The Assembly of the Federation “Mater Unitatis” (7 monasteries), was held 27th April 2015 at Madrid, Spain. The following were elected:

• President:    Sr. Elena María Samper, O.Carm. (Zaragoza)
• 1st Councilor:   Sr. Noemi Temprano, O.Carm. (Madrid)
• 2nd Councilor:   Sr. M. Luisa Ruiz, O.Carm. (Madrid)
• 3rd Councilor:   Sr. Regina Mumbua, O.Carm. (Huesca)
• 4th Councilor:   Sr. Ana Wairimu, O.Carm. (Zaragoza)

Pope’s Prayer Intentions for May 2015

Universal: Care for the suffering - That, rejecting the culture of indifference, we may care for our neighbors who suffer, especially the sick and the poor.

Evangelization: Openness to mission - That Mary’s intercession may help Christians in secularized cultures be ready to proclaim Jesus.

Lectio Divina May -  Mayo - Maggio 2015

Thomas McGinnis, O.Carm.

We have noted above that Carmel calls to mind mental prayer. Yet vocal prayer also has its importance, being intimately connected with mental prayer. That form of vocal prayer which principally affects the Carmelite life is the Divine Office, and a study of prayer in Carmel would not be complete without its mention.

No matter what some may think or say, the Divine Office, performed in choir, pertains to the essence of the Carmelite life. This can be seen first of all from Carmel’s position among the ancient Orders as one which practices the mixed life. Above we have cited the words of Father Garrigou-Lagrange, showing the place which liturgical prayer holds in such a life. Truly, when well recited, such prayer is the culminating point of the religious life, since it leads to contemplation and union with God. To be such a culminating point, this prayer must not be recited, as it so often happens, in a hurried and mechanical fashion. Then it not only ceases to lead to union with God, but can cease as well even to be a prayer. This is especially true of choir recitation which, if slovenly executed, can be a positive obstacle to recollection. « One thinks », writes

Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange, « that by going fast he is gaining time, when in truth he is losing the best time of his life, that time which is due to the Lord, during which, if one is docile, he can find the true breath of the soul, the renewal of all his energies, and his rest». The religious in whose life such prayer does not enter deeply resembles, when he preaches, « the traveler who wants to talk about the beautiful view from the summit of Mt. Blanc, without ever having made the ascent».

Within the Order, too, we find ample testimony of the role which the Divine Office should play in the Carmelite life. « Our Order is not an Order of liturgical prayer », writes Fr. Titus Brandsma, « but liturgical prayer has a special confirmation in our own Rite and must always hold a high place in our living with God. The Rule calls us together to the choir to say the Office in community, liturgically... The influence of simple and devout Carmelite liturgical life has always been great. More than one Carmel ... has been founded because of it» (Carmelite Mysticism - Historical Sketches). The regularity and solemnity of the recitation of the Office, together with the resumption of the chanting of Matins at midnight were among the regulations of the Touraine Reform. « The Divine Office », said Father P. Thibault, head of that reform, «is the work of God, and His curse shall fall upon those who perform it negligently. One must assist at choir with exterior modesty, gravity, and silence, and with interior attention ».

The remark is often heard, when one insists upon a certain mode of recitation for the Divine Office, that the Carmelite Order is not the Benedictine Order. Now the conclusion which some would like to reach by using that proposition as a minor is too fallacious to require refutation. We need only recall that, for the recitation of the Divine Office, objective norms are to be sought, which, consequently, have an absolute value, the same for all Orders. True it is that, commonly throughout the Order, the chanting of the Office in Gregorian music has been replaced by the use of the monotone or recto tono, as it is called. The correct execution of this entails the use of a singing pitch, on which the words, well articulated and accentuated, are recited at a moderate pace, with a slight prolongation of the final cadence. When executed in this way, such a chant can express, as the Discalced Carmelite author of Le Carmel (Paris, 1922) has written, «something of the soul’s nakedness, of the ineffability of love, and of the repose of divine union ». Very easily, however, can a poor recitation give the lie to such beautiful thoughts, making them seem even comical. Let us cite the words of St. Benedict himself: « We believe that God is everywhere, and that His eyes behold, in all places, the good and the wicked. But we should believe this most of all, we should have no doubt about it, when we assist at the Divine Office. Therefore should we consider what our conduct must be in the sight of God and His angels, and thus conduct ourselves in choir, that our mind may be at one with our voice ». These words, taken from St. Benedict’s Rule, hardly seem to have a purely esoteric value.

