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The Missionary Position (book)
Encyclopedia
The Missionary Position: Mother Teresa in Theory and Practice is a book by Christopher Hitchens
about Mother Teresa
's life and work. The book criticizes
Teresa as a political opportunist who adopted the guise of a saint
in order to raise money and spread an extreme religious ideology
. Regarding the book's title with its sexual double meaning, Hitchens said, "it was either that or Sacred Cow
, and I thought Sacred Cow would be in bad taste."
, Charles Keating
and Michèle Bennett
as examples.
, as a cult
which has promoted suffering to further its own financial ends and does not help those in need. He argues that Teresa's own words on poverty proved that her intention was not to help people, citing a 1981 press conference in which she was asked: "Do you teach the poor to endure their lot?" She replied: "I think it is very beautiful for the poor to accept their lot, to share it with the passion of Christ. I think the world is being much helped by the suffering of the poor people."
an dictator
Jean-Claude Duvalier
and his wife Michèle Duvalier
, enigmatic quasi-religious figure John-Roger
, and disgraced former financial executive Charles Keating
.
who was presiding over Keating's trial for defrauding his investors of billions of dollars. The letter urged the judge to consider the fact that Keating had donated generously ($1.25 million) to the Missionaries of Charity and suggested that Judge Ito "look into [his] heart" and "do what Jesus would do."
Hitchens also includes the contents of a letter written to Mother Teresa by the man prosecuting the case against Keating, Deputy District Attorney
for Los Angeles
Paul Turley. In the letter, Mr. Turley pointed out to Mother Teresa that Keating was on trial for stealing more than $250 million from over 17,000 investors in his business. In addition, Turley expresses his opinion that "[n]o church, no charity, no organization should allow itself to be used as a salve for the conscience of the criminal" and suggests:
After the conclusion of the letter, Hitchens notes: "Mr. Turley has received no reply to his letter. Nor can anyone account for the missing money: saints, it seems, are immune to audit."
says: "Anyone with ambivalent feelings about the influence of Catholic dogma (especially concerning sex and procreation); about the media's manufacture of images; or about what one can, should or shouldn't do for someone less fortunate, should read this book." In 1996, The New York Times
published a favourable review by Bruno Maddox
in which he says: "Mr. Hitchens, a columnist at Vanity Fair and The Nation, is rather convincing" and "Hitchens argues his case with consummate style".
The Sunday Times
says: "A dirty job but someone had to do it. By the end of this elegantly written, brilliantly argued piece of polemic
, it is not looking good for Mother Teresa." Also in 1996, a hostile review of the book was penned by William A. Donohue
, president of The Catholic League
, who comments: "If this sounds like nonsense, well, it is."
Christopher Hitchens
Christopher Eric Hitchens is an Anglo-American author and journalist whose books, essays, and journalistic career span more than four decades. He has been a columnist and literary critic at The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, Slate, World Affairs, The Nation, Free Inquiry, and became a media fellow at the...
about Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa , born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu , was a Roman Catholic nun of Albanian ethnicity and Indian citizenship, who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India, in 1950...
's life and work. The book criticizes
Criticism
Criticism is the judgement of the merits and faults of the work or actions of an individual or group by another . To criticize does not necessarily imply to find fault, but the word is often taken to mean the simple expression of an objection against prejudice, or a disapproval.Another meaning of...
Teresa as a political opportunist who adopted the guise of a saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
in order to raise money and spread an extreme religious ideology
Religious belief
Religious belief is a strong belief in a supernatural power or powers that control human destiny. Such a state may relate to the existence, characteristics and worship of a deity or deities, divine intervention in the universe and human life, or values and practices centered on the teachings of a...
. Regarding the book's title with its sexual double meaning, Hitchens said, "it was either that or Sacred Cow
Sacred cow (idiom)
Sacred cow is an idiom, a figurative reference to sacred cows in some religions. This idiom is thought to originate in American English, although similar or even identical idioms occur in many other languages....
, and I thought Sacred Cow would be in bad taste."
Summary
Hitchens condemns Teresa for having used contributions to open convents in 150 countries rather than establishing the teaching hospital toward which her donors expected her to apply their gifts. He claims that Teresa was no "friend to the poor," and that she opposed structural measures to end poverty, particularly those that would raise the status of women. He argues she was a tool by which the Catholic Church furthered its political and theological aims, and the cult of personality that she developed was used by politicians, dictators and bankers to gain credibility and assuage guilt, citing Hillary Rodham ClintonHillary Rodham Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton is the 67th United States Secretary of State, serving in the administration of President Barack Obama. She was a United States Senator for New York from 2001 to 2009. As the wife of the 42nd President of the United States, Bill Clinton, she was the First Lady of the...
, Charles Keating
Charles Keating
Charles Humphrey Keating Jr. is an American athlete, lawyer, real estate developer, banker, and financier, most known for his role in the savings and loan scandal of the late 1980s....
and Michèle Bennett
Michèle Bennett
Michèle Bennett is the ex-wife of former President for Life of Haiti, Jean-Claude Duvalier. From 1980 to 1986 she was the First Lady of Haiti. She fled to exile in France with her deposed husband aboard a U.S. Air Force plane and has remained there since...
as examples.
Missionaries of Charity
Hitchens portrays Mother Teresa's organization, the Missionaries of CharityMissionaries of Charity
Missionaries of Charity is a Roman Catholic religious congregation established in 1950 by Mother Teresa of Calcutta, which consists of over 4,500 sisters and is active in 133 countries...
