Mother Teresa said her organisation depended solely on divine providence. They did not accept government aid. She visited Jamaica during a tour of the Caribbean where she set up several units to assist the poor.

Published Tuesday, July 1, 1986

Mother Teresa here for the first time

Nobel Peace Prize Winner Mother Teresa of Calcutta arrived on the island on June 30, 1986.

She is here to visit the first house for charitable work which her order has set up in Jamaica at Tower Street and Ladd Lane. It is hoped that Jamaican women will be recruited for the Order of Missionaries of Charity, which was founded by Mother Teresa in 1950.

Mother Teresa, who came to the island from her mission in Haiti accompanied by six nuns of her Order of Missionaries of Charity, was met at the Norman Manley International Airport by Roman Catholic Archbishop of Kingston Samuel Carter, who requested, four years ago, the establishment of the Sisters of Charity in the island, and the Indian High Commissioner Ram Lal. Other members of the welcoming party included the Rev Fr Richard Albert, pastor of the St Patrick and St Jude’s churches; the Rev Fr Kenneth Richards, assistant pastor of the Holy Cross Church, Keith Less, airport manager, and Monica Marr, the archbishop’s secretary.

At a press conference in the airport’s VIP Lounge, Mother Teresa said that the aim of her religious order was to carry on the work of Jesus for the sanctification and salvation of others. This aim was already being realised in Jamaica with their first mission here, and Mother Teresa added that she was “praying that other women would join us from Jamaica”. She said that she was looking forward especially to being with the children of the poor during her visit.

Asked whether she was receiving assistance from the Jamaican Government in setting up facilities for the poor here, Mother Teresa explained that her order accepts no assistance from governments. “We only depend on divine providence and we give people the opportunity to give to others,”she said.

The 76-year-old Roman Catholic nun, who is universally regarded as a 'saint' and a legend in her own lifetime, said that she has received over 140 applications for her religious order to be set up in various countries, including South Africa. She expressed concern at the situation in that country but emphasised that “I don’t mix in politics” when asked to comment on the problems caused their by racial segregation. “Our order serves everyone regardless of colour, race or creed,” she said.

There are 2,500 nuns, throughout the world in the Order of Missionaries of Charity, operating a total of 314 homes in 75 countries. Many schools and mobile clinics are vital aspects of their outreach to “the poorest of the poor”.

The home in Kingston is expected to increase its activities of visiting the poor and elderly and setting up a school for the children as soon as funds are available.

Mother Teresa was scheduled to address the Roman Catholic community at a reception at the archbishop’s residence last night. She will attend Holy Mass at the Tower Street and Ladd Lane mission at six o’clock this morning and will be received by the high commissioner of India at his office at 10:30 a.m. At 11:00 a.m., she is expected to pay a courtesy call on the governor general at King's House. She has extended her visit by one day to visit with schoolchildren before leaving on Wednesday for Grenada where the Sisters of Charity have recently set up another home. Mother Teresa also plans to visit Cuba.

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