Mother Teresa Shouldn't Be a Saint

Mother Teresa Shouldn't Be a Saint

Hemant Mehta (http://www.friendlyatheist.com, http://www.patreon.com/Hemant , https://www.facebook.com/friendlyatheist)

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2016/03/15/why-mother-teresa-doesnt-deserve-sainthood/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_qjDyFweWY

.....

Pope Francis recently announced that Mother Teresa would become a saint on September 4. The honor will come nearly two decades after her death.

I'm sure a lot of people, including Catholics, are celebrating the announcement, but it’s important to look at what went into the sainthood process, since it makes no sense at all and few people will dare to talk about it.

After all, Mother Teresa is one of those people who’s supposed to be immune from criticism. You can't talk shit about Mother Teresa without people looking at you funny. But I'll try.

So what does it take to be a saint?

Simply put, there needs to be proof that you played a role in two separate miracles. And if you think those two concepts contradict each other -- proof and miracles -- you’d be right.

The first “miracle” took place in 2003 and was approved by Pope John Paul II.

He said that an Indian woman, Monica Besra, had been cured of an abdominal tumor all thanks to the supernatural intervention of Mother Teresa… who had been dead for several years at that point.

The story went like this: Besra had a tumor. Someone put a locket with Mother Teresa’s photo on her stomach. And then the tumor went away. That’s it.

Clearly, Teresa did it!

That story tends to ignore how Besra suffered for years even after Teresa died and how doctors continued to work on her even after the locket was placed on her… but, you know, I’m sure they had nothing to do with it.

Beyond that, though. there's another, more dangerous side effect to the “miracle” claim:

If people genuinely believe it, they might stop taking their medicine because they assume a miracle will happen to them, too.

So that was the first “miracle.” Something that had no definitive proof, gave us plenty of reasons to be skeptical, and could have a disastrous effect on other sick people.

Way to go, Catholic Church.

What about the second “miracle”? That one involved a Brazilian man with a viral brain infection who was in a coma:

His story went like this: His wife was praying to Mother Teresa to cure her husband for months. And in 2008, the morning after he had surgery, he woke up perfectly normal.

Furthermore, doctors had told him he was sterile, but in the years after his reawakening, he had two more kids.

Weird. Definitely weird. I will admit that.

But can we at least suggest that the doctors got their diagnoses wrong?

And isn't it odd that the only medical professionals who were brought in to verify this miracle were convened by the Vatican?

And isn't it strange that we don't know the man's name? Seriously. The Vatican refuses to say his name, age, medical history, anything. We're just supposed to accept their story.

After all this, it's obviously a tremendous leap to say, “Mother Teresa did it. From the grave."

It's ridiculous.
Join the conversation. Leave your questions and comments below and we'll try to address them in future videos. Don't forget to subscribe for more!

Also, follow us at ...
https://twitter.com/atheistvoices
https://www.facebook.com/TheAtheistVoices
https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/106662137332631352312/106662137332631352312/posts/p/pub
http://theatheistvoice.tumblr.com/
http://www.theatheistvoice.com/

The Atheist Voice provides a platform for discussion for atheist leaders, authors, bloggers, activists, and everybody else who is passionate about atheism, and secularism. Join the discussion by commenting under the videos or submitting video responses. If you'd like to collaborate on this channel or if you'd like to appear in our videos please visit our website www.TheAtheistVoice.com

Видео Mother Teresa Shouldn't Be a Saint канала The Atheist Voice