Sisters of Charity

Kiki

Hi. I will forward your message to \sister \ancilla and she can help you. \sorry I don't have the info here.

indiaguide

There is no option for online registration. You have to go there on Monday,Wednesday and Friday at 3P.M.You may take daily pass from Mother house in the morning at 7 A.M.

Kiki

Here's a letter from one of the Sisters of Charity in Darjeeling:


Most of the volunteers comes to work in Kalkata and for them we
usually
won't provide any accodmation that they themselves has to find
own. But to
work with the poor people you are most welcome but all your
accodmation and
all the expenses (your room and board) you have to provide by yourselves. because
that is our
rule. but where to stay and which is the better hotel in Kolkata
all that
information you may get it from Kolkata also from our mother
house I am just
giving you the address of our mother house you may get more
information
from there. this is the adress:
SISTER INCHARGE OF VOLUNTEERS
MISSIONARIES OF CHARITY,
54/A A.J.C BOSE ROAD,
KOLKATA 700016
WEST BENGAL
PHONE 033 22497115

WISH YOU ALL THE BEST FOR YOUR SUCESSFUL WORK WITH US AND I WILL
PRAY FOR
YOU TO FIND PEACE AND HARMONY WHILE WORKING WITH TIS POOR ONE.

LOVE,
SR. ANCILLA M.C

Chandak

Actually, there ARE many dodgy things about the Missionaries of Charity. I grew up in Calcutta and was always amazed by the unfounded statements Mother Teresa (and her nuns, volunteers and biographers) made about the
inhumanity of Calcuttans. True, there is much poverty in Calcutta, as anywhere else in the Third World. True, many Calcuttans are inhumane, as are many others (e.g. Americans). But mothers killing their children because they could not feed them? The pavements clogged with homeless lepers? Missionaries of Charity running school after school across the city? Whilst I do not wish to hurt anyone's religious feelings, these and countless other images of Calcutta that the Missionaries of Charity have circulated across the world for so many years are simply untrue. Believe it or not, Calcutta is a typical third world city, not the hell-hole the MoC have portrayed it as. The only exceptional thing about Calcutta is that it has always produced an abnormally high number of internationally respected artists, writers and film-makers. (Funny how none of them was educated at one of these many schools that the Missionaries are supposed to run in the city, and funnier that the Mother never deemed fit to mention this side of Calcutta to anybody, not even in her Nobel lecture.) Do go and volunteer in Calcutta by all means, but please don't believe all the hype about the MoC or all the negative stuff about the city.

DoDi

The Missionaries of Charity do not force Hindus or anyone else to convert to Catholicism in order to recieve assistance. This is a pure fabrication. They're assistance is available to everyone, and they are respectful of the beliefs of others.

Nor is volunteering restricted to people of any particular faith. I know a Lutheran minister who regularly volunteers with the MOC.

Nor have I ever heard a negative word from a MOC sister about Calcutta. They don't participate in political discussions, public media campaigns, or anything of the sort. What others may write and say about them or about Calcutta is another matter, and if we like or don't like what is said I would hope that we could at least recognize that it is said second (or third) hand and not blame the sisters for it.

The MOC are very scrupulous about not using media or even fund raising methods to do thier work. They depend on the providence of God for everything. If you visit them they will not even ask you for a dime. They depend on God inspiring you to make the offer to help and to respond with the charity that is in your heart to do what you can to help without being asked. You can just go or call any of thier locations in the world... believe me they will welcome you and put you right to work!
I've never volunteered at Kolcata, but I have in other locations. I just got back from Kerala where I visited them in Cochin (there is a home for severely disabled children there) and Kochuthura (a home for mentally disabled adults and orphans). Just about anywhere you go in the world you can find them and volunteer. Kolkata is more structured about volunteering probably because it is so well known and gets a lot of volunteers.

Best Wishes! and I'm sure you'll be blessed for your efforts.

ddevadatta

For those who complain of the distortions of western India and close their eyes and ears to distortations in India, here is a very good example of that. There is a lot of hyper-sensitivity between relgions and the work they do for those in need. Lots of reports are exaggerated and even manipulated in order to fuel people's fears and they cause more harm than good.

The Sisters of Charity are a very reputable organization with years of dedicated and self-less service. Is any group perfect? By no means. But please don't fall for the manipulation. And may I say thanks for your desire to volunteer and serve in India.

__________________
Ayurvedic cure for an Indian headache

temp

If you're coming as a missionary, please don't. A challenge like the middle east perhaps might be more fit for your superb evangelizing capabilities, don't you think?

