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

New Names Proposed for Harvard Extension School Degrees

Long pushed for, the changes would be part of a broader rebranding for the Division of Continuing Education.

Martin Nowak Placed on Leave a Second Time

Further links to Jeffrey Epstein surface in newly released files.

Cancellations, Disruptions as Harvard Graduate Student Strike Enters Second Week

Some faculty complain about the protests’ effect on students.

Explore More From Current Issue

A smiling man in a brown plaid suit stands outdoors with greenery in the background.

The professor and former Harvard College dean is the next president of Harvard Magazine’s Board of Directors

Bronze statue of a seated figure holding a book, with a campus setting in the background.

As humanities shrink across higher education, one department is flourishing. Is its success a fluke, or a roadmap?

Two fans celebrate in front of a TV showing a football game.

A new Harvard Kennedy School project aims to harness the power of feral fandom.