, as a cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
which has promoted suffering to further its own financial ends and does not help those in need. He argues that Teresa's own words on poverty proved that her intention was not to help people, citing a 1981 press conference in which she was asked: "Do you teach the poor to endure their lot?" She replied: "I think it is very beautiful for the poor to accept their lot, to share it with the passion of Christ. I think the world is being much helped by the suffering of the poor people."
Associates
Hitchens details Mother Teresa's relationships with wealthy and corrupt individuals including HaitiHaiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
an dictator
Dictator
A dictator is a ruler who assumes sole and absolute power but without hereditary ascension such as an absolute monarch. When other states call the head of state of a particular state a dictator, that state is called a dictatorship...
Jean-Claude Duvalier
Jean-Claude Duvalier
Jean-Claude Duvalier, nicknamed "Bébé Doc" or "Baby Doc" was the President of Haiti from 1971 until his overthrow by a popular uprising in 1986. He succeeded his father, François "Papa Doc" Duvalier, as the ruler of Haiti upon his father's death in 1971...
and his wife Michèle Duvalier
Michèle Bennett
Michèle Bennett is the ex-wife of former President for Life of Haiti, Jean-Claude Duvalier. From 1980 to 1986 she was the First Lady of Haiti. She fled to exile in France with her deposed husband aboard a U.S. Air Force plane and has remained there since...
, enigmatic quasi-religious figure John-Roger
Roger Delano Hinkins
Roger Delano Hinkins , known and published as John-Roger, is an American author, public speaker, and founder of the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness , as well as several other New Age spiritual and self-help organizations.-Early life and education:Hinkins was born on September 24, 1934, and...
, and disgraced former financial executive Charles Keating
Charles Keating
Charles Humphrey Keating Jr. is an American athlete, lawyer, real estate developer, banker, and financier, most known for his role in the savings and loan scandal of the late 1980s....
.
Charles Keating
The book includes the reproduction of a letter written by Mother Teresa on behalf of Keating to Judge Lance ItoLance Ito
Lance Allan Ito is an American Los Angeles County Superior Court judge, best known for his presiding decision during the O. J. Simpson murder trial. He currently hears felony criminal cases at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center.-Early life and career:Ito was born to Jim and Toshi Ito...
who was presiding over Keating's trial for defrauding his investors of billions of dollars. The letter urged the judge to consider the fact that Keating had donated generously ($1.25 million) to the Missionaries of Charity and suggested that Judge Ito "look into [his] heart" and "do what Jesus would do."
Hitchens also includes the contents of a letter written to Mother Teresa by the man prosecuting the case against Keating, Deputy District Attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
for Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
Paul Turley. In the letter, Mr. Turley pointed out to Mother Teresa that Keating was on trial for stealing more than $250 million from over 17,000 investors in his business. In addition, Turley expresses his opinion that "[n]o church, no charity, no organization should allow itself to be used as a salve for the conscience of the criminal" and suggests:
"Ask yourself what JesusJesusJesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
would do if he were given the fruits of a crime; what Jesus would do if he were in possession of money that had been stolen; what Jesus would do if he were being exploited by a thief to ease his conscience? I submit that Jesus would promptly and unhesitatingly return the stolen property to its rightful owners. You should do the same. You have been given money by Mr. Keating that he has been convicted of stealing by fraud. Do not permit him the 'indulgenceIndulgenceIn Catholic theology, an indulgence is the full or partial remission of temporal punishment due for sins which have already been forgiven. The indulgence is granted by the Catholic Church after the sinner has confessed and received absolution...
' he desires. Do not keep the money. Return it to those who worked for it and earned it! If you contact me I will put you in direct contact with the rightful owners of the property now in your possession."
After the conclusion of the letter, Hitchens notes: "Mr. Turley has received no reply to his letter. Nor can anyone account for the missing money: saints, it seems, are immune to audit."
Reviews
The San Francisco Bay GuardianSan Francisco Bay Guardian
The San Francisco Bay Guardian is a free alternative newspaper published weekly in San Francisco, California. The paper is owned mostly by its publisher, Bruce B...
says: "Anyone with ambivalent feelings about the influence of Catholic dogma (especially concerning sex and procreation); about the media's manufacture of images; or about what one can, should or shouldn't do for someone less fortunate, should read this book." In 1996, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
published a favourable review by Bruno Maddox
Bruno Maddox
Bruno P. Maddox is a British literary novelist and journalist who is best known for his critically lauded novel My Little Blue Dress and for his satirical magazine essays....
in which he says: "Mr. Hitchens, a columnist at Vanity Fair and The Nation, is rather convincing" and "Hitchens argues his case with consummate style".
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
says: "A dirty job but someone had to do it. By the end of this elegantly written, brilliantly argued piece of polemic
Polemic
A polemic is a variety of arguments or controversies made against one opinion, doctrine, or person. Other variations of argument are debate and discussion...
, it is not looking good for Mother Teresa." Also in 1996, a hostile review of the book was penned by William A. Donohue
William A. Donohue
William Anthony "Bill" Donohue is the president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights in the United States, a position he has held since 1993.-Life and career:...
, president of The Catholic League
Catholic League (U.S.)
The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, often shortened to the Catholic League, is an American Catholic anti-defamation and civil rights organization...
, who comments: "If this sounds like nonsense, well, it is."
External links
- Mommie Dearest - Slate article by Hitchens about Mother Teresa
- The Missionary Position: Mother Teresa in Theory and Practice at Google Books