Paagla Dashu

I do not think the Mother has ever described Kolkata as a "hell-hole" or had intentions that went beyond helping the homeless and the needy. If she criticised the people of Calcutta for anything, its for their indifference to the plight of the less fortunate amongst them.

We should not forget that it was the Mother's work that inspired the name "City of Joy" for Calcutta.

Anyone who wishes to contribute by volunteering to help the needy has intentions that are more noble than that of people who jump at any opportunity to turn a perfectly humanitarian discussion into a politically motivated religious debate, I think.

So my heartfel gratitude to the original poster for his/her noble intentions and the desire to improve the condition of some of the people of my country and shame on those who would do nothing to help but everything they can to criticise and demonise people whose altruism they cannot even begin to understand.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Swami Vivekananda had written,

"Bohurupe sammukhe tomar, chhari kotha khunjichho Ishwar,
Jibe prem kore jei jon, sei jon sebichhe Ishwar"

~ Where are you looking for God - when he is in front of you in every living being, in many different forms? Those who serve mankind (and any other living being) are serving God

The word for Religion in Sanskrit is Dharma - which means "what holds society together". Hinduism is a way of life and its greatness lies in its ability to accept people of all faith including those who may not believe in God - thats what takes it closer to being a universal "Dharma" - a way of life that holds society together. It will be a shame to destroy that very foundation of the Indian ethos - by efforts meant to "protect" it.

temp

As opposed to letting it be destroyed by not protecting it, you mean? Converts or their descendants in time don't subscribe to dharmic ideas, pure and simple. That's the whole point of conversion. Witness Pakistan and BD today. Not much "dharmic" in evidence from what I can see. Or much Buddhist left about Afghanistan either. The way Western religions are structured (blessed "believers" vs. infidels, good vs. evil, codes of conduct & behavior etc), conversion to them will change India's ethos and thinking, your high and mighty thoughts notwithstanding.

Anyway, political discussions are verboten on this travel forum, so I'll stop.

machadinha

You mean to say Hinduism suffers no such evils?
http://hindutva.org/
http://www.hinduunity.org/

etc. (do a search on Hindutva y'all.)

Aye.

And bravo for Paagla Dashu's post by the way, eloquently put.

__________________
Reading tips, all picked up at IndiaMike : INDAX's A Comprehensive Guide To India / Dinoj Surendran's Desi Humor / ITHVC on Culture Shock & Travel Health / JetLag Travel Guides For the Undiscerning Traveller / India Travel Links

temp

Why Hindutva? Do a search for Hinduism or dharma y'all. As Paagla put it, Indian dharma encompasses many streams of thought, all valid viewpoints, there's no single book that says this is it. It's philosophical musings more than a religion. Hindutva is a recent reactionary branch trying to make sure India doesn't end up with more Pakistans or Kashmirs through this continuous conversion.

machadin, you don't understand the ethos of Indian dharmic thought if you believe it divides the world into believers and non-believers (it doesn't have a concept of "believer") or is no different from the way Western religions are structured. Nor of Hindutva, if I may add. The challenge before Hinduism today is to retain its ideas and philosophy while not giving in to the ideas of "us vs. them" being foisted on by the "believer vs. infidel" structured religions. Note that Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism etc. have no such division. They simple talk about ideas, much like anyone in the West may have certain philosophical ideas they agree to.

Before you mention castes, they are social structures that even other religions like Muslims and Christians in India have.

Also, not related to Hinduism, but there's a difference between a religion "suffering" an evil, and having an evil institutionalized in a book that's considered the word of God/Allah etc.

machadinha

A nice way to prove the supremacy of Hinduism based on the premise that it doesn't seek supremacy that's for sure. As we say here, look at your own backyard first. (I know my balcony is mighty dirty.)

temp

Why do you have to think in terms of supremacy at all? Can't you just accept streams of thought as existing independently without comparison? This is where it appears Western thought got into believer vs. infidel (Note I'm not saying this makes it inferior, just different and unfortunately a plague upon the human race). Buddhism/Taoism/Confucianism/Hinduism have no such scales of superiority: they simply coexist, for people to subscribe to their ideas as and when they like. Also, I don't think I said anything about Indian thought that's different from what Paagla says.

machadinha

Earlier:
Doesn't look like you view those peeps as independently co-existing equals in any way dharmic or not would you say?

temp

I have good feelings for them as human beings as is our dharma's view, but unfortunately, collectively seen, their history forces me to view them this way. See (google?): Islamic conquest of India, creation of Pakistan & Bangladesh, problems in Kashmir (in all cases, extermination of non-Muslims), Nagaland for Christ (Buddhists and Hindus driven out at gunpoint). Where will it end?