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Millions came to Rome for the canonization of two Popes, John XXIII and John Paul II. Especially with Pope John Paul II so many people had stories of personal encounters with him. Sometimes those encounters actually took place in crowds but for the individuals it was a very personal moment between them and the Pope John Paul II.

Carmelites too have many stories of personal encounters to tell. In 26 years, Pope John Paul II visited many churches and almost daily hosted groups at his residences. Among these were some Carmelites. He penned a library of documents some of which were directed to the Carmelites themselves.

As has been well documented, this pope had a deep devotion to Mary and particularly to Our Lady of Mount Carmel. He himself had a deep devotion to the Carmelite scapular (see accompanying story). He often used examples from the lives and writings of the Carmelite saints to make a point in his speeches and writings.

The Pope also showed he was aware of the Carmelites of today and our ministry to the Church worldwide. He reached into the Order to find bishops to serve in several dioceses around the world. Some 18 monasteries of enclosed nuns were erected during his pontificate.

In a letter to the Prior General, Joseph Chalmers, on the occasion of the 2001 General Chapter, Pope John Paul recalled that 2001 was the 750th anniversary of the giving of the scapular, the 7th centenary of the birth of the Carmelite bishop and saint Andrew Corsini, as well as the beginning of the Third Millennium which the Pope felt called to lead the Church into. He wrote about Elijah and Mary as the symbols of the Order and talked about "the journey" that the Order has embarked on.

He continued "You are called to re-read your rich spiritual inheritance in the light of today’s challenges so that the ‘joys, the hopes, the sadnesses and the anguish of humanity today, of the poor, and above all of those who suffer’ are ‘the joys and the hope, the sadnesses and the anguish of Christ’s disciples’ (Gaudium et Spes, n.1) and, in a special way, of every Carmelite."

Carmelite Holy Figures

One occasionally found the pope using quotes from a Carmelite to reinforce his teaching. He himself was very familiar with the life of the 16th century Carmelite mystic John of the Cross. The Carmelite was the subject of his doctoral thesis Doctrina de fide apud Sanctum Ioannem a Cruce.

Speaking to young pilgrims at the general audience on November 6, 1985, John Paul called Titus Brandsma "the example ... to show us that love is stronger than hate and is destined, even after some moments of failure, to triumph." This was a theme the pope would repeat time after time in his own life. For newly weds, the pope again used Brandsma to teach that even those so involved in the problems of daily life can attain spiritual heights. At the Sunday Angelus on the 50th anniversary John Paul referred to Brandsma’s martyrdom as "the highest expression of service to the Gospel and solidly rooted in the spirituality of Carmel.

The Pope appreciated what La Madonna "la Bruna" means to Naples. Venerated by the Neapolitans since the 13th century, the tradition says that the icon was brought to the city by the Carmelites who fled the Holy Land. During a visit to that Italian city in 1990, the pope said that La Bruna "so loved by all the Neapolitans ... kept their faith firm and intact."

The Carmelite Scapular

Particularly around the time of the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in July, the Pope often spoke of the Carmelite scapular, usually in the context of its value for today’s Christian. In an audience on July 16, 1988, with a group of the Alpini, a branch of the Italian military, John Paul II quoted his predecessor Pius XII to single out the scapular from among the many expressions of devotion to Mary.

Some days later at the summer residence in Castelgandolfo, the Pope called the scapular "a particular grace" of Mary. In this way, the heart grows in communion and familiarity with the Blessed Virgin Mary. He spoke of this as "a new way of living for God and of continuing here on earth the love of Jesus the Son for his Mother Mary."

In a talk with the youth of the Carmelite parish of St. Mary in Transpontina in 1989, the pope said he owed much in his youth to the Carmelite scapular. Then he compared Mary’s clothing us in the scapular to a mother who sees that her children are properly clothed. "Our Lady of Mount Carmel dresses us in a spiritual sense. She dresses us with the grace of God and helps us always …"

Mary - Our Lady of Mt Carmel

The deep devotion of Pope John Paul II to Our Lady under her various titles was well documented during his 26 year pontificate. He began his pontificate by saying to the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s for his first Urbi et Orbi blessing that he accepted the election "in the spirit of obedience to Our Lord and with total trust in his Mother, the Most Holy Madonna." He attributed his survival of the attempted assassination on May 13, 1981 to Our Lady of Fatima whose feast was celebrated the day of the attempt.

