Finding Calcutta: What Mother Teresa Taught Me About Meaningful Work and Service [Paperback]

Mary Poplin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 9, 2008

"Find the sick, the suffering and the lonely right there where you are. . . . You can find Calcutta all over the world, if you have the eyes to see." --Mother Teresa Lifelong educator Mary Poplin, after experiencing a newfound awakening to faith, sent a letter to Calcutta asking if she could visit Mother Teresa and volunteer with the Missionaries of Charity. She received a response saying, "You are welcome to share in our works of love for the poorest of the poor." So in the spring of 1996, Poplin spent two months in Calcutta as a volunteer. There she observed Mother Teresa's life of work and service to the poor, participating in the community's commitments to simplicity and mercy. Mother Teresa's unabashedly religious work stands in countercultural contrast to the limitations of our secular age. Poplin's journey gives us an inside glimpse into one of the most influential lives of the twentieth century and the lessons Mother Teresa continues to offer. Upon Poplin's return, she soon discovered that God was calling her to serve the university world with the same kind of holistic service with which Mother Teresa served Calcutta. Not everyone can go to Calcutta. But all of us can find our own meaningful work and service. Come and answer the call to find your Calcutta!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A profound journey of the heart, head and hands in which Mary Poplin discovers her own 'Calcutta'--the classroom with its students in whom seeds of life must be sown for the life of the world to come." (Kelly Monroe Kullberg, founder, The Veritas Forum, and author of Finding God Beyond Harvard: The Quest for Veritas )

"Mary Poplin's pilgrimage of discovering Christ among the most vulnerable of the world's poor is an accessible and inspiring invitation to us all. Her honesty, thoughtfulness and reflections are an important provocation for those who find their realities separated from our sisters and brothers who suffer today. Mary does an excellent job of building the bridges between the insulated and isolated lack of experience of poverty in academia and the oppression and injustice on the streets of one of the world's poorest cities. Her interactions and stories of Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity are a true glimpse of grace and a sweet reminder that God is with and among those who suffer most. Honest, thoughtful and reflective, Finding Calcutta will challenge you to love more freely where you find yourself." (Christopher L. Heuertz, international director, Word Made Flesh, and author of Simple Spirituality: Learning to See God in a Broken World )

"Mary Poplin's spiritually nurturing account of her experiences with the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta is a loving portrait of a true work of God. In these pages readers encounter Mother Teresa's deep spiritual wisdom as a call to reflection, repentance and a renewed concern for 'the poorest of the poor' as bearers of Christ's image. There is spiritual refreshment here for believer and doubter alike." (James A. Herrick, Guy Vander Jagt Professor of Communication, Hope College, author of The Making of the New Spirituality and Scientific Mythologies )

"Mary Poplin found her first Calcutta in India as she volunteered in Mother Teresa's ministry to the poorest of the poor. She found her second Calcutta in her own university as she returned to recognize that the poorest of the poor are not always those with no material wealth but those with no knowledge of God and nowhere to find it. The story of her transformed spiritual life segues beautifully into the story of her transformed academic life. An exciting book of great wisdom." (James W. Sire, author of The Universe Next Door and Habits of the Mind )

"In this poignant, elegant, humble memoir, Poplin gives us far more than Mother Teresa or even another Mother Teresa story. She gives us instead the Jesus and the Christianity that operated through Mother Teresa. Poplin's experience of finding Calcutta irrevocably changed her soul. It will change yours as well." (Phyllis Tickle, former religion editor, Publishers Weekly, and compiler of The Divine Hours )

"If you've ever wondered what it would be like to be a worldly California academic curious enough to volunteer in Mother Teresa's Calcutta Mission, prepare to be surprised. After struggling to translate her experience there for a secular audience, Dr. Poplin has ended by translating her readers into Mother Teresa's own unfamiliar, spiritual dimension. Watch out--you will not be able to keep from meditating." (C. John Sommerville, author of The Decline of the Secular University )

"Having been the spiritual director of the Missionaries of Charity in Asia for many years, I read Mary Poplin's book with keen interest and fond memories of these remarkable women. Finding Calcutta is a love story between God and two women, Mother Teresa and the author. In describing her encounter and the lessons learned with 'God's pencil,' Mary Poplin has penned 'something beautiful for God.' This book not only captures the spirituality of Mother Teresa and her sisters but also reminds us of an important principle in spiritual formation that God taught its author: our own Calcutta is most often right smack where we are." (Albert Haase, O.F.M., director, School of Spirituality at Mayslake Ministries, and author of Coming Home to Your True Self: Leaving the Emptiness of False Attractions )

"Mary Poplin seeks to integrate her experience with Mother Teresa into her work and life and to come together with others who hunger and thirst. This book can be a platform to gather those of us so disposed so that the flame is not lost and will continue to produce abundant fruit, fruits of eternal life." (Father Angelo Devananda Scolozzi, U.F.W., Centro de Espiritualidad Madre Teresa, Chihuahua, Mexico )

"Mary Poplin takes us on a pilgrimage toward clarity about who we are and what our life amounts to. The pilgrimage is simultaneously through Calcutta and through the heart of the 'sophisticated' dynamics of university life in America. As it proceeds we gain a better understanding of the social forces that govern the university in the name of intellect--but falsely so. It will be of special help to those engaged in academic life, at whatever level. They will find here a guide who has been grasped by God and enabled to see that life and the surrounding cultural world for what they really are, and what under God they could be." (Dallas Willard, professor of philosophy, University of Southern California, and author of The Divine Conspiracy and Hearing God )

