General Commissariat of Portugal Holds Elective Chapter in Fatima, Portugal

The triennial chapter of the General Commissariat of Portugal as held April 21-23, 2026 in Hotel Casa São Nuno in Fatima. The theme of the chapter – echoing the theme of the General Chapter in 2025 – was: “You Must Do Some Work” (Rule 20). Our Contemplative Fraternity Discerns Its Mission in Portugal. Before the chapter, the preparatory commission did a lot of work synthesizing the reflections of the friars and the communities, as well as putting together the various proposals for the chapter to consider.

The afternoon before the chapter began, the gremiales were led in a reflection guided by the Reverend Father José Antunes, missionary of the Divine Word, under the theme, “International Religious Communities.”

In opening the Chapter, Desiderio García Martínez, O. Carm., the prior general, encouraged the friars to rediscover the beauty of the Carmelite charism especially with regard to our interior life. On the second day of the Chapter, the Prior General gave a presentation building further on the theme of spiritual renewal.

During the Chapter of the General Commissariat of Portugal were elected:

Commissary General | Comisario general | Commissario generale
Altamiro Tenório da Paz, O. Carm.

1st Councilor | 1er Consejero | 1^o Consigliere
Agostinho Marques de Castro, O. Carm.

2nd Councilor | 2do Consejero | 2^o Consigliere
Fernando Manuel Afonso Araújo O. Carm

3rd Councilor | 3er Consejero | 3^o Consigliere
João Manuel Oliveira da Costa, O. Carm.

4th Councilor | 4to Consejero | 4^o Consigliere
Pedro José Martins Monteiro, O. Carm.

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Elective Chapter Held in Carmelite Monastery of the Incarnation in Granada, Spain 

At noon on April 15, 2026, the Carmelite Monastery of the Incarnation in Granada (Spain) held its triennial elective chapter. After celebrating the Eucharist and singing a hymn to the Holy Spirit, the nuns began the elective chapter with the election of the prioress.

The monastery is part of the “Mater et Decor Carmeli” Federation and is located in the Diocese of Granada. Originally an ascetery (asceterium), in 1508 it became an enclosed monastery of the Order through the efforts of Mary Anne of St. Sebastian, a nun of the city of Ecija. The Venerable Joan Ursula of St. Joseph lived at Incarnation in Granada.

The nuns elected to leadership roles are:

Prioress | Priora | Priora:
Sor Ma. Lourdes Santos, O. Carm.

1st Councilor | 1ª Consejera | 1ª Consigliera:
Sor Ma. Dolores Montes, O. Carm.

2nd Councilor | 2ª Consejera | 2ª Consigliera:
Sor Ma. Jeanette Monica Santos, O. Carm.

Treasurer | Ecónoma | Economa:
Sor Ma. Dolores Montes, O. Carm.

Formator | Formadora | Formatrice:
Sor Mary Jeanette Monica Santos, O. Carm.

Sacristan | Sacristana | Sacrestana:
Sor Gretchen Marie Cabalquinto, O. Carm.

April 23 the World Celebrates International Day of the Book

This annual event organized by UNESCO (United Nations Educations, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) promotes reading and publishing. Books are like a window onto another world – with each new page, they introduce us to new people, new cultures and new ideas. World Book Day is celebrated in recognition of the power of books as a bridge between generations and across cultures.

April 23 was chosen as the date of the celebration as it is the anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare and Inca Garcilasco de la Vega as well as less prominent authors. In an historical coincidence, Miguel Cervantes is also listed as dying on the same date – April 23, 1616 – as Shakespeare but in fact they died 11 days apart since Spain was using the Gregorian calendar and England was using the Julian calendar at the time.

The Good Shepherd Calls His Own by Name,
and They Recognise His Voice (John 10:1-10)

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• pdf Celebrando em família - Quarto Domingo da Páscoa(753 KB)

The British Province held its 20th Provincial Chapter since its restoration in September 1969. The gathering was held April 13-17, 2026. The elections took place at an assembly in February. All those election were confirmed by the prior general, Desiderio García Martínez, O. Carm., on the first afternoon of the Chapter proper.

In opening the Chapter, Desiderio García Martínez, O.Carm., the Prior General remined the participants that our identity, being inspired by the Holy Spirit, is free and that “each member of the Carmelite family must find their own place.” He continued saying,

“We are proud of the individuals and groups (friars, nuns, sisters, TOC, lay people, Carmelite lay people, Carmel youth, Congregations, OCD) who are inspired by the Rule of Carmel, its tradition and the values of its history and spirituality, which constitute the Carmelite Family. Nobody has a monopoly on charism.”

