Kolkata: While the city and the rest of the world waits to celebrate Mother Teresa’s canonization on September 4, a quaint cathedral tucked away in Baruipur is already hailing her sainthood. It’s a special cathedral – the only one in India dedicated to Mother Teresa and named after her.
Built in 2009, The Cathedral of Immaculate Heart of Mary and Blessed Teresa has a sprawling campus, which will host a special prayer during the canonization at Vatican and follow it up with a feast on September 5. Thousands from Baruipur are expected to attend it. The cathedral will be thrown open to visitors for three hours on the evening of the canonization, said Salvadore Lobo, bishop of Baruipur Diocese.
“We are doing up the cathedral for the big day when a large crowd will gather for the prayer. It will remain open in the evening for people to visit and offer their prayers to Mother. The majority of our visitors will be non-Christians since we are a small religious minority in Baruipur. But the cathedral belongs to all since it carries Mother Teresa’s name. It is the only one in which Mother is the co-patroness and the people of the area are extremely proud of it,” said Lobo.
It is not just the feast and the prayer at the cathedral that will mark the canonization. An inter-religious congregation has been planned on September 25. But it will probably be held at the Baruipur Town Hall to accommodate a larger audience.
“The cathedral, after all, is a place of worship and we have a space constraint. Anything to do with Mother invariably attracts a large crowd so we might move it to the Town Hall, reported The Times of India.
That apart, we are planning a big cultural programme on behalf of the cathedral, which may be held at a conveniently located venue,” said Lobo.
On September 4, a statue of Mother will be placed at the entrance to the cathedral to mark the beginning of celebrations that will last the whole of September. “This is indeed a unique cathedral for it invokes the spirit and memory of Mother Teresa like no other place. It draws people from all over the districts of South and North 24-Parganas and beyond. And many of them are non-Christians,” said C M Paul, co-founder of the Mother Teresa International Film Festival.
The cathedral has been a landmark in Baruipur since it was set up. The exterior has a Romanesque style of architecture, with semi-circular arches being the principal feature. There are thirty-two glass paintings that represent the ‘History of Salvation’ and 24 oil-paintings on the ceiling in two rows of 12 paintings each. They represent the miracles and parables of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
The sprawling gardens around the cathedral has around 350 rare varieties of exotic plants. Lobo pointed out that there are 130 varieties of cacti, 12 varieties of orchids, 20 types of lilies and 12 categories of dasavalas. Among seasonal flowers there are several varieties of chrysanthemums and dahlias. “It is a special place and will remain so since it is probably the only landmark outside Kolkata that has Mother Teresa’s name attached to it. While prayers are held at Catholic churches during the canonization, many will want to be a part of the congregation here where Mother is one of the deities,” said Sunil Lucas of World Catholic Association for Communication.