[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 120 (Thursday, September 11, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H7248-H7253]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 EXPRESSING CONDOLENCES OF THE HOUSE ON THE DEATH OF MOTHER TERESA OF 
                                CALCUTTA

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee 
on International Relations be discharged from further consideration of 
the resolution (H. Res. 227), expressing the condolences of the House 
of Representatives on the death of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, to the 
end that that resolution be considered immediately in the House; and 
that after debate not to exceed 1 hour, controlled by the chairman of 
the Committee on International Relations, the resolution be considered 
as agreed to and the motion to reconsider laid on the table.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:

                              H. Res. 227

       Whereas the House of Representatives has heard with great 
     sorrow of the death of Mother Teresa of Calcutta;
       Whereas Mother Teresa of Calcutta dedicated her life to 
     helping the sick, the dying, the unborn, and the poorest of 
     the poor for a half century;
       Whereas Mother Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charity, 
     which now comprises over 3,000 members in 25 countries who 
     are engaged in caring for the sick, dying, and poor;
       Whereas Mother Teresa's humanitarian work and the 
     inspiration she provided to others has been recognized by the 
     award of the first Pope John XXIII Peace Prize in 1971, the 
     Jawaharal Nehru Award for International Understanding in 
     1972, the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979, and the Presidential 
     Medal of Freedom in 1985;
       Whereas in 1997, pursuant to Public Law 105-16, Mother 
     Teresa was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal; and
       Whereas Mother Teresa's life-long example of selfless 
     dedication to humanitarian work has inspired millions of 
     people around the world: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives expresses its 
     admiration and respect for the life and work of Mother 
     Teresa, and its sympathy to the Missionaries of Charity on 
     their loss.
       Sec. 2. The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall 
     transmit a copy of this resolution to the General Mother 
     House of the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India.

  Mr. GILMAN (during the reading]. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that the resolution be considered as having been read and printed in 
the Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from New York [Mr. Gilman] is 
recognized for 1 hour.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, for purposes of debate only, I yield the 
customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Menendez], 
pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. All time 
yielded on this resolution is for the purposes of debate only.
  [Mr. GILMAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)


                             General Leave

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
on the resolution presently under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, ``Mother Is Gone.'' That was the historic 
headline on the front page of one of India's leading newspapers last 
week. With the passing of Mother Teresa of Calcutta a diminutive figure 
of towering moral stature, people around the world felt a most personal 
loss.
  Mother Teresa spent most of her life in India, the last half-century 
heading the Missionaries of Charity, an order she founded after 
receiving a divine call to devote her life to tending to the needs of 
the sick, the dying, and the poorest of the poor. She became a public 
figure over time, demonstrating a single-mindedness and a steadfastness 
of purpose that were remarkable; and in that sense, she was certainly a 
woman of valor.
  Mother Teresa's stellar contributions and her moral example were 
widely recognized by such accolades as the Nobel Prize for Peace and 
the Presidential Medal of Freedom. And just this year Congress passed 
and the President signed into law a measure providing for the award of 
a Congressional Gold Medal to Mother Teresa. The medal ceremony, held 
in the rotunda of the Capitol, was a most moving one.
  Mr. Speaker, considering, as we are, a woman of valor, the end of 
Solomon's words in Proverbs, chapter 31, come to mind: ``Grace is 
deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman that fears the Lord, she 
shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands and let her works 
praise her in the gates.''
  Mr. Speaker, I yield the balance of my time to the gentleman from 
Indiana [Mr. Burton], the sponsor of this resolution, and I ask 
unanimous consent that he be permitted to yield to other Members.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Burton] will 
control the remainder of the debate time on that side.
  (Mr. MENENDEZ asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues in sponsoring this resolution and 
rise in strong support of the resolution before us honoring Mother 
Teresa. It is appropriate that today, as we honor the life of a simple 
woman whom millions called Mother, this week Catholics commemorate the 
birthday of another simple woman who became the most important woman in 
Catholicism, Mary, the Blessed Mother.
  Last Friday, September 5, the world lost one of its shining lights. 
Mother Teresa's death was a loss for us all. She was the embodiment of 
compassion and a beacon of goodness. Her name grew to become synonymous 
with caring for the poor, the indigent, and the downtrodden. She was 
not one who sought the spotlight; rather, she let her deeds and service 
do the speaking for her. She had a strong will that enabled her to 
accomplish many good deeds and improve the lives of thousands of human 
beings daily, and without a doubt, she left her mark on our world, 
helping millions of people in India, the United States, and all over 
the world.
  Her work was not easy, glamorous, or pleasant. She was a devout Roman 
Catholic teaching nun in India until a train ride in 1946 when she 
heard her call within a call, and the call within a call was to go to 
the slums of Calcutta to care for, in her own words, ``the poorest of 
the poor.'' She founded the order of the Missionaries of Charity in 
1948, and through her dedication, made the order into a worldwide 
organization with more than 4,000 nuns and 400 Catholic brothers 
running nearly 600 homes and schools in more than 100 countries. The 
order operates schools and hospitals, youth centers and orphanages, and 
it also treats over 50,000 lepers at its medical centers in Africa and 
Asia.
  Mother Teresa took Indian citizenship in 1950. She saw her order in 
the broader context of India's own tradition of spirituality and 
compassion and incorporated it into Indian society. In a meeting with 
Prime Minister Nehru, he promised her all the assistance she needed. 
And even though India is primarily a country consisting of Hindus, it 
adopted Mother Teresa as its own and welcomed her with open arms.
  For her, pity was not what the poor needed; rather, she sought to 
provide dignity for them. She and members of her order lived like the 
people they served, without the amenities most of us take for granted. 
And she taught us all, regardless of religion, that in fact without a 
title, and without any form of nobility, that it is how one lives their 
life and what one does within their life that is the most important 
ingredient.
  I am proud that she was awarded honorary U.S. citizenship and granted 
the Presidential Medal of Freedom. And earlier this year I had the 
honor, with so many of our other colleagues, in being present as she 
received the

