Mother Teresa declared a saint by the Pope at a ceremony at Vatican City
A man healed of brain tumours and a woman healed from a stomach tumour led to Mother Teresa being canonised
MOTHER Teresa has been proclaimed a saint.
The woman, who founded a sisterhood that runs 19 homes, won a Nobel Peace Prize and became famed for her work with the poor in India, was canonised in a mass at the Vatican on Sunday.
Thousands of pilgrims travelled to St Peter's Square at the Vatican for the canonisation mass while a special mass was also held at the Missionaries of Charity in India.
Pope Francis said: "After due deliberation and frequent prayer for divine assistance, and having sought the counsel of many of our brother bishops, we declare and define Blessed Teresa of Calcutta to be a saint and we enrol her among the saints, decreeing that she is to be venerated as such by the whole Church."
Two apparent miracles have been attributed to Mother Teresa after her death in 1997.
A brief biography of Mother Teresa's life was read out before the Pope canonised her.
Hundreds of Missionaries of Charity sisters attended the event, along with 13 heads of state and government.
Pilgrim Charlotte Samba from Gabon, told Associated Press: "Her heart, she gave it to the world. Mercy, forgiveness, good works. It is the heart of a mother for the poor."
Mother House senior sister Mary Lysa said: "It's a day of rejoicing, a day of gratitude and a day of many, many blessings."
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Mother Teresa died in 1997 at the age of 87 before she was beatified in 2003.
One of the first miracles that Mother Teresa apparently performed was the curing of an Indian woman's stomach tumour.
The woman had prayed to Mother Teresa.
A second miracle was attributed to Mother Teresa, with a Brazilian man healed from several brain tumours in 2008.
HOW DO YOU BECOME A SAINT?
Mother Teresa is the latest to have been canonised by the Catholic Church after several miracles were attributed to her.
But the path to sainthood is not straight forward.
Step One
The process to become a saint usually does not happen until at least five years after a person has died. This delay allows time for any controversy or debate around the person's life to calm and to allow a case to be examined objectively.
Step Two
A person's life is then examined by a bishop, generally from the person's own diocese. The bishop must find evidence of the person having lived a devout life.
Any writings are collected and witnesses interviewed.
Step Three
The bishop then submits the evidence collected to the Vatican's Congregation for the Causes of Saints. This congregation can then choose to reject or accept the evidence, sparking a new investigation into the candidate's life.
The congregation can then beatify someone, a term which the Catholic Church uses when they believe a person has entered heaven and can now intercede on behalf of people who pray in the person's name.
Step Four
One of the most important factors leading to a person's canonisation is having miracles attributed to them. The miracles generally take the form of a healing, which must be instantaneous, permanent and without scientific explanation. Two miracles must take place.
At the time of the miracle, the Vatican announced: "The Holy Father has authorised the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to proclaim the decree concerning the miracle attributed to the intercession of blessed Mother Teresa."
Mother Teresa was born as Agnese Gonxha Bojaxhiu in 1910 and grew up in what was then part of the Ottoman Empire.
She was sent to India in 1929 after joining the Irish order of Loreto, teaching at a school in Darjeeling.
She moved to Kolkata in 1946 to continue her work helping the poor, setting up a hospice and home for abandoned children.
She then founded the Missionaries of Charity, which now has more than 4500 nuns worldwide with its headquarters in central Kolkata.
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