Conclusion

We hope that we have given some idea of Carmel’s prayer life. Certain it is that prayer depends primarily on the grace of God. Still must we remember that God gives grace to the humble (Jas. 4: 6), so that humility, together with mortification, which is the spirit and practice of detachment from sensible things and from self, is the best preparation for a life of prayer. Furthermore, to lift our hearts often to God, to create a holy silence in our souls, will certainly advance our prayer. To have unbounded confidence in Christ and to allow ourselves to be led by the road which He Himself has chosen for us, will secure us of persevering. Gradually will we see that there is a close connection between prayer and the rest of the spiritual life, and that, as progress is made, the distinction between them tends to disappear; prayer overflows from the time set apart for it and begins to penetrate the rest of the day, so that, whether in word or in work, our souls are always lifted up to God in a union of love.

However late we see the full possibilities of the spiritual life by finding the right way of prayer, it is of capital importance that we resolve to advance to close union with God and do not let ourselves be overcome by the fear that it is now too late. Even though our past has been stained by sin and our time has been wasted through mistaken direction or an unsuitable way of praying, absolutely nothing in our past can be an insuperable obstacle to holiness, if we but turn our hearts to God Who is within us. He has infinite power and infinite mercy, by which He can utilize all our past and turn it to good account. No matter how late the hour or how great the obstacles, we must turn to God with unlimited confidence. In fact, since all the glory is to be His, there will always be some apparently insuperable difficulty or weakness on our part. Nevertheless, all things are possible to him that believeth: no matter what is lacking to us, be it time or merit, our sufficiency is from God.

All of us, as Carmelites, are called to fervent, continual prayer which will flower into that infused contemplation whose fruit is intimate union with God. All of us, even if we are but tertiaries in the world, for life in the world but modifies a perfect life; it does not render it impossible: grace, joined to generous effort, can always triumph over any obstacles, be they from temperament or from surroundings. All of us have been invited to that exalted communion with God, well expressed in a simple yet profound phrase spoken by Him to St. Catherine of Siena: « Think of Me and I will think of thee ».

Thomas McGinnis, O.Carm.

The General Relationship between the Life of Prayer and the Life of Action

In reality, at the present time the danger seems not to be that Carmelites will neglect methodical prayer, 'but rather that they will refuse to rise above it, will look upon it as a sufficient fulfillment of the precept of continual prayer contained in the Rule, particularly since so many Carmelites now live the mixed life. Some would go so far as to deny our vocation to infused contemplation, saying that it is incompatible with the active life. Such a conception results, first of all, from a misconception of the mixed life. Furthermore, it forgets that the position of prayer in Carmel has never been changed or modified, not even by the adoption of activity. Finally, it seems to entertain a very inferior notion of the nature of true sanctity.

Regarding the compatibility of contemplation with action, Father Lejeune writes in the Dictionnaire de Theologie Catholique: « It is opportune here to respond in a few words to that prejudice which looks upon contemplation as incompatible with the duties of the apos tolate, as something de luxe, almost as a hindrance for souls devoted to zealous activity.... This prejudice which we are attacking is far from new. In the seventeenth century Father Lallemant had already met it, and he refuted it in an article which he thus concluded: 'With contemplation, one can do more for oneself and for others in one month, than in ten years without contemplation. If one has not received this excellent gift, it is dangerous to give oneself over much to those activities which directly regard the neighbor. In such activities one must engage, as it were, after the manner of a trial, if obedience does not otherwise demand¹ » (Vol. Ill, art. Contemplation).