[[Page H7249]]

Congressional Gold Medal in the rotunda of the Capitol.

                              {time}  1700

  I am reminded of what she said at that ceremony, where she repeated 
her admonition time and time again that we should focus on our concerns 
for the poorest of the poor, which she said several times during her 
brief remarks. Those of us who serve in this Congress should remember 
those words, those of us who were there, who were proud to be there at 
that historical moment, proud to be in her company, who rejoice in her 
life's works, we need to take to heart as we decide in this Chamber 
issues that cut across the board on the poorest of the poor, in 
education, in housing, in health care, whether it be in our cities or 
in Appalachia, that the fate of the poorest of the poor is a matter 
that constantly is before us as we decide on many of the votes that we 
take in this House. Sometimes I would daresay we do not cast our votes 
in a manner in which I think we would meet Mother Teresa's standards.
  Finally, while her loss saddens us, Mother Teresa provided reassuring 
words about her work and the future. She said, ``If the work were mine, 
it would die with me, but it is the work of God, so He will look after 
it.'' I wish her successor at the Missionaries of Charity, Sister 
Nirmala, my best wishes as she carries forth the work Mother Teresa 
started and nurtured. She was a beacon of hope, and that beacon of hope 
that burned brightly during her life will continue through her order. 
Good-bye, Mother Teresa, and God bless.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, 60 years ago this Wednesday, a young teacher at a 
secondary school for girls in Calcutta, India, made a decision that was 
to later influence the lives of millions of people around the world. 
Close to the school is one of the great slums of Calcutta. She could 
not close her eyes any longer. Who cares for this poor living in the 
streets, she asked? It was upon this revelation that Mother Teresa, 
then Sister Teresa, really heard God's voice calling and His message 
was clear. She had to leave the convent to help the poorest of the 
poor, not just to work with the poor but to live among them, to live on 
rice and salt like the poor had to live. Sister Teresa said, ``It was 
an order, a duty, an absolute certainty.''
  On September 10, 1937, Sister Teresa decided to leave the convent in 
Calcutta and make what she later said to be the most important journey 
of her life, to a distant city at the feet of the Himalayan Mountains. 
The thirst for her heart by so many of the world's unfortunate called 
her to form the Missionaries of Charity, a religious order based in 
Calcutta, India. She created an international network of shelters for 
the poor, the sick, and the dying that now stretch from Calcutta to New 
York. Of her Sisters of Charity, she said this:

       We are not social workers. There are a lot of institutions 
     caring for the sick. We do not want to be among them. We are 
     not another organization of social service. We have to be 
     more, to give more, we have to give ourselves. We have to 
     bring God's love to the people by our service. And the poor 
     have taught us what it really means to love and serve God.

  Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues in mourning Mother Teresa's 
passing. We have lost a great woman, perhaps nearest to sainthood that 
we know, but heaven has gained a pure soul. I do not understand, Mr. 
Speaker, why she so often takes a back seat to other notables in 
today's media, not only in her passing but in her work throughout her 
blessed life. Was it because she did not keep the company of 
aristocrats or run in the posh circles of the glamorous while she 
selflessly cared for the needy?
  And I do not raise the issue because the Sisters of Charity are 
looking for media exposure. They do not ask for it. They do not wish 
it. But what does it say about our society today when someone who cared 
for so many is overshadowed because she does not draw enough ratings to 
command a week's worth of coverage on television? It tells me she 
represents that which we find difficult to face, ourselves, our own 
failures, selfishness and cowardice, our own imperfections. We fail 
where she succeeded because we refuse to make the time to reach out and 
help our neighbors.
  For her service and sacrifice, Mother Teresa was awarded most notably 
the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. If we accept her as its recipient, then 
we should accept what she said when she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize:

       Abortion is the worst evil in the world. The life of a 
     child that still has to be born or the life of the poor whom 
     we meet in the streets of Calcutta, Rome or anywhere else in 
     the world, the life of children or adults is the same life. 
     It is our life, it is a gift of God. Countries that allow 
     abortion are poor because they do not have the courage to 
     accept one more life.
  That is why it is altogether fitting and proper that we honor her for 
who she was. Let us not forget what she stood for. To hide or mask this 
only does Mother Teresa, her years of selfless giving and the millions 
she comforted a tremendous disservice.
  Mr. Speaker, while she would never accept it, she deserves to be 
honored by this body and this Nation in this way. It is truly the least 
we could do on her death. Mr. Speaker, I suspect we will not see the 
rich, the famous or the glamorous walking in the processional behind 
Mother Teresa's casket this weekend. Instead I imagine we will witness 
the poor, the unwanted, the unloved, the uncared for and the 
untouchables marching behind a woman whom some say was the pencil of 
God.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished 
gentlewoman from Connecticut [Mrs. Kennelly].
  Mrs. KENNELLY of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I thank those who brought 
forth this resolution. It is only a short week ago that we came here to 
this very floor to talk about a woman, a young woman, Princess Diana, 
who died, a woman who had taken the interest and the delight of so 
many, so many millions. And here we are back again to speak about a 
woman, to speak about her life, her work, and her memory. This is one 
of the greatest women of this century, Mother Teresa. And yes, there 
will be people in Calcutta on Saturday, as so many of us that was just 
I think about a month, 2 months ago that we went to Statuary Hall and 
we were so thrilled and delighted that Mother Teresa was going to be 
among us, that Mother Teresa was going to receive the Congressional 
Medal. We were all somewhat like children trying to see this woman of 
small stature with the lines of life in her face.
  Now she too is gone and I could only say probably that the lesson of 
all this every one of us can get, probably the main lesson, is we are 
all going to die, some earlier and some later. But tomorrow our 
President's wife, Hillary Clinton, in fact she might be right now at 
this very moment flying to Calcutta, and she will represent us.
  But we are talking tonight about a woman who not because of her great 
political power, the way she shaped world events, we are not talking 
about that. We are talking about her moral power. And what that great 
moral power did was to convert so many, her own sisters, kings, and 
presidents, but also people who just saw that she was doing the right 
thing. This most humble of women was a giant, a giant of compassion. 
She recognized the humanity of even the least of us. And she did not 
judge us harshly as some judge others. And she insisted that every 
human being deserve our care.
  Her devotion to the poor and her dedication to the dying overflowed 
in her Calcutta mission, bringing her worldwide acclaim and making her 
an inspiration to millions. But she always heard the teachings of her 
religion and she always acted taking to heart the biblical injunctions 
to feed the hungry and clothe the naked.
  The great sadness I feel and felt at the news of Mother Teresa's 
passing is tempered by the gratitude that I feel for her life. Her 
compassion for others, her service to the poor and her devotion to her 
faith set the highest standard. Her life was proof that one humble 
individual can touch many lives and her absolute memory will inspire us 
all.
  Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Hyde].

