C.M. Paul

Fr Attilio Colussi: The Preacher
The Salesian connect with Mother Teresa started on 7th October 1950, in the Cathedral of the Most Holy Rosary, Calcutta at the start of Mother Teresa’s mission when parish priest Fr Attilio Colussi preached at the first profession Eucharist held for the first batch of 12 Missionaries of Charity (MC) Sisters. Until his death in 1988 at the age of 81, Fr Colussi continued to assist spiritually the MCs. At spiritual retreats and conferences for religious, Fr Colussi used to narrate the origins of Mother Teresa’s call to serve the poorest and abandoned.

Fr Luciano Colussi: The Catechist

Fr Attilio Colussi’s nephew Fr Luciano Colussi during his stay in Calcutta as founder of the Don Bosco Catechetical and Multimedia Centre (now called Nitika), invited two Salesians from National Catechetical Centre (LDC-Torino) in Italy, in 1977 - Fr Mario and  Brother Guerrino Pera - to take slides of Mother Teresa’s works for an audio visual programme entitled “Mother Teresa”.  Mother Teresa had also entrusted the ‘catechetical training’ of her junior sisters to Fr Luciano who was also the archdiocesan director for Catechetics.

Fr Joseph Thelekkatt: Mother’s Son
Salesians of neighbouring Guwahati province interacted with Mother Teresa when Assistant Headmaster of premier Don Bosco School Guwahati Fr Joseph Thelekkatt sent a group of senior students for an excursion to Calcutta in 1977.  Fr Thelekkatt instructed them to visit Mother Teresa who told them of her desire to start a home in Guwahati, even in a rented place. Students reported Mother Teresa’s wish to Fr Thelekkatt who mobilized people. In 1978 Dr K.C. Das offered one of his houses in Guwahati to Mother Teresa to start her work, says Fr Thelekkatt.

Then Chief Minister of Assam Golap Borbora and civil dignitaries accorded Mother a warm welcome at District Library Guwahati. MC Sisters often refer to Fr Thelekkatt, who later became provincial and currently principal of Don Bosco College Bongaigaon, as “Mother’s son.”

Today there are three Mother Teresa homes in Guwahati.

Fr Stroscio Rosario: The Chaplain
Another Italian priest Fr Stroscio Rosario, a former provincial of the Calcutta province (1967 to 1972) became a controversial figure during his missionary work at Maliapota (Nadia District) when government served deportation order on trumped up ‘conversion’ charges. Mother Teresa stepped in and requested the government to have him as her chaplain to the MC Sisters at Prem Dan Tengra, a large rehabilitation center for T.B. patients. The authorities relented, withdrew the deportation order, and Fr Stroscio (now 94 years old) works at Auxilium Parish, Gobra since 1979.

• Title Title
• Title Title
• Title Title
• Title Title
• Title Title
• Title Title
•  

Tweet