Careful with this one. Was Mother Teresa engaged in economic activity, or God-led loving activity?
Was she trying to save souls? Or merely trying to clothe and feed the poor? Or commiting herself to good works?
Hitchens is of course a douche-bag, but be careful how we analyze Mother Teresa.
I don’t think anyone believes that the ministry of the Missionaries of Charity is *all* that should be done to assist the poor or to develop economic opportunity.
The dying destitute should be picked up off the street and cared for ... AND poor children should be taught reading and marketable skills AND adults should be helped to establish economic independence AND government economic restrictions should be loosed AND caste discrimination should be fought AND blahblahblah.
However, a religious order can’t be everything to everyone, and the MoC charism is to *give* to the most desperately needy.
Even if Mother Theresa was “religion free” she would still be a blessed person who dedicated her life to truly helping the poor. She washed them and clothed them, she didn’t demand higher taxes so her union goons could be employed handing out the “goodies”.
Two of my favorite quotes:
"Let us more and more insist on raising funds of love, of kindness, of understanding, of peace. Money will come if we seek first the Kingdom of God - the rest will be given."
"Many people mistake our work for our vocation. Our vocation is the love of Jesus."
That's precisely what poor Hitch doesn't like about her, or doesn't understand: that she was not a philanthropist fund-raiser, social worker, etc. Her source was God's love; her method, God's love; her goal, God's love.
I remember a statement she made about the sick and dying that she “didn’t care if they uttered Christ or Allah or Hindu Deity names as long as they died with their interpreted name of God on their lips.” It was a very syncrestic statement not compatable with scripture and it put me on edge, making me wary of Theresa’s total ministry and her motives. Press writing can be very bad so I reserve some opinions regarding that statement and after 12 years or so when I read that statement I might not be quoting the statement word for word though I am sure of the accuracy of the statement.