By MARY STADNYK
Associate Editor
UPDATED Sept. 8, 2025
Referencing Jesus’ words from St. Matthew’s Gospel “that whatever we do for the least of his brothers and sisters, we do for him,” Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., noted that Mother Teresa of Calcutta “lived this truth with unwavering conviction” during her life on earth.
“She did not simply serve the poor – she loved them. She touched their wounds, held their hands and whispered dignity into their hearts,” Bishop O’Connell said. “Her mission was not humanitarian, it was Eucharistic. She saw the same Jesus she adored in the tabernacles, now hidden in the broken bodies of the dying and the abandoned.”
PHOTO GALLERY: Mass for Feast of St. Teresa of Calcutta
On the 28th anniversary of “the day she went to heaven,” Bishop O’Connell celebrated a Mass for both the saint’s Sept. 5 feast day as well as the local work of the Missionaries of Charity, the religious order she founded.
Present for the Mass held in Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, Asbury Park, were the Missionaries of Charity who live and serve in the area; those who volunteer with the Sisters in their work: as well as lay Missionaries of Charity, parishioners and a contingent of students and faculty from Our Lady of Mount Carmel School.
A special cake was made for the reception following the Mass. Saintly Legacy
St. Teresa, more widely known as Mother Teresa, founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950 to work among the poorest of the poor in India. The order now serves around the globe, with more than 5,700 sisters serving in 139 countries. They staff homes for the sick and dying, provide medical cere, education, social assistance and other relief for the poor worldwide.
The Missionaries of Charity have served in the Diocese of Trenton since 1999, when they responded to an invitation by then-Bishop John C. Reiss to begin their ministry working among the poor in Asbury Park.
Four years earlier on June 18, 1995, then-Mother Teresa visited the Diocese and attended Mass celebrated by Bishop Reiss in St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton. During the Mass and before a congregation of some 10,000 people, Bishop Reiss presented a letter to Mother Teresa “formally and canonically” inviting the Missionaries of Charity to establish a residence in the Diocese.
It took three-and-a-half years before permission was granted and, in November 1998, the Diocese received a letter from the order’s motherhouse in Kolkata, India, seeking approval for a residence within a city where the Sisters’ service would meet the greatest needs. After visiting a number of sites throughout the Diocese, the sisters established a convent on the western side of Asbury Park, an area that had preponderance of poor residents. Their official arrival in the Diocese was June 6, 1999.
Today, the Sisters’ work includes visiting nursing homes and homebound seniors, operating a soup kitchen, serving food in train stations in Asbury Park and nearby towns of Neptune and Bradley Beach, and teaching religious education in Mother of Mercy Parish, of which Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church is part.
Carrying on Teresa’s Mission
Directing his words to the Missionaries of Charity seated in the front pew and wearing their habits of white saris with blue trim, Bishop O’Connell said, “Dear Sisters, you carry forward [St. Teresa’s] legacy not only in your works, but in your hearts. You are not just doing what she did, you are loving as she loved. And that love is what transforms the world.”
Citing two of St. Teresa’s well-known quotes, “Do small things with great love” and “It is not how much we do, but how much love we put into the doing,” Bishop O’Connell said, “This is the spirituality of the Missionaries of Charity: hidden, humble, joyful. It is the spirituality of Nazareth, of Calvary, of the Upper Room, of the Eucharist.”
The Missionaries of Charity from Asbury Park are seated in the front pew for Mass.
The Bishop then urged the congregation to consider three instructions that the feast day “asks of us: to renew our gaze, to see Jesus in every person, especially the most forgotten; to embrace the hidden crosses of our own lives, trusting that love transforms suffering; to live with joy, even in the midst of sacrifice.”
“Let us ask her intercession today, that we may love as she loved, served as she served and surrender as she surrendered,” Bishop O’Connell said. “As we celebrate the feast of St. Teresa of Calcutta, we are invited to contemplate a life that was utterly poured out in love.”
Mario Rojas, grand knight of the Mary Queen of the Knights Council, Knights of Columbus, said it was a privilege for him to be with the Missionaries of Charity on their special day.
“Our council helps the sisters, whatever they need, we’ll do,” he said. “One thing is for sure, what they do they do with a lot of love.”
“Our council members have learned a lot about St. Teresa,” Rojas continued, especially when it comes to serving those in need.
“We learned that we should love them, before judging them,” he said, “and to see Jesus in them.”
Maureen Vinci came to know the Missionaries of Charity through volunteering with Mother of Mercy’s Pastoral Care Ministry, which, she said, strives to follow Mother Teresa’s example, especially when visiting the sick and homebound parishioners.
“It’s truly astonishing to witness the Sisters serving the poor, visiting the sick, teaching and caring for the less fortunate children in the community. They are just a few of their many acts of charity and sacrifices they make every day,” Vinci said, adding that she’s also had occasion to volunteer with the Sisters.
“The Missionaries of Charity live true to their vocation and walk in Mother Teresa’s footsteps. We are blessed to have them in our community and in the world.” Vinci said.