Sister Nirmala Joshi, MC

Sister Nirmala Joshi, MC was born in Doranda, Ranchi (in the Indian State of Jharkhand) in 1934 to a Brahmin soldier who moved to India from Nepal. As a teenager she was baptized by Mother Teresa of Calcutta and joined the Missionaries of Charity order at the age of 17 after converting to Christianity.

Shortly before Mother Teresa’s death in 1997, Sister Nirmala succeeded her in leading the Missionaries of Charity as the second Superior General of the international congregation. On March 25, 2009, Sister Nirmala’s term as Superior General of the Missionaries of Charity ended and she was succeeded by German-born Sr. Mary Prema Pierick, MC.

Sister Nirmala died in Calcutta on June 23, 2015 at the age of 80. She is now reunited in heaven with Saint Teresa, whom she followed in life. In 2005, Sister Nirmala visited the studios of Salt+Light Television where she sat for an interview with Father Thomas Rosica, CSB.