His devotion to Mary as Our Lady of Mount Carmel was also manifest during his years as pope. In a general audience on July 13, 1988 the Pope challenged the young people to examine their own devotion to Mary and then suggested they think about devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

At the same audience, he told the sick that "Our Lady of Mount Carmel sheds light on the beauty of the mystery of suffering." He asked the newly weds in the piazza to "put your love under the protection of Our Lady of Mount Carmel" reminding them that "It is her prayer and intercession that will protect your love from danger and will cause your love to always be faithful and rich."

During the Angelus celebrated at Castelgandolfo on July 24, 1988, the Pope recalled that Carmelite mystics experienced God in their lives as "the way of perfection" and "ascending Mount Carmel" – always in the presence of Mary as Mother, Patroness, and Sister. He said that for those in Carmel and in every soul which is deeply Carmelite, a life of intense communion and closeness to the Virgin Mary grows.

At the Carmelite parish of Traspontina in January 1989, the Pope admitted to the young people who came to meet him that Our Lady of Mount Carmel had been of great help to him as a youngster. "I can not say exactly to what extent but I think she helped me greatly. She assisted me in finding the grace of my vocation."

During the Sunday Angelus on July 16, 2000, while on vacation in Aosta, the Pope spoke again of the Carmelites as the mountains around him made him think of Mount Carmel in Palestine. Recalling that Carmel is a symbol of total adhesion to the divine will and of our eternal salvation, he said "We are called to climb this spiritual mountain courageously and without pausing. Walking together with the Virgin, model of total fidelity to the Lord, we will not fear obstacles or difficulties. Sustained by her maternal intercession, like Elijah, we will be able to fulfill our vocation to be authentic "prophets" of the Gospel in our time.

He prayed that "the Blessed Virgin of Mount Carmel help us to rise tirelessly toward the top of the mountain of sanctity, and to hold nothing more dear than Christ, who reveals the mystery of divine love and humanity’s true dignity to the world."

May his prayer become a reality in our lives.

Easter Time

1) Opening prayer

Lord our God, Father of all,

you sent your Son Jesus Christ among us

to reveal to us that you care about people

and that your love extends to all,

without any distinction of race or culture.

Give us a great respect for all people,

whatever way they come,

and let your Church embrace all cultures,

that Jesus may truly be

the Lord and Shepherd of all,

now and for ever.

2) Gospel Reading - John 10:11-18

I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. The hired man, since he is not the shepherd and the sheep do not belong to him, abandons the sheep as soon as he sees a wolf coming, and runs away, and then the wolf attacks and scatters the sheep; he runs away because he is only a hired man and has no concern for the sheep.

I am the good shepherd; I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for my sheep. And there are other sheep I have that are not of this fold, and I must lead these too. They too will listen to my voice, and there will be only one flock, one shepherd.

The Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me; I lay it down of my own free will, and as I have power to lay it down, so I have power to take it up again; and this is the command I have received from my Father.

3) Reflection

• The Gospel today presents the parable of the Good Shepherd. It is the continuation of the Gospel which we read yesterday (Sunday). It is difficult to understand the first part without the second. This is why we prefer to comment briefly on both (Jn 10: 1-18). The discourse on the Good Shepherd presents three comparisons linked among themselves:

1^st comparison: Jesus speaks of the shepherd and of the thieves (Jn 10:1-5)

2^nd comparison: Jesus is the door of the sheep (Jn 10: 6-10)

3^rd comparison: Jesus is the Good Shepherd (Jn 10:11-18)

• John 10: 1-5: 1^st comparison: to enter by the door and not by somewhere else. Jesus begins the discourse with the comparison of the door: “Anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate is a thief and a bandit! He who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock!” At that time, the shepherds took care of the flock the whole day. When night arrived they lead the sheep to a great community sheepfold, which was well protected against thieves and wolves. All the shepherds of the same region took their flocks there. A gatekeeper took care of them the whole night. The following day, early in the morning, the shepherd would go there, knocked with his hands on the gate and the gatekeeper would open. The shepherd would go in and call the sheep by name. The sheep recognized the voice of their shepherd would get up and go out following him to go to the pasture. The sheep of the other shepherds heard the voice, but would not move, because for them it was an unknown voice. From time to time, there was the danger of being attacked. The bandits would enter by a side path or jumped over the wall of the sheepfold, made of one rock on top of the other, in order to rob the sheep. They did not enter by the gate because the gatekeeper was there.

