100 Top & Most Popular Mother Teresa Quotes

Mother Teresa Quotes That Inspire Love, Faith, and Hope

About Mother Teresa

Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC, better known as Mother Teresa or Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta, was an Albanian-Indian Catholic nun and the founder of the Missionaries of Charity. She was born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu in Skopje, part of the Ottoman Empire at the time. 
Born: 26 August 1910, Skopje, North Macedonia
Died: 5 September 1997, Kolkata

100 Top Quotes by Mother Teresa in English

  1. “I can do things you cannot, you can do things I cannot; together we can do great things.”
  2. “Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.”
  3. “I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world.”
  4. “Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls.”
  5. “The greatest disease in the West today is not TB or leprosy; it is being unwanted, unloved, and uncared for. We can cure physical diseases with medicine, but the only cure for loneliness, despair, and hopelessness is love. There are many in the world who are dying for a piece of bread, but there are many more dying for a little love. The poverty in the West is a different kind of poverty—it is not only a poverty of loneliness but also of spirituality. There’s a hunger for love, as there is a hunger for God.”
  6. “I am not sure exactly what heaven will be like, but I do know that when we die and it comes time for God to judge us, he will not ask, ‘How many good things have you done in your life?’ rather he will ask, ‘How much love did you put into what you did?’”
  7. “The most terrible poverty is loneliness and the feeling of being unloved.”
  8. “If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.”
  9. “We must not be surprised when we hear of murders, killings, of wars, or of hatred. If a mother can kill her own child, what is left but for us to kill each other?”
  10. “God doesn’t require us to succeed; he only requires that you try.”
  11. “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”
  12. “Love begins at home, and it is not how much we do… but how much love we put in that action.”
  13. “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”
  14. “We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty.”
  15. “I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world.”
  16. “I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.”
  17. “Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.”
  18. “The success of love is in the loving—it is not in the result of loving. Of course, it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done.”
  19. “Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.”
  20. “I have never been in a war before, but I have seen famine and death. I was asking (myself) what do they feel when they do this? I don’t understand it. They are all children of God. Why do they do it? I don’t understand.”
  21. “We can do no great things, only small things with great love.”
  1. “I am not sure exactly what heaven will be like, but I know that when we die and it comes time for God to judge us, he will not ask, ‘How many good things have you done in your life?’ rather he will ask, ‘How much love did you put into what you did?’”
  2. “We must not be surprised when we hear of murders, killings, of wars, or of hatred. If a mother can kill her own child, what is left but for us to kill each other?”
  3. “God doesn’t require us to succeed; he only requires that you try.”
  4. “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”
  5. “Love begins at home, and it is not how much we do… but how much love we put in that action.”
  6. “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”
  7. “We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty.”
  8. “I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world.”
  9. “I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.”
  10. “Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.”
  11. “The success of love is in the loving—it is not in the result of loving. Of course, it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done.”
  12. “Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.”
  13. “I have never been in a war before, but I have seen famine and death. I was asking (myself) what do they feel when they do this? I don’t understand it. They are all children of God. Why do they do it? I don’t understand.”
  14. “We can do no great things, only small things with great love.”
  15. “I know God won’t give me anything I can’t handle. I just wish he didn’t trust me so much.”
  16. “Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired.”
  17. “Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So, spread your love everywhere you go.”
  18. “A life not lived for others is not a life.”
  19. “The most important thing is not what you say, but how you live.”
  20. “The greatest science in the world, in heaven and on earth, is love.”
  21. “It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.”
  22. “The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread.”
  23. “Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.”
  24. “Peace begins with a smile.”
  25. “We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature—trees, flowers, grass—grows in silence; see the stars, the moon, and the sun, how they move in silence…We need silence to be able to touch souls.”
  1. “Let us more and more insist on raising funds of love, of kindness, of understanding, of peace. Money will come if we seek first the Kingdom of God—the rest will be given.”
  2. “We can cure physical diseases with medicine, but the only cure for loneliness, despair, and hopelessness is love. There are many in the world who are dying for a piece of bread, but there are many more dying for a little love.”
  3. “Words which do not give the light of Christ increase the darkness.”
  4. “Love is not patronizing and charity isn’t about pity, it is about love. Charity and love are the same—with charity you give love, so don’t just give money but reach out your hand instead.”
  5. “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depth of our hearts.”
  6. “There must be a reason why some people can afford to live well. They must have worked for it. I only feel angry when I see waste. When I see people throwing away things we could use.”
  7. “If we want a love message to be heard, it has got to be sent out. To keep a lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it.”
  8. “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”
  9. “Let us touch the dying, the poor, the lonely and the unwanted according to the graces we have received and let us not be ashamed or slow to do the humble work.”
  10. “Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls.”
  11. “I see Jesus in every human being. I say to myself, this is hungry Jesus, I must feed him. This is sick Jesus. This one has leprosy or gangrene; I must wash him and tend to him. I serve because I love Jesus.”
  12. “If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.”
  13. “I want you to be concerned about your next door neighbor. Do you know your next door neighbor?”
  14. “We fear the future because we are wasting the today.”
  15. “Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.”
  16. “Give, but give until it hurts.”
  17. “Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.”
  18. “Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So, spread your love everywhere you go.”
  19. “I think the world today is upside down. Everybody seems to be in such a terrible rush, anxious for greater development and greater riches and so on. There is much suffering because there is so very little love in homes and in family life. We have no time for our children, we have no time for each other; there is no time to enjoy each other. Love has gone. That is why there is so much suffering and so much unhappiness in the world today.”
  20. “We are all pencils in the hand of God.”
  21. “The most terrible poverty is loneliness, and the feeling of being unloved.”
  22. “I would rather make mistakes in kindness and compassion than work miracles in unkindness and hardness.”
  23. “I try to give to the poor people for love what the rich could get for money. No, I wouldn’t touch a leper for a thousand pounds; yet I willingly cure him for the love of God.”
  1. “The openness of our hearts and minds can be measured by how wide we draw the circle of what we call family.”
  2. “Love begins at home, and it is not how much we do, but how much love we put in the action that we do.”
  3. “The greatest destroyer of peace is abortion because if a mother can kill her own child, what is left for me to kill you and you to kill me? There is nothing between.”
  4. “Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired.”
  5. “It is easy to love the people far away. It is not always easy to love those close to us. It is easier to give a cup of rice to relieve hunger than to relieve the loneliness and pain of someone unloved in our own home. Bring love into your home for this is where our love for each other must start.”
  6. “If we are humble, nothing will change us, neither praise nor discouragement, because we know what we are.”
  7. “Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So, spread your love everywhere you go.”
  8. “I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world.”
  9. “Do not think that love in order to be genuine has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired. Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.”
  10. “People are unrealistic, illogical, and self-centered. Love them anyway.”
  11. “I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world.”
  12. “What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family.”
  13. “We can do no great things, only small things with great love.”
  14. “If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.”
  15. “The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread.”
  16. “We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.”
  17. “God doesn’t require us to succeed; he only requires that you try.”
  18. “Be the living expression of God’s kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.”
  19. “Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.”
  20. “We are all called to be great saints. Don’t miss the opportunity.”
  21. “We must not be afraid to be a sign of contradiction for the world.”
  22. “We are not called to be successful, but faithful.”
  23. “Holiness is not the luxury of the few; it is a simply duty, for you and for me, because Jesus has very clearly stated, ‘Be ye holy as my Father in heaven is holy.’”
  24. “If we want a love message to be heard, it has got to be sent out. To keep a lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it.”
  25. “Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.”
  26. “We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature—trees, flowers, grass—grows in silence; see the stars, the moon, and the sun, how they move in silence… We need silence to be able to touch souls.”
  1. “We shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do.”
  2. “Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls.”
  3. “Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So, spread your love everywhere you go.”
  4. “Love is not patronizing and charity isn’t about pity, it is about love. Charity and love are the same—with charity you give love, so don’t just give money but reach out your hand instead.”
  5. “I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.”