Clear and concise principles from which the true nature of the mixed life can be seen are set forth by Father Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange in his article, Unite et elevation de la vie apostolique, synthese de la con- temptation et de faction (La Vie Spirituelle, XIX, pgs. 387-410). He points out that the mixed religious life tends principally and primarily to contemplation and union with God, and secondarily to action, which in the religious is the effect of his contemplation, and which, to others, should be a means capable of disposing them to the contemplation of divine things and to union with God. « From this superior point of view, it can be seen that all the elements of the mixed religious life are ordered in a very harmonious ascending scale: 1) regular observances; 2) study; 3) liturgical prayer, which, when well made, leads to contemplation, to union with God, from which, 4) must be derived external and apostolic activity. This life thus rises gradually to God, to arrive at divine intimacy, and then descends to souls to sanctify and save them, by making them know and love the mystery of Christ, Who will Himself lead them to the Father ».

The Relationship between Prayer and Action in Carmel

No one will deny that, at first sight, the Carmelite ideal of prayer is somewhat frightening. How can we be expected to live in continual prayer in the midst of the absorbing occupations which, outside of the time fixed for prayer, are the lot of most religious men and women? Viewed in this light, St. Teresa and St. John of the Cross may seem more admirable than imitable. We can think, however, of someone more accessible, of Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection (died 1691) for example, who is still too little known, although he is close to us by virtue of his simplicity. He taught that continual prayer is the fruit of a continual attention, full of faith and love, to the presence of God. He insisted also that it is a mistake to consider that the time of prayer must differ from any other time, for we are as strictly obliged to be united to God through action when it is time for action as by prayer when it is time for prayer. Not that one’s attention should be turned away from the action in which he is engaged in order to think of God; this would be the source only of complication and division. Rather the actions themselves should be turned into prayers which proclaim our love for God. In this way will the Lord be found in the most simple work, even « among the pots and pans », as St. Teresa put it. « For me », writes Brother Lawrence, « the time of action is no different from that of prayer. I possess God as peacefully amid the bustle of my kitchen, where several persons are often asking me for many different things at the same time, as I do before the Blessed Sacrament» (cf. L’Experience de la Presence de Dieu, pgs. 77, 118).

That continual prayer can be practiced despite much activity, and that it can develop to those higher stages characteristic of Carmel, St. Teresa tells us in her Book of the Foundations. « I assure you that lack of solitude need not prevent you from preparing to attain this genuine union of which I have spoken and which consists in making our will one with the will of God ». But she lays down one condition: « Remember, I am assuming all the time that we are acting in this way out of obedience or charity: if one of these motives is not involved, I do not hesitate to say that solitude is best» (chap. 5).

Venerable John of St. Samson, the blind lay brother who was to the Touraine Reform in the seventeenth century what John of the Cross was to the Teresian Reform, thus wrote of the union with God expected of all Carmelites: « The religious must be in closer union with God than his body with his soul. The soul who desires God must live always in this pure, faithful, and continual attention to His presence, as if God and she were alone in the world » (Oeuvres, pg. 36).

This is not the place to discuss the various methods for the practice of God’s presence. We can say in passing, however, that Fr. Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, O.C.D., has expressed the doctrine of Carmel in his short work, Piccolo Catechismo della Vita di Orazione. « The best form of this exercise is that which fits with a person’s character and point of spiritual advancement; it is not to be determined a priori, but from experience. What is more, in this holy exercise we must not limit ourselves exclusively to one determined method, but we can leave room for variety according to circumstances. Nevertheless, we should habitually prefer one form to all the others, that form which has proved most useful for us » (chap. 6, 11).

Thomas McGinnis, O.Carm.

We have shown in a previous article that the principal end of the Carmelite Order is found in true and infused contemplation, which is God’s crowning gift for a life of faithful and generous asceticism  It follows, therefore, that the Carmelite school of spirituality does not see in prayer merely a means to secure progress in virtue. Rather is prayer the center of the entire Carmelite spiritual life, the exercise of love par excellence, as can be seen from the seventh chapter of the Carmelite Rule: « Each one is to remain in his cell or near it, meditating day and night on the law of the Lord and watching in prayer, unless occupied in some other lawful work ». In reference to this chapter of the Rule, the present Constitutions of the First Order tell us this: « Let it be deeply impressed upon our minds that the life of the religious is prayer, and that if prayer be wanting spiritual death will result, whereas if prayer abound life also will abound. And this is so true of our Order that we profess the principal and primary end of the Order to consist in prayer and contemplation » (art. 148).