• John 10: 6-10: 2^nd comparison: Jesus is the door. The audience, the Pharisees (Jn 9: 40-41), did not understand what it meant “to go in through the door”. Jesus then explained: “I am the gate of the sheepfold. All who have come before me are thieves and bandits”. Of whom is Jesus speaking in this phrase which is so hard? Probably, he was referring to the religious leaders who drew the people behind them but they did not respond to their expectations. They were not interested in the good of the people, but only in their own interest and in filling their pockets. They deceived the people and abandoned them to a worse situation. To enter through the gate is to act as Jesus acted. The fundamental criterion to discern who is shepherd and who is a thief is the defence of the life of the sheep. Jesus asks the people not to follow the persons who present themselves as shepherds, but who have no interest for the life of the people. “I have come in order that they have life and life in abundance!” This is the criterion!

• John 10: 11-15: 3^rd comparison: Jesus is the Good Shepherd. Jesus changes the comparison. First he was the door of the flock. Now he is the Shepherd of the sheep. Everyone knew what a shepherd was and how he lived and worked. But Jesus is not just any shepherd but, he is the Good Shepherd! The image of the Good Shepherd comes from the Old Testament. Saying that he is the Good Shepherd, Jesus presents himself as the one who comes to fulfil the promises of the prophets and the expectations of the people; for example the beautiful prophecy of Ezekiel (Ex 34: 11-16). There are two points on which Jesus insists: (a) in the defence of the life of the sheep: the Good Shepherd gives his life for the life of the sheep. (b) In the mutual knowledge between the shepherd and the sheep: The shepherd knows his sheep and the sheep know the shepherd. Jesus says that the people have a particular perception and know who the Good Shepherd is. This was what the Pharisees did not accept. They despised or rejected the sheep and said they were damned and ignorant (Jn 7: 49; 9, 34). They thought they had the right and apt view to discern the things of God. In reality they were blind. The discourse on the Good Shepherd teaches two rules to cure this type of blindness, which is quite frequent: (i) to pay special attention to the reaction of the sheep, because they know the voice of the shepherd. (ii) To be very attentive to the attitude of the one who calls himself the shepherd to see if his interest is the life of the sheep, or not, and if he is capable to give his life for the life of the sheep.

• John 10: 16-18: The goal which Jesus wants to attain: one only flock and one only Shepherd. Jesus opens the horizon and says that he has other sheep that do not belong to this flock. They have not as yet heard the voice of Jesus, but when they will hear it, they will become aware that he is the shepherd and will follow him. This is the Ecumenical universal dimension.

4) Personal questions

• Shepherd – Pastoral. Does the Pastoral ministry in my Parish imitate the mission of Jesus as shepherd? And in my pastoral ministry which is my attitude? Am I a shepherd as Jesus?

• Have you had the experience of having been deceived by a false shepherd? How did you succeed in overcoming this?

5) Concluding Prayer

As a deer yearns for running streams,

so I yearn for you, my God.

I thirst for God, the living God;

when shall I go to see the face of God? (Ps 42:1-2)

Christus resurrexit!

Resurrexit vere! AlleluIa!

In Pascha Domini

A.D. 2014

Fernando Prior Generalis

Domusque Generalis Communitas

*Image: Firenze, Convento di San Marco, Fra Angelico - Noli Me Tangere, 1440

The Elective Chapter of the Carmelite Monastery of Tafira Alta, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, was held 14-15 April 2014. The following were elected:

• Prioress:  Sr. M. Antonia de Jesús Barbancho Aranda, O.Carm.
• 1st Councilor:   Sr. M. de La Paz Del Toro Garrido, O.Carm.
• 2nd Councilor:  Sr. M. Guadalupe Franco Sánchez , O.Carm.
• Director of Novices:  Sr. M. de La Paz Del Toro Garrido, O.Carm.
• Treasurer:  Sr. M. de la Purificación Feria Pérez , O.Carm.
• Sacristan:   Sr. M Guadalupe Franco Sánchez., O.Carm.

