# Mother Theresa: Saint, torturer, or both?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mother-theresa-saint-torturer-or-both/208739>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [October 21, 2003, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mother-theresa-saint-torturer-or-both/208739 "2003-10-21T17:40:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![VileOrb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/9e8a1a/32.png) [@VileOrb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VileOrb)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mother-theresa-saint-torturer-or-both/208739/1 "2003-10-21T17:40:18Z")

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I was disappointed that the new status of Mother Theresa did not prompt a renewed debate on her goodness or lack thereof. I used to be able to find lots of MT bashing sites on the web but they seem to be overwhelmed by the Catholic news blurbs today. It’s easy enough to find pro-MT propaganda. Let me list a few anti-MT things I’ve heard but can find no cites for today.

– She built health clinics but forbade the use of pain killers in them except in preventing death: purportedly to increase the suffering in a world which had too much pleasure.

– She took money donated to her clinics and gave it to the Catholic Church.

– She opposed building schools in third world countries.  
Maybe in a few days the Catholic media blitz will back off and I’ll be able to find cites. Meanwhile, does anyone have anything to add?

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**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mother-theresa-saint-torturer-or-both/208739/2 "2003-10-21T17:56:19Z")

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Already got a [thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=218520) going on this.

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**Author:** ![VileOrb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/9e8a1a/32.png) [@VileOrb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VileOrb)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mother-theresa-saint-torturer-or-both/208739/3 "2003-10-21T18:08:25Z")

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hmmm… Didn’t come up when I searched for Mother Theresa. And I timed out trying to check it out. Something wrong with the boards?

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**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mother-theresa-saint-torturer-or-both/208739/4 "2003-10-21T18:19:17Z")

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It’s “Teresa,” maybe that’s why the search missed it.

Also, the hamsters are insane today.

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**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mother-theresa-saint-torturer-or-both/208739/5 "2003-10-21T18:24:44Z")

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She can be both, I suppose. Many saints weren’t the nicest people. Catherine of Siena, for instance, was a stone bitch.

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**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\
**Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mother-theresa-saint-torturer-or-both/208739/6 "2003-10-22T14:28:54Z")

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And I’m a saint, too, to put up with some of the shit I have to put up with, but god KNOWS I can sometimes be a weensy bit waspish.