Before she would come to be known as Saint Teresa of Calcutta, Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu was born in what was then part of the Ottoman Empire and now is Macedonia on Aug. 27, 1910. Nineteen years later, she would take on the name Sister Teresa.

Her first missionary work began with teaching well-off children in Darjeeling, India. But Sister Teresa had always felt that God was urging her to help the poor, so she was granted permission to leave her sisterhood and pursue this endeavor in Calcutta (now Kolkata).

Initially, homeless and with little more money than those she wished to assist, her aspirations seemed unattainable. Still, she persevered and began giving lessons to impoverished children in the streets.

By 1948, her efforts seemed to pay off, as she was given shelter and dubbed “Mother Teresa” by all those she helped. Only two years later, she founded the Missionaries of Charity, which sought to build shelters and orphanages for the poor and parentless of India. In time, the Missionaries of Charity would grow rapidly, eventually becoming an international affiliation.

Saint Teresa’s tenacity did not go unnoticed. People all around the world recognized the tiny 5’0” nun, and in 1979, at the age of 69, she was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize.

Her death at the age of 87 affected not only her adopted country of India, but also the entire world. In most cases, there is a five-year waiting period before the canonization process is allowed to begin, but an exception was made for Saint Teresa, allowing the process to begin less than two years after her passing.

Before anyone can be declared a saint, however, the Church is put to the task of investigating the life of the holy man or woman. This is to ensure that he or she actually led a holy life and put good out into the world, rather than just being claimed to have done so.

Since the initiation of the canonization process, the Vatican has attributed two miracles to her, both of which involve the disappearance of cancerous tumors shortly after the ill prayed to then Blessed Teresa for intercession.

Though Saint Teresa’s journal details her inner spiritual debate, in which she often had doubts about her faith, this only seemed to make her more relatable to the public. Just shy of nineteen years after her death, the Church decreed her goodwill towards others was enough reason to grant her sainthood.

On Sept. 4, she was officially canonized by Pope Francis, giving her the title Saint Teresa of Calcutta.

“She is an exemplary model of the virtue of humility,” says Dr. Kelley Spoerl, professor in the Theology Department at Saint Anselm College.

She continues, “I realize that many students on campus know little about her, because she died before they were born. However, they would do well to learn more about her life and her teachings, because they very much support the emphasis on service on campus.”

Saint Teresa’s teachings have inspired others to offer the same compassion and selflessness to those in need. Her canonization brought a crowd of 120,000 to St. Peter’s Square, showing how loved and admired she was for her missionary work. At the Mass held in honor of her at the Vatican, around 1,500 homeless Italians were brought inside and given a free meal afterwards.

Saint Teresa’s legacy continues to have a lasting impact today. This is, in part, because her teachings are relatable to all: poor or wealthy, religious or not.

In the words of Saint Teresa, “Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.”