FAQs:

Who was Mother Teresa?

Mother Teresa was a Catholic nun and missionary who dedicated her life to serving the poor and sick. She founded the Missionaries of Charity, an organization that has become synonymous with her work.

What inspired Mother Teresa to become a nun?

Mother Teresa was deeply moved by the poverty and suffering she saw in India during her early years as a teacher. She felt a calling to devote her life to serving the poor and sick, and joined the Sisters of Loreto, a Catholic religious order, in 1928.

What did Mother Teresa do as a missionary?

Mother Teresa spent most of her life serving the poor and sick in India. She founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950, which provided care for people with leprosy, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS, as well as for homeless and abandoned children.

Did Mother Teresa receive any awards or honors for her work?

Yes, Mother Teresa received numerous awards and honors, including the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. She was also beatified by the Catholic Church in 2003, which is a step toward sainthood.

What was Mother Teresa’s philosophy?

Mother Teresa’s philosophy was based on the teachings of Jesus Christ, and emphasized the importance of serving others with love and compassion, especially those who are most marginalized and forgotten by society.

Was Mother Teresa controversial?

Yes, Mother Teresa was controversial in some circles, with critics accusing her of promoting a narrow, conservative view of Catholicism and of not doing enough to address the root causes of poverty and suffering.

What is the legacy of Mother Teresa?

Mother Teresa’s legacy is one of service and compassion. Her work inspired countless others to dedicate their lives to helping those in need, and the Missionaries of Charity continue to provide care for the sick and poor around the world.

What are some famous quotes by Mother Teresa?

Some of Mother Teresa’s famous quotes include “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love,” and “Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.”

What was Mother Teresa’s relationship with the Catholic Church?

Mother Teresa was a devout Catholic and her work was rooted in the teachings of the Church. However, she was also critical of some aspects of the Church and called for reforms to address the needs of the poor and marginalized.

What is the Missionaries of Charity?

The Missionaries of Charity is an organization founded by Mother Teresa that provides care for the sick, poor, and marginalized around the world. It operates in over 130 countries and has thousands of members, including nuns and volunteers.