A Congregation Defined by a Fourth Vow

The Missionaries of Charity are distinguished among modern religious congregations by a single added vow that fixes the whole purpose of the order.

The fourth vow

Founded by Mother Teresa in Calcutta in 1950, the congregation binds its sisters by the three usual vows and by a distinctive fourth vow of wholehearted free service to the poorest of the poor. That vow is the defining commitment of the order: the sisters run homes for the dying, orphanages, leprosy clinics and shelters, and are recognisable by the white sari edged with three blue stripes. From a single house the congregation spread to over a hundred countries, with later branches of active and contemplative brothers, priests and lay co-workers.

Acclaim and scrutiny

Mother Teresa received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 and was canonised in 2016, and the congregation is among the best-known religious institutes in the world. Its work has also drawn documented criticism over standards of medical care and the management of donations, and the scrutiny is part of the modern record of the order rather than only its acclaim. Holding both, the wide veneration and the specific criticisms, is the honest way to describe a congregation this prominent.