Mother Teresa: Love Stays

Rating:
Summary: Lacking but may serve as worthy general introduction.
Review: Christian Feldman, in "Mother Teresa: Love Stays", does not do justice for the life and work of Mother Teresa. Writing from an apparently distant and impersonal perspective, Feldman lacks the affectivity vital in capturing the tremendous love of a woman so devoted to Christ and his suffering children. "Love Stays" is, however, sufficient as a newpaper-like account and may serve as a worthy general introduction.

The documentaion is somewhat thorough and accurate. Events and interviews in which she participated are quantitatively well covered. Frequently, Feldman inserts quotes from Mother Teresa; however, it would be much more effective and informative if all of these sources were footnoted. Perhaps off-setting this, Feldman does include comments from those who had the pleasure of meeting her and working with her - complete with the context of the situation in which the quotes were taken.

Betraying his generally objective writing style, Feldman not infrequently inserts his own subjective commentaries. He proposes thoughts and connections Mother Teresa may have had without any real evidence, such as the suggestion that she was thinking of her own second calling when speaking about the Annunciation. He misleads the reader by putting words on Mother Teresa's lips, using quotation marks followed by such clarifications as "she seemed to be asking." (p. 24) He puts feelings in her heart that many would not find compatible with the loving woman's long-standing reputation, such as diagnosing her with "profound depression" in one section and, further on, describes her as "hissing" at some would be attackers. Such conclusions need backing up and should be left for the reader to determine.

To his credit, Feldman opens the book with a heart wrenching prologue which so beautifully captures the spirit of Mother Teresa and her selfless work with the abandoned and dying. Unfortunately, the rest of the book does not always follow true to this initial picture. Perhaps his intent was to paint a more human picture of Mother Teresa complete with connections to the secular and non-Christian worl. But this denies the splendid reality of the greatness of this little woman and even, at times, seems painstakingly fabricated. For those of us who wish to share a close spiritual affinity with her, this book leaves us dry.