened arms.
In 1979, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the "unwanted, unloved, uncared for throughout society" and the Missionaries of Charity now operates in 87 countries.
In her later years, the nun became a global icon, regularly rubbing shoulders with celebrities, royalty and world leaders.
The push for her to become a saint began immediately following her death in 1997.
The traditional waiting period for consideration of sainthood was waived and since then, two miracles have been attributed to her intervention.
On Friday, Pope Francis denounced what he called the modern-day sin of indifference to hunger, exploitation and other suffering, while commending the example of Mother Teresa on the eve of a sainthood ceremony for the nun who cared for India's destitute.
Choosing "to not see hunger, disease, exploited persons, this is a grave sin. It's also a modern sin, a sin of today," Francis told thousands of lay volunteers in St Peter's Square at a special gathering to stress the need for more mercy and caring in the world.
Pope Francis will lead a canonisation ceremony on Sunday in the square. "Tomorrow, we'll have the joy of seeing Mother Teresa proclaimed a saint," he said. "She deserves it!"
In his speech to the volunteers, including some who helped rescue survivors of the Aug 24 earthquake in central Italy, he decried those who "turn the other way not to see the many forms of poverty that begs out for mercy."
