Advice from Mother Teresa on Class Day 1982 at Harvard

The class of 1982 hears from "the angel of Calcutta."

Mother Teresa delivers the Commencement address at Harvard University on June 10, 1982

Mother Teresa delivers the Commencement address at Harvard University on June 10, 1982 | Photograph by Joe Wrinn/Harvard News Office

Some senior classes opt for levity, or substance cloaked in levity, from their Class Day guest speaker. The class of 1982 chose to hear a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who may one day be named a saint. Mother Teresa, who founded the Society of the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta in 1950, urged her audience to work for Jesus and to live virtuous lives themselves, and received a long, standing ovation from the unusually large crowd in Tercentenary Theatre.

 

For more on Mother Teresa’s speech, see this PDF from the July-August 1982 issue.

A transcription of the speech has been posted by Saint Catherine Labouré Church in San Diego.

Most popular

The University will compensate families of those whose remains were sold and establish a scholarship to honor anatomical donors.

Harvard art historian Jennifer Roberts teaches the value of immersive attention

Teaching students the value of deceleration and immersive attention

Explore More From Current Issue

Modern building with large glass windows, surrounded by greenery and pedestrians.

A roundup of University news from the summer of 2026

Three young women posed side by side against red background.

The 2026-2027 Ledecky and Summer Undergraduate Fellows

Runners compete on a track, with a Harvard athlete in the foreground and others behind.

After a historic 2025-26 season, athletes eye NCAA championships.