Invasion of privacy--above and beyond

Anyone who picks up The Private Writings of the "Saint of Calcutta" has to wonder how Mother Teresa would view becoming a hot topic ten years after her death. The 2007 book was edited and published by the priest who is serving as postulator of the Cause of Beatification and Canonization of Mother Teresa of Calcutta. The reason given for the publication is to show the "depth and intensity of her holiness."

But many of the passages are from letters sent to her spiritual advisers and, while they are not protected as private under the sacred right of confession, she constantly begged her spiritual directors to destroy the correspondence. The letters show her confusion, pain, and sense of desolation, and many were written at the suggestion of her superiors. It is understandable why she not want her deepest thoughts known. And why she would expect repeated requests to be honored.

The purpose of the book is to show the mystical nature of her faith and devotion to service. When I started to post this blog, I was going to quote some of these dark passages. However, reading them again I decided that her wish for privacy should be respected.