Mother Teresa's church is planning lavish public commemorations for Saturday's first anniversary of her death, including an homage from Pope John Paul II, a memorial Mass in St. Peter's Basilica and a television spectacular from the Vatican.
The Roman Catholic Church's tributes - including the Italian TV special from a Vatican hall draped in the blue and white of her saris - offer everything but the speeded-up sainthood that her followers say the extraordinary nun of Calcutta deserves.Even for Mother Teresa, the Vatican made clear again Thursday, the mandatory five-year waiting period stands.
"Rome has got its rules," sighed Calcutta Archbishop Ivan Dias, at the Vatican for Thursday's kick-off of the events.
Mother Teresa died Sept. 5, 1997, in Calcutta, at age 87, after a life spent aiding the poor and wretched through her Missionaries of Charity order and other good works.