When one thinks of Carmel, one thinks principally of mental prayer. Such a thought tends to frighten some of us, since we forget that St. Teresa has said that mental prayer, in her opinion, is nothing else but being on terms of friendship with God, frequently conversing in secret with Him Who, we know, loves us (cf. Life of St. Teresa by Herself, chap. 8). We have seen above that prayer is an elevation of the soul to God, by which we will in time what God from all eternity wills that we should ask of Him, namely, the different means of salvation, especially progress in charity. But we feel the need of a more intimate prayer in which our soul, in deeper recollection, may come into contact with the Blessed Trinity dwelling in us. This we desire that we may receive more abundantly from the interior Master that light of life which alone can make us penetrate and taste the mysteries of salvation, and reform our character by supernaturalizing it, by making it conformable to Him Who invites us to seek peace of soul in humility and sweetness. This intimate prayer is mental prayer, the prayer that prepares for infused contemplation. It is that spontaneous, intimate prayer with which all truly simple Christian souls are acquainted. It was the prayer of all the saints, long before the modern treatises on meditation.

This conception of the essential characteristics of all mental prayer should be kept constantly in mind, particularly by those who search in vain for a Carmelite method of mental prayer corresponding, for example to the method of St. Sulpice. The lack of fixed rules for mental prayer is simply the result of the Order’s antiquity. As Fr. A. Poulain, S. J., has written in his classical work, Des Graces d’Oraison: « Before the fifteenth century, or even before the sixteenth, the usage of methodical mental prayer — prayer, that is to say, where the subject, method, and duration are determined — is not traceable in the Church. It seems that the prayer of the old Orders consisted in penetrating the mind with ideas inspired by the Divine Office and Holy Scripture; then in free moments it reverted peacefully to these thoughts without any preconceived plan. The rules of Orders before the sixteenth century contain no definite instructions regarding prayer, apart from the Divine Office. Take the primitive rule of the Carmelites, for instance. Composed by St. Albert, Patriarch of Jerusalem, it was confirmed and modified by Pope Innocent IV in 1248. It was reestablished by St. Teresa for the reformed Carmelites, but she had to make the addition of two hours mental prayer » (chap. 2, art. 66).

From this, however, we must not conclude that the newcomer to Carmel should be left entirely to himself, without guidance, counsel, and advice, in the face particularly of the established periods of prayer which the more modern Constitutions demand. Carmel by no means rejects formal meditation, methodical mental prayer. In fact, as early as the fifteenth century we find a Carmelite strong in its support and propagation: Blessed John Soreth. He taught his fellow Carmelites that meditation has a threefold object: 1) The Book of Nature, worthy of our admiration as revealing so much of the mystery and law of God, an object which, after the Rule, the Carmelite should make one of the principal themes for his prayerful consideration; 2) The Book of Scripture, which must be meditated upon constantly, since it has been written expressly to manifest God’s law to us; 3) The Book of Life, which God

Himself writes for each one of us, to teach us how we in particular must walk in His sight and be perfect (cf. Expositio Paraenetica Regulae Carmelitarum, Textus VIII, chap. I). That Carmel today preserves this same attitude toward methodical prayer, namely, that it should be taught to beginners, we find clearly enunciated by Fr. John Haffert in a paper read in Rome at a meeting of all Carmelite Novice Masters in October, 1932. « Since the Carmelite must be totally dedicated to prayer », he writes, « it is a most serious duty of the Novice Master to instruct his subjects in the right manner of praying. He should explain several methods of prayer, from which each novice can select one according to his own character; for the same method which proves a help to one, can prove a detriment to another » (cf. Vita Carmelitana, pgs. 141-145). This is simply an elaboration of the teaching already contained in the present Constitutions of the First Order.