[[Page H7250]]

  (Mr. Hyde asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. HYDE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman not only for giving me 
this time, but for his initiative in this very important resolution.
  Some months ago as the gentlewoman from Connecticut [Mrs. Kennelly] 
mentioned, we had a ceremony in the rotunda and I was honored to be the 
master of ceremonies. I made some remarks then which I am adapting and 
updating for this evening.
  One of Mother Teresa's constant themes was how much God loves each 
one of us, even and perhaps especially the most humble. Proof of that 
love is shown by His granting Mother Teresa fullness of years. She was 
in our midst for 87 years before she was called home. Hers were long 
years of service, self-sacrifice and example.
  Archimedes said centuries ago, ``Give me a place where to stand and I 
will move the world.'' Mother Teresa stood on the streets of Calcutta 
and the back alleys of the world literally clutching to her bosom the 
diseased and the dying, and she moved the world.
  Mother Teresa displayed the most intensely human compassion, one that 
recognized the bond of humanity that links us to the poorest of the 
poor, a compassion which is the substance from which sanctity is 
forged.
  In the year 1666, London was decimated by a great fire. Out of the 
ashes of that fire, a genius named Christopher Wren emerged and he 
literally rebuilt London. Some 80 buildings were his legacy. The 
greatest was the Cathedral of St. Paul's. If you go in the back of the 
cathedral, you look on the floor and you kick the dust away, you will 
see where he is buried. The words around his burial place ``si requiris 
monumentum, circumspice''--if you would seek his monument, look around.
  I apply those words to Mother Teresa. If you would seek her monument, 
just look around. People all over the globe can see and benefit from 
one of her monuments, the Missionaries of Charity, a bright, shining 
oasis of self-giving in a darkened world of calculation. In a world of 
doubts and ambiguities and cynicism, she was blessed with certainties. 
And the certainties that guided her life and her self-sacrifice are 
ancient, they are noble and to my mind indisputable.
  She believed we are not lost in the stars, we are not alone in this 
universe which was created by a wise and benevolent Providence, and she 
lived the truth of that belief. She believed that every human being no 
matter how abandoned, no matter how poor, no matter how useless or 
inconvenient as the world calculates utility and convenience, is an 
image of the invisible God and invested with an innate and an 
inalienable dignity and value and thus commands our attention and our 
respect and our care. She poured out her life in service to that 
belief.
  She believed that love is the most living thing there is, that love 
is stronger than death, and that every human heart can be touched by 
the power of love. So often she cradled the wretched of the Earth in 
her arms and witnessed to that belief.
  She believed that the goodness of a society is measured by the way it 
treats the most helpless and vulnerable of its members, especially the 
defenseless unborn. She lived that belief and she challenged us to make 
that truth a living part of the fabric of our democracy. We live at the 
end of the bloodiest century in human history. Wars, ethnic and racial 
hatreds, mad ideologies and plain old human wickedness have made the 
20th century, which the best and the brightest of 1897 thought would be 
a century of boundless human progress, instead a slaughterhouse.
  On the edge of a new century and a new millennium, the world does not 
lack for icons of evil, Auschwitz, the gulag, the killing fields of 
Cambodia, Bosnia, the Great Lakes region of Central Africa. What the 
world desperately needs are icons of goodness, and that is what she has 
been for us, an icon of goodness. She reminded us that hatred and death 
do not have the last word. She called us back to what Abraham Lincoln 
called the better angels of our nature. She was a blessing, a great 
gift of God, and we thank God for permitting us to live in her time.

                              {time}  1715

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
New Jersey [Mr. Pallone], who will be part of a delegation attending 
Mother Teresa's funeral and has to depart soon.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I want to say that my colleagues' 
expressions that I have heard on a bipartisan basis so far this evening 
have been wonderful, and I think really express the deep sympathy that 
we share and the lesson I think that we have learned on a bipartisan 
basis, and, certainly, that all Americans, I believe, have learned from 
the life of Mother Teresa.
  I rise today to honor and remember her. Last week we lost, I believe, 
one of the world's greatest humanitarian leaders. Her death, which has 
touched the lives of people all over the world, has prompted an 
outpouring of grief and mourning worldwide. Just here in Washington, 
hundreds of flowers have been placed at the foot of the Indian Embassy 
in her honor.
  On September 6, over 2,000 people signed a condolence book at the 
Indian Embassy, and approximately 5,000 people attended a memorial 
service at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception to mourn 
her death. As India's Prime Minister Gujral said of her death, ``The 
world is mourning.''
  This Saturday, on September 13, it has been mentioned that a State 
funeral is being given for Mother Teresa, the highest honor that the 
Indian Government can bestow upon an individual. The First Lady is 
leading a delegation, which I am honored to join this evening.
  While such an elaborate funeral may seem to be somewhat at odds with 
her teaching and her way of life, the funeral gives the world the 
opportunity to remember a woman who has always given to others.
  Although small in stature, her heart was enormous. Despite receiving 
a pacemaker in 1989 and plagued by a series of heart attacks, her 
commitment to the poor and disadvantaged never ceased.
  Mr. Speaker, Mother Teresa was much more than a symbol or a 
figurehead. She lived by example. People from around the world recall 
stories in which she would tell flight attendants to pack leftovers for 
needy children and how she asked the Nobel prize organizers to cancel a 
banquet in her honor and use the money to feed the needy.
  The Order of the Missionaries of Charity, which she founded, is 
established in 120 countries, committed to serving and helping the 
homeless, the dying, and the hungry.
  While she was a Roman Catholic, Mother Teresa respected the religious 
practices of each of the individuals to whom she attended. She once 
told a friend when she was accused of converting Hindus to Catholicism, 
``I do convert. I convert you to become a better Hindu, or a better 
Muslim, or a better Protestant. When you have found God, it is up to 
you to do with him what you wish.''
  Mr. Speaker, we must not forget the work begun by this remarkable 
woman who saw God in the face of every human being. I am assured, just 
listening to some of the statements that my colleagues have made today, 
that her work will not be forgotten, and will be going on for time 
immemorial.
  Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to my good friend, the gentleman from the great State of New 
Jersey [Mr. Smith].
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, let me just thank the gentleman 
from Indiana [Mr. Burton] for his leadership in bringing this very 
important resolution to the floor, and especially thank the gentleman 
from Illinois [Mr. Hyde] for those very eloquent remarks spoken a 
moment ago in remembering Mother Teresa.
  Mr. Speaker, as I think we all know, in Matthew's Gospel, the 25th 
chapter, in speaking about the Last Judgment, Jesus said:

       When the Son of Man comes in His glory, escorted by all the 
     angels of heaven, He will sit upon His royal throne and all 
     the nations will be assembled before Him. Then He will 
     separate them into two groups, as a shepherd separates sheep 
     from the goats. The sheep He will place on His right hand, 
     the goats on his left.
       The King will say to those on the right, come, you have My 
     Father's blessing! Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from 
     the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you

[[Page H7251]]

     gave me food. I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a 
     stranger and you welcomed me; naked and you clothed me. I was 
     ill and you comforted me, in prison and you came to visit me.
       Then the just will ask him: ``Lord, when did we see you 
     hungry and feed you or see you thirsty and give you drink? 
     When did we welcome you away from home or clothe you in your 
     nakedness? When did we visit you when you were ill or in 
     prison?''
       The King will answer them, ``I assure you, as often as you 
     did it for the least of my brethren, you did it for me.''

  As we all know, Mr. Speaker, Mother Teresa took these words from our 
Lord, Jesus Christ, literally, in pouring out her heart and her soul 
for the least of our brethren. Mother Teresa saw the downtrodden and 
the disenfranchised as Christ himself, and she believed that every act 
of mercy toward those less fortunate was for the Lord.
  That is why she clothed, fed, and housed the sick and dying around 
the world. That is why she loved what the world considered to be the 
unlovable. That is why Mother Teresa was the most outspoken woman in 
the world in the defense of unborn children.
  Mr. Speaker, at the 1994 National Prayer Breakfast, Mother Teresa 
addressed thousands of political leaders, including President Bill 
Clinton, Vice President Gore, and their wives. Few could listen to 
Mother Teresa and not be moved to believe that in this very small, 
frail, humble woman, there stood a powerful messenger, a prophetess, 
sent by God, to directly speak to a President and a Nation, and, yes, a 
world that had lost its moral compass.
  She said, ``Please don't kill the child,'' she admonished all those 
assembled, and looked directly at the President of the United States 
and said, ``I want the child. We are fighting abortion with adoption, 
by care of the mother and adoption of the baby.''
  Mother Teresa stated, ``The greatest destroyer of peace today is 
abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of an 
innocent child.''
  She then urged all Americans and diplomats to more fully understand 
the linkage of abortion with other forms of violence, and she said, 
``Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, 
but to use violence to get what they want.'' ``That is why,'' to 
continue the quote, ``the greatest destroyer of peace and love is 
abortion.''
  Unfortunately, there are those, and this is usually behind closed 
doors, but there are many who have ridiculed Mother Teresa for doing 
what is right. Sometimes it comes to the surface. It especially came to 
the surface after she received her Nobel Peace Prize and spoke so 
eloquently in defense of the unborn.
  I will never forget reading a particular attack against Mother Teresa 
by William Hamilton, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, one of 
their top leaders, and he said, and I do not think we should put this 
under the table, because this is all part of the record.
  Mr. Hamilton said on behalf of Planned Parenthood:

       Spare us the preachings of Mother Teresa against abortion 
     and the advancement of women. Allow us to cling to the 
     romantic notion of a tiny 74-year-old woman doing good work 
     in the slums of Calcutta, and not think about the destructive 
     views that she represents.