During the Provincial Chapter of the Betica Province held on 14-16 April 2014 were elected:

• Prior Provincial:  Fr. Francisco Daza Valverde, O.Carm.
• First Councilor:  Fr. José Ramón Medina Madueño, O.Carm.
• Second Councilor:  Fr. Pablo Herrasti Barbancho, O.Carm.
• Third Councilor:  Fr. Alejandro Peñalta Mohedano, O.Carm.
• Fourth Councilor:  Fr. David Del Carpio Horcajo, O.Carm.

During the Provincial Chapter of the Catalonian Province held on 9-11 April 2014 were elected:

• Prior Provincial:  Fr. Manuel Bonilla Gutiérrez, O.Carm.
• First Councilor:  Fr. Javier D. Garmón i Calvo, O.Carm.
• Second Councilor:  Fr. Raúl V. Masana i Peiró, O.Carm.
• Third Councilor:  Fr. Luis J. Maza Subero, O.Carm.
• Fourth Councilor:  Fr. Jordi M. Gil i Costa, O.Carm.

The VII Assembly of the Federation "Mater et Decor Carmeli", Spain, was held 25-30 March 2014. The following were elected:

• President:  Sr. María Dolores Domínguez Pérez, O.Carm.
• 1st Councilor:   Sr. Liliana Campos Rosa, O.Carm.
• 2nd Councilor:  Sr. M. Pilar Martín Gómez, O.Carm.
• 3rd Councilor:   Sr. Reinhild Maschke, O.Carm.
• 4th Couniclor:   Sr. Lourdes Santos Alvarez, O.Carm.

Luke 23:50-56

The light of the Bridegroom, shines beyond the night

1. Prayer

Lord, on this day, there is only emptiness and solitude, absence and silence: a tomb, a lifeless body, and the dark of the night.

You are no longer visible, no word, no breathing. You are observing the Sabbath, in total rest. Where will I find You, now that I have lost You?

I will follow the women, I too will sit down together with them, in silence, to make ready the fragrances of love. From my heart, Lord, I will take the most delicate fragrances, the most precious, just as the woman did, when in her love she broke the alabaster jar and spread its perfume all around. 

And I will call the Spirit, with the words of the bride, I will say again, “Awake, north wind, come, wind of the south! Breathe over my garden” (Song 4:16)

2. Reading

From the Gospel according to Luke (23:50-56)

Now there was a virtuous and righteous man named Joseph who, though he was a member of the council, had not consented to their plan of action. He came from the Jewish town of Arimathea and was awaiting the kingdom of God. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. After he had taken the body down, he wrapped it in a linen cloth and laid him in a rock-hewn tomb in which no one had yet been buried. It was the day of preparation, and the sabbath was about to begin. The women who had come from Galilee with him followed behind, and when they had seen the tomb and the way in which his body was laid in it, they returned and prepared spices and perfumed oils. Then they rested on the sabbath according to the commandment.

3. Meditation

“Now”,  a very simple expression, full of life and truth, marking the existing of a cry that breaks through the indifference, shakes us from our paralysis, and breaks through the veil. It stands in opposition to and as an escape from the great distance taken by the disciples of Jesus throughout His passion. Peter followed Him from afar (Lk 22:54); all those who knew Him and the women who had followed Him, looked on from a distance (Lk 23:49), but Joseph of Arimathea, steps forward, introduces himself to Pilate and asks for Jesus’ body. He is there, not listed among the absent, he is near, not standing at a distance, and he will never leave.

 ^”It was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning”. This gospel is situated in that moment that divides the dark of the night from the light of the new day. The Greek verb used by Luke seems to describe clearly the movement of this holy Saturday, that little by little emerges from the darkness and rises and grows beyond the light. In this resurrection movement we too are caught up, as we approach this scripture in faith. But, we have to choose, to remain in death, in the preparation, that is only preparation and not fulfillment, or accept to enter the movement in order to rise in the light. As the Lord says, “Awake, you who sleep, rise from the dead and Christ will shine on you” (Ep 5:14) using the same verb.

