Historic moment

CANONIZATION OF ST. TERESA  Top: Cesar Jaramillo, a diocesan seminarian whose home parish is St. Anthony’s in Passaic, meets Vittorio Giorgini and Elisa Cambi at the canonization, who were kind enough to share seats with him. Above: Father Yohaneider Garcia stands outside St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, with a tapestry of Mother Teresa in the background.

ROME  As tens of thousands witnessed the canonization of Mother Teresa of Calcutta Sept. 4, some of those in St. Peter’s Square in Rome hailed from the Paterson Diocese. The historic canonization by Pope Francis happened 19 years after the death of the Missionary of Charity, who devoted her life working with the sick and poor in India and around the world.

Father Yojaneider Garcia, parochial vicar at St. Peter Parish in Parsippany, was one of the pilgrims from the diocese who was present at the canonization. “Mother Teresa is a saint of our time,” he said. “She inspired many people by her life with her words and her works. Because she lived within the last century, many of us watched her on television or heard something she did. We knew that she discovered the face of Jesus in the poor people and she was the face of the mercy and tenderness for God.”

Father Garcia along with Father Duberney Villamizar, parochial vicar at St. Anthony Parish in Passaic were concelebrants of the canonization Mass at which Pope Francis, presided. It was a memorable moment for the two young diocesan priests, who led a group of pilgrims to Rome and the Holy Land. Father Villamizar felt especially blessed because he distributed Holy Communion to the crowds during the Mass and could be seen on the jumbo screens in St. Peter’s Square.

“It was a gift to give Holy Communion to the people. When the Pope consecrated the host, as the priests held the hosts, it was a very moving moment as the bread became Jesus’ Body,” said Father Villamizar.

Because Mother Teresa was a modern day saint, her canonization attracted many people who traveled from all around the world to the Eternal City. Father Garcia said, “The most beautiful thing about the canonization was to see people from different countries speaking different languages. It shows the universality of the Church and that everybody is looking for the mercy of God, being witnesses of the icon of mercy and tenderness of God — St. Teresa of Calcutta.”

“When the Mass was finished,” Father Villamizar said, “We were thinking about how God works through those living a normal and simple life like Mother Teresa. There were many people before her that did the same – St. Francis of Assisi, St. Anthony of Padua and St. Vincent DePaul to name a few saints, who all did the same like Mother Teresa.

These people all love God and they love God’s people. It shows how all of us have the possibility to be saints.”

Also attending the canonization was Cesar Jaramillo, a diocesan seminarian studying at Pontifical North American College in Rome, who will be ordained later this month as a transitional deacon. He reflected on the time he spent with the Missionaries of Charity, the order Mother Teresa founded, and the honor of being at the canonization. “It was especially touching for me,” he said, “as I fondly remember the time I spent doing volunteer work with the Missionaries of Charity in Calabria, a city in southern Italy in the 2014. Ever since that experience I have cultivated a great love for the Missionaries of Charity as well as St. Teresa. Her life, I believe, exemplified all the Christian virtues that each one of us is called to live out in our lives and her legacy continues through the work of so many Missionaries of Charity throughout the world.”

In his homily, Pope Francis praised the work of Mother Teresa and Father Garcia said, “The pope invited us to carry with us her smile in our hearts and give it to those whom we meet along our journey, especially those who suffer. We know many people who have lost hope and are discouraged. When Jesus is in our heart we can smile and we can share Jesus with a simple smile and give others hope to continue their life with courage as St. Teresa of Calcutta did.”

The Albanian-born saint founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950, and today there are more than 4,500 sisters serving in 133 countries. The order runs homes for people dying of HIV/AIDS, leprosy and tuberculosis; soup kitchens; mobile clinics; children’s and family counseling programs, orphanages and schools. Because of the saint’s love for the poorest of the poor, throughout the diocese, many parishes hosted special Masses or presentations in her honor. Both Father Garcia and Father Villamizar noted how appropriate it was for Mother Teresa to be canonized during the Year of Mercy.

Jaramillo believes if there’s anything we can model from St. Teresa’s life, it is her courageousness in spite of the impoverished reality in which she ministered. “She had a courageous resolve to love like Christ did,” he said, “humbly without the cost. I believe our world today needs to be reminded of the true meaning of Christian love — a love that manifests itself, above all, in service and sacrifice.”

Father Garcia said, “At the Last Supper, Jesus gave us a legacy and example of service and love, when he washed the feet of his disciples. St. Teresa of Calcutta realized this with her entire heart and her hands to serve others. She is an icon of God’s tender mercy, radiating the light of God’s love to so many through works of mercy, both corporal and spiritual. She reminds us that we are called to love and serve as Jesus did.”