  According to Mr. Hamilton and Planned Parenthood, Mother Teresa's 
belief that abortion kills children and is anti-child, her belief that 
every child is precious and sacred and made in the image and likeness 
of God, is somehow destructive. Some can smirk when you say that, but 
that is what she would say. We need to defend these little innocent 
children.
  As I am sure Mother Teresa would agree, it is Planned Parenthood's 
agenda of aborting over 230,000 little babies in this country every 
year, and countless more abroad, that is what is destructive.
  Upon receiving her Nobel peace prize in 1979, Mother Teresa 
characterized abortion as the worst evil in the world because of its 
violence.
  Undoubtedly, Mother Teresa's defense of the right to life of every 
human being, whether it is the child yet to be born, or the life of the 
poor whom she met in the streets of Calcutta, Rome, or anywhere else in 
the world, kept her focus on the work which she was chosen for by God.
  I think by now we all know by way of background that Mother Teresa 
was born one of three children of an Albanian builder on August 27, 
1910, in Macedonia. At the age of 18, she joined the Loreto Sisters, 
and soon thereafter, on January 6, 1929, arrived in Calcutta, India, to 
teach at a school for girls.
  On September 10, 1946, on a train ride to Darjeeling, where she was 
to go on retreat to recover from a suspected bout of tuberculosis, she 
received her calling from God to care for the sick and the dying, the 
hungry, the naked, the unborn, and the homeless, to be God's love in 
action. And that was the beginning of the Missionaries of Charity.
  In 1952, Mother Teresa and her Missionaries of Charity began the work 
for which they have been noted ever since, opening the first Home for 
the Dying in the city of Calcutta.
  The Missionaries of Charity grew from 12 to thousands, reported to be 
over 5,000 nuns by 1997, in over 450 centers being run around the 
world. Mother Teresa created many homes for the dying and unwanted, 
from Calcutta, to New York, to Albania.
  She is one of the pioneers of establishing homes for AIDS victims, 
and for more than 45 years she has comforted the poor, the unwanted, 
especially speaking out on behalf of babies yet unborn.
  In closing, as we continue to fight for, and this is a worldwide 
struggle, the plight of the so-called throwaways, the unwanted, the 
unborn, the poor, the dying, those who are ``inconvenient'' and others 
in the world's needy, the words of Mother Teresa should ring in our 
ears.
  She said, ``At the end of our lives we will not be judged by how many 
diplomas we received, how much money we made, or how many great things 
we may have done or think we have done. We will be judged by 'I was 
hungry and you gave me to eat, I was naked and you clothed me, I was 
homeless and you took me in,' our Lord's words.
  ``Hungry, not only for bread, but hungry for love. Naked, not only 
for clothing, but naked for human dignity and respect. Homeless, not 
only for the want of a row of bricks, but homeless because of 
rejection.''
  Mr. Speaker, this resolution puts us on record and says that we care 
about this great woman, and, hopefully, her words, her life, will 
enlighten all of us as we go about the people's business in this body.
  Mr. Speaker, in a parable about the Last Judgment, as recorded in the 
25th chapter of Matthew's Gospel, Jesus said:

       When the Son of Man comes in his glory, escorted by all the 
     angels of heaven, he will sit upon his royal throne, and all 
     the nations will be assembled before him. Then he will 
     separate them into two groups, as a shepherd separates sheep 
     from goats. The sheep he will place on his right hand, the 
     goats on his left. The king will say to those on his right: 
     ``Come. You have my Father's blessing! Inherit the kingdom 
     prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was 
     hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me 
     drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you 
     clothed me. I was ill and you comforted me, in prison and you 
     came to visit me.'' Then the just will ask him: ``Lord, when 
     did we see you hungry and feed you or see you thirsty and 
     give you drink? When did we welcome you away from home or 
     clothe you in your nakedness? When did we visit you when you 
     were ill or in prison?'' The king will answer them: ``I 
     assure you, as often as you did it for the least of my 
     brethren, you did it for me.''