“who had come with Him from Galilee, followed”,  These words are very beautiful, referring to the movement of the women, because they help us capture all the intensity of their participation in what was happening to Jesus. Indeed, Luke uses certain nuances, for example, using a form of the verb “to follow” that suggests greater intensity. The reference to “with Him”  has the same effect. They went together, decisively, urged on by their love. Their journey, which began in Galilee, continues, even through death, and absence. Perhaps they feel that they are not alone and they begin to proclaim that He is present. 

 “and they saw the tomb”, It is wonderful to note that in the eyes of these women there is a light that is more powerful than the night! They can see beyond, they observe, they take note and they look intently and with real interest: in one word, they contemplate. The eyes of the heart open out to the reality of what is happening. As the gaze of Jesus reaches them, they bear within them His image, the face of that love that has visited and illumined their whole existence. Not even the drama of death and physical separation could extinguish the Sun that never sets, even though it is night.    

“Then they returned”,   As well as that, they still have the internal strength to make decisions, to do things, to set out once more on the way. They turn their backs on death, on absence, and they go home, like the victorious warrior. They carry no trophies, but in their hearts they bear a certainty, the courage of an ardent love.

 “and prepared spices and ointments”. This was the task of the priests, as the Scriptures tell us (I Cr 9:30); it is a sacred duty, almost liturgical, almost like a prayer. The women of the Gospel, in fact, pray and succeed in transforming the night of death into a place of blessing, hope, loving and attentive care. No glance, no movement or gesture is without meaning for them. They prepare, or more precisely, as we see from the meaning of the corresponding Hebrew verb, they compose the perfumed aromas using all their wisdom to mix the necessary ingredients, in the right measure and proportion: a wholly feminine art, wholly maternal, born from within, from the womb, a privileged place of love. Holy Saturday, indeed, is like a womb that embraces life: an embrace that protects and nurtures the new creature that is about to be born.

“On the sabbath they rested”, What rest are we really talking about? What cessation, what suspension is coming about in the lives of these women in the depth of their hearts? The verb that Luke uses clearly suggests “silence”, a silence that turns into the main actor in this Sabbath, a Holy Saturday of waiting. There are no more words to be said, no declarations, no debate: all the world is silent, as the wind of the Holy Spirit blows (cf. Job 38:17) and the fragrance spreads. One song returns to the heart, in the night, (Ps 76:7): it is a song of love, repeated by the women, and with them, Joseph, and everyone, who like him, is not bound by the decisions and the actions of others (v.5) in this world. The words are the words that the Bride in the Song of Songs repeats, the last words, kept in reserve for the Beloved, when, right at the end of the book, she says: “Make haste, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag upon the mountains of spices”. (Song 8:14). This is the cry of the resurrection, the song of victory over death.

4. Questions for Reflection

Do I stand, perhaps, at a distance, not wanting to come any closer to Jesus, not wanting to look for Him, not wanting to wait for Him?

Would I be able to follow the women, and walk into the night, into death, into the emptiness?

Are my eyes open to see the place of the burial, the stone that hides the Lord Jesus? Can I experience contemplation, that is, can I see in some depth, beyond the surface? Do I believe in the presence of the Lord, stronger than the tomb and the rock?

Am I willing to go back, along with the women? That is, to go through a journey of conversion, change?

Is there space in me for silence, for the attention of the heart, for openness to God?

Do I feel arising within me the desire to proclaim the resurrection, the new life in Christ, all around me? Am I too, at least somewhat, like the women of the Gospel, who repeat the invitation of the Bridegroom, “Rise!” 

5. Closing Prayer

Lord, for You the night is as clear as the day!

Song of Trust and Security in God

Protect me, O God, for in You I take refuge.

I say to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord;

I have no good apart from You.’

The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;

You hold my lot.

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;

I have a goodly heritage.

I bless the Lord who gives me counsel;

in the night also my heart instructs me.

I keep the Lord always before me;

because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices;

my body also rests secure.

For You do not give me up to Sheol,

or let Your faithful one see the Pit.

You show me the path of life.

In Your presence there is fullness of joy;

in Your right hand are pleasures for evermore.

from Psalm 16