it is very beautiful for the poor to accept their lot?

Forums: Grammar, Esl, English
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Does "lot" here refer to "fate"?

Context:

The increasing wealth of the order she founded became yet another grievance. On the one hand, large sums accumulated in checking (non-interest bearing) accounts in the United States, and large sums were being spent on opening new convents and increasing missionary work; on the other, her Home for the Dying continued to maintain the same austere conditions with which it had been founded, that is to say, as a place for those who had nowhere else to go.[103]

She was also criticised for her view on suffering. She felt that suffering would bring people closer to Jesus.[104][105] At a press conference during her October 1981 visit to Washington D.C, Mother Teresa stated, "I think it is very beautiful for the poor to accept their lot, to share it with the passion of Christ. I think the world is being much helped by the suffering of the poor people."[106]

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Type: Question • Score: 4 • Views: 976 • Replies: 11

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View best answer, chosen by oristarA

@oristarA,

Yes. It means "fate", or "place in life".

0 Replies

Besides, what does "it" refer to in "to share it with the passion of Christ"?
Does "it" refer to the concept that " it is very beautiful for the poor to accept their fate"?

If so, Mother Teresa told us that the fate of the poor is set by Christ, that is why she said "to share it with the passion of Christ" and said suffering is a gift from God.

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Quote:

I think it is very beautiful for the poor to accept their lot, to share it with the passion of Christ. I think the world is being much helped by the suffering of the poor people."

1 Reply

@oristarA,

"It" refers to "their lot."

1 Reply

@InfraBlue,

InfraBlue wrote:

"It" refers to "their lot."

Thanks.
And "the world is being much helped by the suffering of the poor people"? Isn't it totally bullshit?

1 Reply

@oristarA,

Yes, it refers to fate.

1 Reply

@oristarA,

oristarA wrote:

Thanks.
And "the world is being much helped by the suffering of the poor people"? Isn't it totally bullshit?

I certainly don't subscribe to her theology.

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@selectmytutor,

No it doesn't, fate is something that will happen. One's lot is what one has to deal with in the here and now. They are very different.

Cinderella was fated to marry Prince Charming, but her lot was cleaning, cooking and generally being treated like a servant by her stepmother and step sisters.

1 Reply

@izzythepush,

izzythepush wrote:

No it doesn't, fate is something that will happen. One's lot is what one has to deal with in the here and now. They are very different.

Cinderella was fated to marry Prince Charming, but her lot was cleaning, cooking and generally being treated like a servant by her stepmother and step sisters.

I checked out the definitions of lot and fate:

fate:
(3) your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)

lot:
(3) your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)

So at least for some lexicographers, both are the same.

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Why bother starting a thread asking the difference if you're just going to go with what lexicographers say? Either you can accept the subtle difference between the two, or you can go on thinking you know more about English than a native speaker. I don't care what you do.

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@izzythepush,

I see a difference between the word "fate" and saying "my fate" or "your fate"

By itself, fate is simply what is destined to happened.

Saying "my fate" is more similar to saying "my lot"

Yes, the difference is subtle.

When I was a girl in catholic school, after playing during recess in the hot sun, and then wanting a drink of water, the nuns would tell us to "swallow your spit and offer up your thirst (suffering I suppose) to Christ, and think of him on the cross"

To this day I fail to see what that was all about. I guess we were just supposed to accept our lot as dehydrated childen. Either that or the nun just got off on not letting someone get a drink of water when it was about 20 feet away.

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@izzythepush,

izzythepush wrote:

Why bother starting a thread asking the difference if you're just going to go with what lexicographers say? Either you can accept the subtle difference between the two, or you can go on thinking you know more about English than a native speaker. I don't care what you do.

Both your opinion and that of lexicographers are appreciated. The latter is usually a result of statistics, not representing everything. That is why A2K deserves honor, respect and love.

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it is very beautiful for the poor to accept their lot?

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