  As we all know, Mother Teresa took these words from Our Lord Jesus 
Christ literally in pouring out her heart and soul for the ``least of 
our brethren.'' Mother Teresa saw the downtrodden and disenfranchised 
as Christ Himself and she believed that every act of mercy toward those 
less fortunate was for the Lord. That's why she clothed, fed, and 
housed the sick and dying around the world. That's why she loved what 
the world considered the unlovable. That's why Mother Teresa was 
outspoken in her defense of unborn children.
  At the 1994 National Prayer Breakfast, Mother Teresa addressed 
thousands of political leaders, including President Bill Clinton, Vice 
President Gore, and their wives. Few could listen to Mother Teresa and 
not be moved to believe that--in this small, frail, humble woman--there 
stood a powerful messenger, a prophetess, sent by God, to directly 
speak to a President and nation that lost its moral compass.
  ``Please don't kill the child,'' Mother Teresa admonished, looking 
directly at the President of the United States. ``I want the child,'' 
she went on to say, looking directly at the abortion President. ``. . . 
We are fighting abortion with adoption, by care of the mother and 
adoption of the baby . . .''

[[Page H7252]]

  Mother Teresa further stated that ``the greatest destroyer of peace 
today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct 
killing of an innocent child . . .'' She then urged all Americans and 
diplomats to more fully understand the linkage of abortion with other 
forms of violence: ``Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching 
its people to love, but to use violence to get what they want. This is 
why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion.''

  Unfortunately, there are those who could only ridicule and demean 
Mother Teresa for doing what is right. I will never forget reading the 
attack on Mother Teresa by William W. Hamilton, Jr. of Planned 
Parenthood Federation America in 1985. (Washington Post, June 29, 1985, 
p. A21). The top Planned Parenthood official stated:

       . . . [S]pare us the preachings of Mother Teresa against 
     abortion and the advancement of women. . . . Allow us to 
     cling to the romantic notion of a tiny, (woman) . . . doing 
     good work in the slums in Calcutta and not think about the 
     destructive views she represents.

  According to Mr. Hamilton and Planned Parenthood, Mother Teresa's 
belief that abortion kills children and is antichild and that children 
are precious, sacred, and made in the image and likeness of God, is 
somehow--destructive. As I am sure Mother Teresa would agree, it is 
Planned Parenthood's agenda of aborting over 230,000 children a year in 
the United States alone and countless move abroad which is destructive. 
Upon receiving her Noble Peace Prize in 1979 Mother Teresa did what was 
probably incorrect and characterized abortion as the worst evil in the 
world.
  Undoubtedly, Mother Teresa's defense of the right to life for every 
human being--whether the life of a child yet to be born or the life of 
the poor whom she met in the streets of Calcutta, Rome, or anywhere 
else in the world--kept her focused on the work which was chosen for by 
God.
  Mother Teresa was born Agnes Gonxa Bojaxhiu, the youngest of three 
children of an Albanian builder, on August 27, 1910 in Skopje, 
Macedonia. At the age of 18, she joined the Loretto Sisters and soon 
after, on January 6, 1929, arrived in Calcutta, India, to teach at a 
school for girls. On September 10, 1946, on a train ride to Darjeeling 
where she was to go on retreat to recover from suspected tuberculosis, 
Mother Teresa received her calling from God to care for the sick and 
the dying, the hungry, the naked, the unborn, the homelss--to be God's 
Love in action to the poorest of the poor. That was the beginning of 
the Missionaries of Charity.

  In 1952 Mother Teresa and her Missionaries of Charity began the work 
for which they have been noted ever since, opening the first Home for 
the Dying in the City of Calcutta. The Missionaries of Charity grew 
from 12 to thousands--reported to be over 5,000 nuns in 1997--in over 
450 centers being run in 125 countries. Mother Teresa created many 
homes for the dying and unwanted from Calcutta to New York to Albania, 
She was one of the pioneers of establishing homes for AIDS victims. For 
more than 45 years, Mother Teresa comforted the poor, the dying, and 
the so called unwanted around the world.
  In closing, as we continue to consider the plight of the unborn, the 
poor, the dying, and the world's needy, these words of Mother Teresa 
should remain in the forefront of our minds:

       At the end of our lives, we will not be judged by how many 
     diplomas we have received, how much money we have made or how 
     many great things we have done. We will be judged by ``I was 
     hungry and you gave me to eat. I was naked and you clothed 
     me. I was homeless and you took me in.''
       Hungry not only for bread--but hungry for love. Naked not 
     only for clothing--but naked for human dignity and respect.
       Homeless not only for want of a row of bricks--but homeless 
     because of rejection. This is Christ in distressing disguise.