Thomas McGinnis, O.Carm.

saint John Damascene has defined prayer as the elevation of the mind to God and the petition of fitting things from Him. Still, we read in St. Matthew’s Gospel that our Father in heaven knows without our telling Him, all those things which we need (Matt. 6: 32). And we know too that God’s will is immutable, not to be affected by our petitions: But the triumpher in Israel will not spare, and will not be moved to repentance; for he is not a man that he should repent (I Kings 15: 29). It is impossible that we should enlighten God by our petitions, that we should make Him alter His designs, since He has said to us: I am the Lord, and I change not (Mai. 3: 6). Yet we find in the words of the Savior not only the precept of prayer, that we must pray always and not lose heart (cf. Luke 18: 1), but also an assurance of prayer’s infallible efficacy: Ask and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it shall be opened (Matt. 7: 7).

The Necessity and Efficacy of Prayer

The reconciliation between the immutability and omniscience of God on the one hand, and the precept of. prayer on the other, is to be found in the truth of God’s providence, from the consideration of which we can see clearly the utility of prayer, as well as its necessity and efficacy. Indeed, God’s providence does not decide simply which effects will be produced in time; it decides also from which causes these effects will be produced, in what order they will be produced. Among these causes are often found human acts; thus, for example, God has willed that there should be a harvest, but not without the laborious sowing of seed. Now it is evident that man in such cases does not act in order to change the divine disposition, but in order to effect results according to the plan decreed by God. The same is true of prayer; we do not pray in order to change the divine disposition, but in order to obtain that which God has decreed to give only in answer to worthy prayer. As St. Gregory the Great put it: « By prayer, man merits to receive what God has from all eternity decreed to give him ». A description of prayer considered in its function of secondary or subordinate cause is found in the Spiritual Canticle of St. John of the Cross: « ...although God knows and understands all things, and sees and observes even the least of the thoughts of the soul, yet He is said to see our necessities or to hear them, when He relieves them or fulfils them; for not all necessities or all petitions reach such a point that God hears them in order to fulfill them, until in His eyes the number of them is sufficient and there has arrived the proper time and season to grant them or relieve them » (Stanza II, 4).

Hence we see that, far from being useless, prayer is necessary: necessary to obtain God’s help, to lead an interior life, just as seed is necessary for the harvest. Moreover, prayer is infallibly efficacious because God, Who cannot contradict Himself, has decreed that it should be. True, humble, trusting prayer, by which we ask for ourselves what is necessary for salvation, is never lost. It is heard at least in this sense, that it obtains for us the grace to continue praying.

Stephen Lowell, O.Carm.

Even after the departure from the hermitages of Mount Carmel, there are found in our Order traces of the eremitic life. Indeed, mention is made of Carmelite recluses in several authoritative works. But perhaps the best known of these is Marie Petyt, who was probably the greatest of the Dutch mystics of the seventeenth century.

Born in the Southern-Netherlands in 1623, Marie Petyt was a girl of very pliant personality. She experienced periods of sincere religious ardor, and yet at other times she was entranced with the attractions of the world: beautiful clothes, dances, romantic novels, etc. But Providence made use even of her worldliness. For the turning point in her life took place during a pilgrimage in 1639 which Marie had undertaken with the questionable motive " that Our Lady might make her nice and graceful ”, Grace touched her and she understood the vanity of the world, and it was then she conceived the desire of becoming a religious.

Two years later she was admitted to the monastery of the Regular Canonesses of Saint Augustine, at Ghent. But her goal had not yet been attained. Having been a novice for only five months, Marie was dismissed because of an eye ailment which prevented her from reading. Instead of returning to her home, however, she took up residence in Ghent at the house of the Beguines, a group of pious laywomen living in community but without vows. Desiring still more solitude and silence than this house could afford, Marie Petyt persuaded a Carmelite father to act as her spiritual director. With a companion, she took the vows of the Third Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, receiving the name of Marie of Saint Therese.

