Maria Nirmala Joshi was an Indian religious sister who succeeded Nobel laureate Mother Teresa as the head of the Missionaries of Charity and expanded the movement overseas. After taking over the charity following Mother Teresa's death in 1997, Nirmala expanded the organisation's reach to 134 countries by opening centres in nations such as Afghanistan and Thailand.
Sister Nirmala in Witness, the Salt + Light Television programme
The Missionaries of Charity is a Catholic centralised religious institute of consecrated life of Pontifical Right for women
established in 1950 by Mother Teresa, now known in the Catholic Church as Saint Teresa of Calcutta. As of 2023, it consisted of 5,750 members religious sisters. Members of the order designate their affiliation using the order's initials, "M.C.". A member of the congregation must adhere to the vows of chastity, poverty, obedience, and the fourth vow, to give "wholehearted free service to the poorest of the poor." Today, the order consists of both contemplative and active branches in several countries.
Sisters belonging to Missionaries of Charity in their attire of traditional white sari with blue border.
Missionaries of Charity's Mother House (Headquarters) in Kolkata
Mother Teresa's home for the dying destitute Nirmal Hriday at Kalighat, Kolkata.
Missionarinnen der Nächstenliebe, Schwestern aus dem Orden Mutter Theresas, in Tirana (Albanien)