A Burnham-On-Sea man has recounted the day he met the late Mother Teresa – on the day she becomes a Saint.
Pope Francis will today (Sunday) oversee the cannonisation of Mother Teresa in front of an expected audience of tens of thousands of people at the Vatican in Rome.
Michael Turner, a keen traveller and teacher who lives in Burnham, says he spent two hours with Mother Teresa in her convent during a visit to Calcutta, India, in December 1984.
He interviewed her due to his interest in human rights which led to the publication of his book, The Declaration of Human Rights, for school teachers.
Michael described Mother Teresa as “the most approachable famous woman in the world,” to which he says Mother Teresa replied “All for Jesus.”
“I was thrilled when Mother Teresa knelt beside me so we could read prayers together which I recorded on a tape machine,” he recalls.
He says the visit was an emotional one which he will vividly remember for the rest of his life.
Michael is this week flying to Africa for an epic three week hitch-hiking journey that will include crossing the Victoria Falls from Zambia into Zimbabwe where he will study the dire economic situation of the country. “I use my travel experiences to enhance my geography lessons so that students will be inspired to see the real world and help a few poor people after they pass their exams.”