Within a few years their Carmelite confessor was transferred to another city; and in 1646 they chose as their spiritual director another Carmelite, Father Michael of Saint Augustine, author of several mystical works and one of the guiding lights of the Reform of Touraine in the Belgian Province of the Order. It was under his stable and purposeful direction that Marie Petyt of Saint Therese reached the highest peaks of the mystical life. Father Michael seems to have understood immediately the possibilities as well as the dangers for this generous, affective soul; and he instructed her accordingly.

Finally, in 1657, Marie moved to a small house attached to the Carmelite church in Malines, Belgium. Here, according to a manner of life proposed by Michalel of Saint Augustine and approved by the General of the Order, Marie lived as a recluse, observing in its entirety the primitive Rule of Carmel.

Under obedience to Father Michael, Marie began writing, in 1668, her autobiography, which we may consider as a kind of mystical diary. Herein can be followed the development of her spiritual life. These notes are of exceeding interest and even of importance to the knowledge of the mystical life; for they are reflections of the mystic herself, each written only a short time after the mystical experience to which it refers.

All the writings of Marie of Saint Therese point to the practical consequence that the soul should be free not only from all sensible images and activities, which are an impediment to the union of the spirit with God, but even from the love and thoughts of any creature if not in direct relation to God. Only in this way will that condition be created under which God can work in the soul. „

It was in 1668 especially that she wrote her reflections concerning mystical union with Our Lady. These notes are probably the best of all that has been written on this point; and they were adapted by Michael of Saint Augustine in his famous treatise on the Marian life. For Marie of Saint Therese the Marian life begins with the constant consideration of the virtues of Our Lady. Contemplating the virtues of Mary, she becomes conscious of the source of those virtues, namely the union of Our Lady with God Himself. And from the moment of that realization Our Lady is for her the great contemplative, the mistress of the whole life of prayer, and the means by which she is prepared for the mystical marriage.

Marie, Petyt of Saint Therese died in 1677 on the feast of All Saints, and was buried near the altar of Our Lady in the Carmelite church at Malines,

The following is a translation of the first five of Marie Petyt’s introductory notes on the Marian life. We hope in succeeding issues to publish the remainder of her Marian reflections.

The Blessed Virgin appears to Marie, instructs her concerning the path of greater purity, and consoles her.

Now I remember what I forgot to mention when speaking of that former state of dereliction, in the course of which that took place. One night, during my sleep, our kind Mother, came near us. She carried the Infant Jesus in her left arm. The Infant and His Mother looked at me lovingly and smiled. They spoke to me. words of consolation and affection; but I do not clearly recall what they-said to me.- But I do know that my loving Mother gave me advice about a more perfect purity, a more complete, stripping of self, a death to all creatures. Her other words were spoken to console and strengthen me.

I said to myself: It is impossible that this is an illusion; I did not dream it. Hence I must of necessity remember it, in order to be faithful to obedience ”,. Afterwards, I no longer wanted to dwell upon it, but rather to consider it all as a dream. Still the memory of it remained much more vividly than in the case of an ordinary dream. It happened to me many times to dream of such good things, yet never was I impelled to record them as I am now doing.

The Blessed Virgin appears to her during the Office.

The morning of the Vigil of Pentecost, during the recitation of the Office, I thought I saw in spirit our loving Mother. She was present among us, and she seemed to listen to our recitation of the Office with a particular joy, with contentment and with pleasure. It appeared so to me because her glance, as she looked at us, was very loving and she was smiling, especially when we arrived at antiphons, verses and orations which are properly destined to spread her praises and perfections.

This presence caused a sentiment of reverence towards her Majesty, and, at the same time, a very tender and respectful love. To see her so, my heart leapt with complete joy and happiness. And I said:

" Sweet Mother, since your Majesty seems to delight in this praise which we offer to you, why do you not raise up souls in ever greater number to serve you in this same manner and to speak your praises in complete purity of heart? ” And it seemed to me that she expressed a certain hope that some such souls should later appear. Yet, I was not entirely sure of this.

She is shown how to conform herself to the example of Jesus and Mary in those things where nature finds a certain enjoyment.