About the Author

Mary Poplin (Ph.D., University of Texas) is a professor of education at Claremont Graduate University in California, where she has served as director of the teacher education program and dean of the School of Educational Studies. Poplin conducts research inside urban classrooms and schools that promote both justice and accountability. She teaches courses on pedagogy, history and philosophy of education, as well as Christian principles related to these areas. She is also a frequent speaker at Veritas Forums and for both Protestant and Catholic retreats across the country.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: IVP Books (September 9, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0830834729
• ISBN-13: 978-0830834723
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #521,053 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Deep and focusing, November 19, 2008

By 

Jody Fernando "J. Fernando" (Midwest, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Finding Calcutta: What Mother Teresa Taught Me About Meaningful Work and Service (Paperback)

Deep down, my absolute favorite thing to do is shop. As I write this, I'm internally scheming how to get the biggest bang for my buck on my next errand. I like things, especially pretty ones, and acquiring them makes me feel good. As I've come to recognize this passion of mine, I've found it nagging at me a bit. I know people who hate to shop. On top of that, they also hate to accumulate clutter. Their personality enhances their ability to live simply. Not me. I feel better with full bookshelves, cupboards, and drawers. I find malls comforting and thrift stores exhilarating. Quite likely, my pension to store up treasures here on earth runs a bit too deep.

Enter: Mother Teresa, Mary Poplin, Ron Sider, and Shane Claibourne. Since recognizing the grip that my materialism has on me, I've embarked on a slow (and slightly reluctant) quest to examine it. I owned the book Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger (by Ron Sider) for about five years before I had the guts to actually read it. Then I joined the crowd reading Irresistible Revolution to find myself completely captured by its fresh and clear vision. This fall, I came across Finding Calcutta: What Mother Teresa taught me about meaningful work and service by Mary Poplin. I've long admired Mother Teresa's work and wisdom; and have also wanted to hear more from Mary Poplin since she spoke on education and poverty at the university where I teach. In spite of my reluctance, my worldview is being reshaped by such books, and my shopping habits are certainly being redefined!

Whereas Rich Christians is factual and data-full, Irresistible Revolution is passionate, funny, and, well, irresistible and revolutionary, Finding Calcutta is simple and focusing. It seems hard for these traits to not follow anything touched by Mother Teresa. Mary Poplin, an education professor, spent her sabbatical as a volunteer with the Missionaries of Charity in 1996, a year before Mother Teresa died. Her book is a reflection on how her time in Calcutta shaped her newly found Christian faith. Writing on themes such as "the church as flawed and finite", "the vow of poverty and service to the poor", and "do all things without complaining or disputing", Poplin provides a glimpse into the daily world and perspective of the Missionaries of Charity.

While Mother Teresa's words often pierce to the core of an issue, her simple lifestyle illuminates what our complicated lives lack. "There were few toys or books at the centers," writes Poplin. "The lack of toys concerned no one except an occasional volunteer, like me. I realized more clearly how Americans are accustomed to having so many things that we have trouble coping without them. In the United States, we are entertained day and night; we can hardly live our own lives for living others' lives - fictional or real - through movies, television, and the news. Both children and adults who have many things constantly want more, and then in a short while, we are restless and bored again."

While acknowledging the need for Christians to live the type of "revolutions for love" that the Missionaries of Charity practice, Poplin also recognizes that this won't look the same for everyone. She calls the Sisters of Charity "a class unto themselves", but also believes that "there are ways we would need to imitate the missionaries in order to be effective". How does this look? A few of her observations:

* Commit their lives to God and the Holy Spirit
* Follow a leader with a distinct call and submit themselves to this
* Keep themselves from worldliness while working "deeply in the troubled heart of the world"
* Love selflessly
* Pray, worship, and study unceasingly

While on one level, Finding Calcutta is a reflection of one woman's interaction with Mother Teresa and the Sisters of Charity, it is also a deeper call to the readers to discover their own `Calcutta' and to live there with the same measure of abandon. With shocking statistics and passionate pleas, Claiborne and Sider's books stirred me out of a numb slumber. I am grateful for their perspective, but also left overwhelmed by what to do next. The charge is large and my capacities are small. The simplicity and focus of the sisters in Finding Calcutta helped me acknowledge that the small ways I move toward offering my life (even addressing those darn shopping addictions) can be as "beautiful for God" as those irresistible revolutions.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Book!, July 9, 2009

By 

John Murphy (Lansing, MI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Finding Calcutta: What Mother Teresa Taught Me About Meaningful Work and Service (Paperback)

Mary Poplin went to Calcutta to work with Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity. This is her story of what she learned while there. It is an excellent introduction into the life and spiritual insight of Mother Teresa. The book is well written and conducive to a small group study if one uses the questions in the back of the book.

She would probably hate me saying this, but Mary Poplin is one of my heroes. She was a radical feminist who comes to faith in Jesus and is radically changed. She has a winsome and beautiful personality that comes through clearly in her personal testimony[...]

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Personal Calcutta, November 24, 2008

By 

Mary Ann Payne (Charlotte, NC.) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Finding Calcutta: What Mother Teresa Taught Me About Meaningful Work and Service (Paperback)

Many have written about Mother Teresa and her work in the very needy city of Calcutta and across the world. This author, a new Christian,and teaching in an American, university, took her sabbatical to work with Mother Teresa for several months. Her intent was to learn how to apply these princpals of working for Jesus to her own life.
The author describes her spiritual journey during the sabbatical and how
returning to the teaching world in the US she was able to apply these principals to the university world in which she was living and teaching.
It is simply written, but deeply spiritual. For anyone wanting to serve Christ in their own career path, this is the book to read.