The members of the province together with other members of the Carmelite Family spent the Chapter reflecting together on the previous three years while planning for the next triennium. A great fraternal spirit was evident throughout the week, as the participants shared their common concerns both in the Chapter Room, the Chapel, and at table.

After considering the usual reports, the Chapter considered its ministries (especially regarding the shrines within the province) and how they might be Carmelite in the future. Time was spent looking at vocations and communications while also exploring the role of partnership and collaboration.

The participants received updates and reflected further on the province’s Youth Centre Project. At the centre of this project will be the “Simon Stock Community”: a residential community made up of young adults (aged 18 to 30 years) who will live together in a purpose built house on the grounds of The Friars (Aylesford). Construction is currently underway and it is hoped that it will be complete by January 2027. These young adults will live, pray and serve together, supporting retreats, programmes and events for children and young people. During the chapter, the participants had a tour of the works that are underway.

The participants spent time (both in personal reflection and together in conversation groups) considering the next three years under four themes: Me as a Carmelite; We are Carmelite Community; Our Carmelite Family; and, Carmelites on Mission.

The following leadership elected or confirmed:

Prior Provincial | Prior Provincial | Priore Provinciale
Brendan Grady, O. Carm.

1st Councilor | 1er Consejero | 1^o Consigliere
Gerard Walsh, O. Carm.

2nd Councilor | 2do Consejero | 2^o Consigliere
Paul de Groot, O. Carm.

3rd Councilor | 3er Consejero | 3^o Consigliere
Richard Green, O. Carm.

4th Councilor | 4to Consejero | 4^o Consigliere
Pat O'Keefe, O. Carm.

VII Inter-Faith Youth Gathering in Pontianak, West Borneo

On April 9-12, 2026, the Wahid Foundation, in collaboration with Temasek Foundation, Hamoni in Action, SADAP, Gusdurian, and SAKA (Yayasan Suar Asa Katulistiwa) held a program to promote interreligious harmony and cooperation among people with different religious backgrounds in Pontianak, the capital of the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan.

It is expected that this program may result in actions in common to save the earth as everyone’s common home.

The theme of the gathering was Environmental Ethics and Religion. There were 15 speakers from the different religion groups, including Borneo local religions. Sr. Magdalena Paula SKYB, a local Carmelite sister and part of the Indonesian Carmelite NGO, was one of the speakers representing the Catholic community. Her presentation focused on the Laudato Si' principles.

There were 36 young leaders from different youth groups in Borneo also participating in the three-day program. They remained enthusiastically engaged in the discussion. There were also five representatives of deaf-mute youth community who are active in promoting interreligious understanding in Pontianak.

PROFESSIO SOLEMNIS
14-03-26  Randy Fernando Romero Morillo (Baet-Ven) La Victoria, Venezuela
19-03-26  Kacper Galiński (Pol) Krakow, Poland
19-03-26  Piotr Grudziński (Pol) Krakow, Poland


ORDINATIO DIACONALIS
21-03-26  Horacio Antonio Vargas Cáceres (Baet-Ven) La Concepción, Venezuela


ORDINATIO SACERDOTALIS
07-03-26  Manuel Antonio Villarreal Franco (Baet-Ven) Mucunchies, Venezuela
25-03-26  Davi Maria Santos (Pern) Recife, Brasil
11-04-26  Daniele Di Filippo (Ita) Roma, Italia
11-04-26  Eduardo Antonio Díaz Esinoza (PCM-Perú) Miraflores, Lima, Perú

Whitefriars College celebrates 65 years since its foundation this year. The first group of students was welcomed to the College on February 14, 1961. Carmelite Frank Shortis was the founding principal. The school is located in Donvale, a suburb of Melbourne.

The College was founded by the Carmelite Order of Priests and Brothers as a Catholic secondary school for boys. This was in response to a strong demand from local Catholic families who wanted an educational institution grounded in their faith.

The Carmelite tradition has deep roots, stretching back to the late Twelfth Century in the Holy Land. There, a small group of Christian hermits settled on Mount Carmel, inspired by a spirit of prayer and reflection. Despite challenges that led them to leave Mount Carmel, they carried the essence of their way of life, spreading it across the world.

Today, the Carmelites continue to witness God’s presence in people, nature, the Word of God and within the human spirit. Their mission is to cultivate a spirit of prayer, reflection, justice and peace—values which are central to our educational approach. At Whitefriars, these values are embraced through service, respect for individuals and fostering a strong sense of community. We live in allegiance to Jesus Christ, drawing inspiration from Mary, the Prophet Elijah and other holy figures who have followed the Carmelite way.