Sometimes the soul experiences that its spirit begins to establish itself in a certain elevation and to place itself in God, abstracted from thing5 created. But sometimes, too, the faithful soul is shown how it must comport itself in situations which, at the same time, please and rejoice nature 01* which are agreeable to the sensibility; — especially when necessity or fitness or discretion force it to use those things. It is then necessary to use prudence and to take great care to elevate these thing to the spirit. Restraining herself immediately and detaching herself from every affection, the soul will then use such things in God.

This advice applies to everything which, in some way, can please the senses — taste, sight, hearing, smell. Ah, if the soul who is searching for God in all purity, the soul who wants God, could understand how our loving Mother and her Child Jesus comported themselves in these circumstances! In opportune times they made use of bodily nourishment. They were at the nuptials in Cana of Galilee, without their spirits suffering the least inconvenience. The loving Mother showed to her Son a tender and maternal affection. She caressed Him, she kissed Him, she held Him in her arms. And the baby Jesus acted the same, conforming Himself to the nature of every little child, sucking the milk of His mother, letting Himself be lulled asleep in her arms and coaxed. He was in every way like a little innocent child, although He was the Wisdom of the Father. Ah! who will give us ever to use creatures after their example, only for the spirit and for God!

The Blessed Virgin invites her to communicate, saying that Jesus desires it.

Our loving Mother appeared to me once; and as she looked at me affectionately and smiled, I asked her what I should do to please her: if I should continue to write in conformity to obedience; or rather devote myself to the church according to my own desire? She deigned to answer: “ Go; make haste to receive my Son I fell at her feet, my face pressed to the ground, begging her to give me her motherly blessing. Then, filled with respect and reverence and love, I listened to her as she said: “ My Son wants to come to you and to take His repose in your heart ”,

During my preparation for Holy Communion, this sweet Mother remained present to my spirit. She carried her loving Child in her left arm. But, after some time, she set the Child down upon His knees, His face turned toward me. And she smiled at me, stretching out her arms toward me in a gesture of affection.

When I had received Communion, I no longer sensed within me the presence of my loving Mother. Only the sweet Child Jesus was in the secret of my heart, where I gave Him a welcome full of affection, of caresses and of loving protestations.

How she honored and prayed to the Blessed Virgin, in God.

As for that which is of love and other operations, divine knowledge, lights upon the revealed truths, movements of the supernatural order, all that seemed to me gathered and, as it were, blended in the unity of the One Divine •—- although all that sometimes clouded my soul with superabundance. But this repletion did not make my soul depart from the unity, for in all that, it saw, knew and tasted the only Divine Unity, in a mysterious and excellent manner. The forces and the light of God alone aided my soul and elevated it to that.

It is in the same way, in the Divine One as in a mirror, that I see, honor and love our loving Mother, and that I pray to her. I see her there united with this divine mirror, with this inexpressible Being. And so, whenever I kneel before one of her statues and pray to her for something to which I feel myself interiorly drawn — the good of souls, the needs of the country, or something else — her image becomes present in this interior mirror, where she is contained with all other creatures. At other times I seem to penetrate, in some manner, the exterior image, without noticing there anything of her body, and I see her all contained in the secret of the spirit.

Stephen Lowell, O.Carm.

Quinn R. Conners

The challenge for RELIGIOUS in this early part of the 21st century is to be men and women of integrity people who live their sexuality as consecrated celibates.  This is the call of the Gospel.

http://ocarm.org/en/sites/default/files/intergrate.pptx

What is a Carmelite Vocation?

Prayer is at the very heart of the Carmelite vocation. Through praying alone and together as a community, Carmelites seek to deepen their understanding of God, and to develop their relationship with Christ.

Our community life is a witness to the importance of solidarity. By living, working and praying together, Carmelites find the support they need in their own faith journey, but also provide a practical witness to the teaching of St. Paul, that ‘we are all one body, made up of many parts, united in Christ.’

It is often believed that all Carmelite friars are priests, but this is not always the case. Throughout the world, many Carmelites do not become priests but commit themselves to other forms of service, including teaching, chaplaincy, social work or academic studies.

