Pope Francis proclaims Teresa a saint

Nuns walk past a giant portrait of Mother Teresa hanging on the facade of the building of Missionaries of Charity, the order set up by Mother Teresa, in Kolkata, India, on September 3, 2016. (Bikas Das/AP Photo)

Pope Francis proclaims Mother Teresa a saint, hailing her work with the destitute of Kolkata as a beacon for mankind and testimony of God’s compassion for the poor.

The revered nun’s elevation to Roman Catholicism’s celestial pantheon came in a canonization mass in St Peter’s square presided over by Pope Francis in the presence of 100,000 pilgrims.

“For the honour of the Blessed Trinity… we declare and define Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (Kolkata) to be a Saint and we enroll her among the Saints, decreeing that she is to be venerated as such by the whole Church,” the pontiff said in Latin.

Francis said that even though the nun had been declared a saint, she would always be Mother Teresa to the Catholic family.

— AFP