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Illinois, [Mr. Davis].
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, first of all, let me thank the 
gentleman from New Jersey for yielding me time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to one of the world's finest 
humanitarians, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, India.
  Mother Teresa departed this life Friday, September 5, 1997, at the 
age of 87. She leaves behind a committed life of service to mankind. 
Her legacy has been appropriately quoted in newspapers as the ``Saint 
of Gutters.''
  She came to my district. She came to St. Malachy's Catholic Church. 
She came to the west side of Chicago. She dared to be different and 
championed the causes of the poor. She could be found in the most 
destitute areas on the planet, trying to aid the sick and heal the 
brokenhearted.
  Her mission and ministry was clear, and that was to do God's will, no 
matter what the cost.
  She was a tiny woman, but she had enormous inspiration. She founded a 
religious order called the Missionaries of Charity. Beginning with one 
single convent, almost five decades ago, and now she leaves behind 
hundreds of religious centers and convents on six continents.
  Yes, she won a Nobel Peace Prize and countless other awards, but the 
prize she sought after most was to uplift the poor. In the poor, 
afflicted and rejected, she saw God, but, more importantly, she saw an 
opportunity to be a blessing and to make a difference. She had an 
uncanny ability to be in the midst of the destitute and still have joy 
and hope.
  Someone once asked St. Francis what a person needed to do to please 
God. He answered, ``Preach the Gospel every day, and, if necessary, use 
words.''
  Mother Teresa lived just that sort of life. She is a living reminder 
to all of us that faith is more than just words. It is the good deeds 
that we do in this world. The millions of lives she touched through her 
ministry made this world a much better place.
  Mother Teresa, yes, has left; but the bright light and legacy that 
she leaves behind must continue. The challenge for us today is clear: 
We must continue the work of reaching out to help the poorest of the 
poor. Our Damascus road lies just before us. And the question is, will 
we, like Mother Teresa, assume the role of the good samaritan?
  Mrs. NORTHUP. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and express my 
admiration for the life and work of Mother Teresa.
  Mother Teresa's acts of compassion transcended religious, cultural, 
and national boundaries. Her lifelong devotion to the poor, sick, and 
downtrodden served as an inspiration not only to those of us in the 
Catholic community, but to members of all faiths. Pope John Paul II 
remarked upon her death that

       Mother Teresa marked the history of our century. She 
     courageously defended life; she served all human beings by 
     promoting their dignity and respect; and made those who had 
     been defeated by life feel the tenderness of God.

  Mother Teresa taught by example the true meaning of service to 
mankind. Although she achieved widespread praise and recognition for 
her efforts, she was not comfortable in the spotlight. In fact, it 
seems that as her celebrity status increased, so did her commitment to 
serve her fellow man. She served as a role model by pulling us toward 
the higher purposes in life--doing what is right and good.
  Mother Teresa had only a very small step to take from her life on 
earth to the afterlife. She has accurately been called a living saint, 
and an angel on earth. Mr. Speaker, we have lost one of history's truly 
outstanding people. As French President Jacque Chirac remarked upon her 
death, ``this evening, there is less love, less compassion, less light 
in the world.''
  Mr. ROEMER. Mr. Speaker, it was with great sadness that I learned of 
the passing of one of the most remarkable women to ever grace our 
planet, Mother Teresa of Calcutta.
  Mother Teresa dedicated her life to serving the poor, the destitute, 
and the most helpless among us. In so doing, she set an example for all 
people of the world to live by. She demonstrated that love and kindness 
and hope are far greater rewards than any material goals. Her selfless 
dedication to humanity and charity will never be forgotten. She devoted 
her life to those with less--the helpless and the homeless. She did not 
hesitate to visit a slum or leper colony. She truly lived Jesus 
Christ's proclamation in the Bible: ``What you do to the least of us 
you do unto me.''
  I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to hear Mother Teresa 
speak twice in my lifetime: once at the congressional prayer breakfast 
in 1995 and most recently at the award ceremony where she was presented 
with the Congressional Gold Medal. Listening to her speak, listening to 
her conviction, her dedication to the poor, I truly believed I was in 
the presence of a saint. She was humble and modest, but strongly 
committed to the poor, the unborn, and the hungry.
  Mother Teresa's work will carry on through the Missionaries of 
Charity which she founded, but she will be missed. I admired her 
greatly and pray that she, in her infinite faith, is joyfully reunited 
with her God.

                              {time}  1730

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his 
participation, and all of my colleagues, and I yield back the balance 
of my time.

[[Page H7253]]

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Boehner). Pursuant to the previous order 
of the House, the resolution is considered as adopted.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________