Although Carmelite ministries vary, what unites us as brothers is our commitment to a life of community, prayer and service. These three aspects make up the essence of the Carmelite vocation.

How do I know if I am being called by God to be a Carmelite?What should I do if I think I am being called?

God works in lots of different ways. The call by God to become a Carmelite can come to some people as a feeling or a thought that begins small and slowly grows. For others it can begin as a stronger feeling. Everyone’s story is unique.

Sometimes people know Carmelites and feel that they want to become part of the Community. Sometimes people feel they want to serve others and maybe being a Carmelite is the way to do it. Sometimes people learn about saints of the Carmelite Order and are inspired by them. And sometimes it is just a feeling that this is what God wants me to do.

If you feel or think that God might be calling you to be a Carmelite listen to that feeling. Don’t be afraid of it. If God is calling you to be a Carmelite, then being a Carmelite is the way that you will be happiest in life and the way you will be most fully alive.

If you feel that God might be calling you to be a Carmelite there are 3 things you might do: think about it; talk about it; pray about it.

Think about it:

Spend time thinking about the Carmelites and about the idea of you being a Carmelite. Try to find out more about us: about how we live, what work we do, where we have Communities etc. Look up our websites to get information. Read about the Carmelite Order and Carmelite Saints. If you know any Carmelites talk to them and ask them questions or contact us through social media.

Talk about it:

Pick one or two people whose opinion you trust and who might be worth talking to and ask if you can talk to them. Then tell them what you are feeling, what you are thinking. You don’t have to have any answers and neither do they. But just talk about it. If you are in college or school maybe talk to a Chaplain, or maybe someone in your parish or a church that you know.

Pray about it:

St. Teresa of Avila states that “prayer is nothing more than a friendly conversation with the God by whom we know we are loved.” Talk to God. Tell Him what you feel. Ask God to help you to understand what He wants you to do. Ask God to make it clearer to you if He is calling you to be a Carmelite. Ask God to help you respond to Him.

Making a decision...

When you think about it, talk about it, and pray about it, if the feeling gets stronger then maybe you are being called to be a Carmelite. But when you think about it, talk about it, and pray about it, and if the feeling gets weaker then maybe you are not being called to be a Carmelite. Maybe God has another plan, another dream for you.

 

Fr. Dave Twohig is the Vocation Director of the Irish Province If you live in Ireland and would like to speak with Fr. Dave, he can be contacted at the following:

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Tel: (01) 472 0949

or visit http://www.vocationcarmelites.ie/

 

In addition to the commemorative events for the 5th Centenary of the birth of St.Teresa of Jesus, that we have already reported, (citoc 91/2013, 88/2014), we add that the travelling twenty panel display, devised by the Discalced Carmelites of the province of San Giuseppe (Central Italia), was on display in our church in Pisa from the 14th to the 21st of January. The display, bearing the title, Para vos naci (I was born for you) contains some very original representations of Teresian themes and symbols, and their biblical roots. Each panel draws the viewer into reflection and prayer.

The Carmelite Third Order in the three Italian provinces organised an event with the theme, “La gioia di sentirci fratelli di Santa Teresa (The joy of knowing that we are sisters and brothers of St. Teresa). The event took place in Sassone (Rome, Italy) last 11th and 12th of April, heard a number of talks given by Fr. Giovanni Grosso, O.Carm.

In the province of Germany a series of spiritual exercises centred on the teaching of St. Teresa will be given in our house in Springiersbach. As well as that, in Mainz and in Bamberg there will be a number of talks and liturgical celebrations. In September, a four-day gathering is planned for the Carmelite family, which will include a study of the Interior Castle.

Lastly, in the Carmelite house in Seville (Spain) a series of monthly talks has been organised, to run from March to September of this year, dealing with different aspects of the life and teaching of Teresa. As well as that, the well-known statue of Teresa by the artist Alonso Cano from the 17th century, which is venerated in that church will be lent for a period to an exhibition in the National Library in Madrid.