The College is structured around a house-based, Vertical Pastoral Care system, with each house dedicated to a Carmelite saint or blessed figure. These figures serve as inspirations for our students as they pursue excellence in education based on deeply human and Christian values.

The College has produced a series of 6 short videos to tell something of the story of the last 65 years. These can be viewed at: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=whitefriars+college

17 April Memorial

Baptist Spagnoli was a literary genius. He devoted the fruitfulness of his extraordinary literary ability to the service of the Order and the Church. His Apologia pro Ordine Carmelitarum (Apology for the Order of Carmelites) stands as the principal testimony to his love for Carmel, while his total devotion to the Church is attested not only by his poems in honor of Innocent VIII, Julius II, and Leo X, but also by all those writings that reveal his active engagement with the issues most deeply felt by Christendom at the time, such as, for example, the Obiurgatio cum exhortatione ad capienda arma contra infideles, ad reges et principes christianos (Admonition and Exhortation to Christian Kings to Take Up Arms Against the Infidels).

The events that were then disrupting the life of the nation also caused him to write. His verses Pro pacata Italia post bellum ferrariense (To Italy at Peace After the War of Ferrara), those of In Romam bellis tumultuantem (Against Rome in Turmoil from Wars), the poem Debello veneto commentariolus (Brief Commentary on the Venetian War), the Trophaeum pro Gallis expulsis produce Mantuae (Victory Ode on the Expulsion of the Gauls by the Duke of Mantua), and above all the De calamitatibus temporum (The Calamities of the Times), reprinted nearly thirty times between 1489 and 1510 alone, demonstrate how deeply the Mantuan felt the drama that was tormenting Italy in those years.

The friendships that bound him to distinguished figures of the time is proof of his high prestige in the world of culture. He was one of the most celebrated figures of the humanist movement, especially for his work Bucolica: seu adolescentia in decem aeglogas divisa (Bucolica or Adolescence Divided into Ten Eclogues), of which there are nearly 150 editions, more than a hundred of them in the 16th century alone, which is why his contemporaries, including Erasmus of Rotterdam, proclaimed him the Christian Virgil.

His poetic work, whose fame reached as far as Shakespeare with some even included in his play Love’s Labour’s Lost—influenced English literature in particular: Alexander Barclay paraphrased his eclogues, Edmund Spenser imitated him in The Shepheardes Calender (twelve pastoral eclogues), and John Milton in the Ode on the Morning of Christ’s Nativity.

The work required by the various offices entrusted to him and his intense literary activity did not distract him from the Carmelite ideals of the interior life and a tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin.

The practice of the virtues and renunciation of the world form the theme of his De vita beata (The Blessed Life), a dialogue he wrote when he was barely sixteen years old; the aspiration to solitude and the desire for the presence of God are constantly found in his works and in his correspondence. In honor of Mary, he composed several odes and a three-volume poem, the Parthenices Mariana (Songs to the Virgin), which spread rapidly throughout Europe, as some seventy editions were published, fifteen in the fifteenth century and nearly fifty in the sixteenth. He worked to have the custody of the sanctuary of Loreto entrusted to his Congregation, which he obtained, albeit for only a few years, in 1489.

The six Parthenices composed in honor of the martyrs Catherine, Margaret, Agatha, Lucy, Apollonia, and Cecilia, and the poems in honor of St. John the Baptist, St. George, and other saints, constitute, together with the twelve books of the De sacris diebus (The Sacred Days), another example of his religious piety.

Impressed by the growing corruption of the clergy and the people, he expressed his reformist aspirations not only through his insightful literary works, such as the IXth eclogue De moribus curiae romanae (On the Customs of the Roman Curia), but also through a passionate speech delivered in the Vatican Basilica in 1489, before Innocent VIII and the cardinals. Some of his particularly harsh statements led Luther himself to rely on the authority of Baptist to take a stand against Rome. And in an Anthologia... sententiosa collecta ex operibus Baptistae Mantuani (Anthology of Sentences Collected from the Works of B.V.M.), published in Nuremberg in 1571, the Protestants went so far as to point to the Carmelite as a precursor of the German reformer. But it is worth noting the essential difference between the reformist spirit of Blessed Mantuano, who sought to work within the Church, and that of Luther, which was to lead to schism.

Adapted from the entry for Baptist Spagnoli by Edmondo Coccia in Santi del Carmelo, a cura di Ludovico Saggi Ocarm, Institutum Carmelitanum, Roma, 1972.

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