O.Carm
Celebrating At Home - 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Be the living Gospel
(Matthew 10:26-33)
The second part of Jesus’ instruction to the disciples as they set out for their mission is the text of the Gospel today.
The opening sentence sets the tone for the disciples’ mission: Do not be afraid - a phrase which is repeated twice more in this Gospel passage.
The first reading from the Old Testament book of the prophet Jeremiah reflects Jeremiah’s experience of rejection - no one wants to hear the message God has called him to give. In fact, they want to kill him. Jeremiah sounds desperate and afraid. But then the reading turns into a prayer of confidence and trust in God’s companionship and spiritual protection - God and Jeremiah will win out.
Preaching in the name of God is a risky and frightening business, as Jesus knows. So he urges the disciples not to be afraid of small beginnings, of those who can kill only the body, or that God would abandon them. He reminds them that God is always mindful of them and accompanies them on their mission. He urges them to be brave and bold in proclaiming the truth about God and in confessing their belief in Jesus before others.
Matthew’s audience, like Jesus, Jeremiah and the disciples, knew all about persecution and rejection. Their question is also ours: if we allow fear to silence us how will the Good News of Jesus Christ ever be heard in the world? If we don’t speak, who will? If we don’t act, who will?
It is not really a matter of talking at people and quoting at length from the Bible. As St Francis of Assisi said, ‘Preach the Gospel at all times. When necessary use words’.
Solemnity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Message from Desiderio García Martínez, O. Carm., Prior General
‘All Tears Reach Heaven’
Dear Carmelite family: Happy Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel!
Once again, the Solemnity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is fast approaching. This year we recall that, on September 24, 1726, Benedict XIII extended the celebration of the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel to the whole of Christendom. We give thanks to God for all the blessings our Order has received during these eight centuries of history, especially for having a Mother to whom we can turn and who cares for us. St Thérèse of the Child Jesus, with some surprise, acknowledged this: “For I have, Blessed Virgin, two mothers to whom I can turn, one on earth and the other in Heaven, whereas you have no Mother in Heaven to love, for you are the Mother yourself.”
1. Mary fills us with gratitude. In Bethlehem, Mary wrapped her Son in swaddling clothes (cf. Lk 2:12). That gesture reminds us that Jesus, as well as being true God and true man, was cared for and loved from the moment of his birth. In Sacred Scripture, “being wrapped in swaddling clothes” is a sign of protection and maternal love: “When I was born […] the first thing I did, like everyone else, was to cry. I was brought up with tender care and swaddling clothes …” (Wis 7:3–4); on the contrary, nakedness, “not being wrapped in swaddling clothes,” indicates vulnerability and helplessness: “No one took an interest in her […] No one bathed her, nor rubbed her with salt, nor wrapped her in swaddling clothes […] they abandoned her…” (cf. Ezek 16:4–5). How difficult it is to care for the lives of others without first, with gratitude, recognising one’s own as a miracle and an undeserved gift! Kierkegaard noted that gratitude is, apart from being the noblest feeling that can spring from the human heart, the “deepest spiritual response to the gift of one’s own existence.” Gratitude is, in fact, a good gauge for measuring our human and spiritual quality. Grateful people make everything easy and a blessing; instead of complaining about what they lack, they value what they have; they shun facile criticism and gossip... Mary, our Mother, teaches us to make our lives a Magnificat, a song of thanksgiving.
2. Mary clothes us in light. The Carmelite Order was founded in the Holy Land at the end of the 12th century. Amidst great danger, we were forced to migrate to Europe. To whom do we turn in the midst of adversity and tribulation? To our Mother. She defended us. We celebrate with joy the 775th anniversary–according to Carmelite tradition–of the presentation of the Holy Scapular to Saint Simon Stock. This is not an amulet that guarantees our salvation, but a sacramental that reminds us of our responsibility to wear the garment of baptism. A very special garment, made of linen, which, according to Scripture, represents the “good works” of the saints (cf. Rev 19:8). Linen is extracted from a plant, which must be beaten, again and again, until it is softened and the whiteness of its fibres is extracted. The Holy Scapular is a suit of armor that defends us from the blows (like the linen) that we receive in the battles of this life. Mary defends us and shows us how to persevere in always doing good. As a Hebrew epitaph once prayed: “A good deed done on earth causes a thread of light to be born in heaven. Many good deeds done on earth cause many threads of light to be born in heaven. For what purpose? To weave and knit together a garment. A garment of light that gives glory to the Master of all works.” Mary earnestly teaches us to clothe ourselves in this armor (cf. Rule 19), woven from many “threads of light”: mercy, gentleness, peace, justice, forgiveness, joy, hope, love, etc.
3. Mary clothes us in humanity. On the May 25, Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, was published, addressing the protection of human dignity in the age of artificial intelligence. He has asked the whole Church to read and reflect upon it. In the face of the growing link between technology, power and violence, a new civilisation of love is proposed to us as an alternative. Pope Leo XIV invites us to invoke Mary, Mother of Life, who looks upon us with mercy. We could cite many testimonies that would compel us to bow down before the suffering of the innocent: those who struggle to find work and make ends meet; those who emigrate from their countries without access to education and healthcare; war, famine, broken love. One example is sufficient. It is that of a prominent figure in French culture, Emmanuel Mounier, the believing philosopher, who felt the weight of his young daughter’s irreversible illness, as she lived in a vegetative state:
As I approached this silent cradle, I felt as though I were approaching an altar, a sacred place where God spoke through a sign. A piercing and profound sadness; profound, yet light and transfigured. And, around it, a sense of adoration… I have no other word for it. Never have I known so intensely what prayer is as when I spoke to that forehead which gave no reply, when my eyes ventured towards that lost gaze that looked towards the infinite behind me. Mystery… and it can only be a mystery of goodness. One must dare to say: a grace too lofty, a living host among us, silent as the Host, resplendent as She… – Mounier says to his wife –: For how many months did we wish she would die if she was going to remain like this! But… is this not mere bourgeois sentimentality? What does “being unhappy” mean to her? Who can assure us that she is? Who knows if we are not being asked to keep and adore this host among us…? My little Françoise, to me you are the very image of faith [Letter to Paulette Mounier, 1964, 671].
His testimony is deeply moving. Let us implore the Mother and Beauty of Carmel to teach us to see God’s invisible work and to view the world from below, from the perspective of the most vulnerable. The Joys of Our Lady of Mount Carmel are very old and popular poems, composed mainly to honour the Virgin Mary. They bring together ancient stories from the Carmelite tradition: “For you are our comfort, the most powerful means. Be our loving refuge, Mother of God of Mount Carmel.” The biblical scholar Miguel Aiguani, O. Carm. (1320–1400), affirmed that Mary is an “impregnable castle,” a secure stronghold in which to take refuge when we feel that life is threatened by death. St John Chrysostom insisted that “there is no motherhood without tears.” Tears nourish the soul. God gathers those tears, as the psalmist says, in His “skin flask.” Not a single tear is lost; they all go straight to the heart of God (cf. Ps 55). Tears intercede so that the Church’s mission may be more fruitful. Weeping for the pain of our neighbor or for the rejection we have suffered has a sanctifying and restorative power.
May Our Lady, whom we proclaim Mater et Decor Carmeli, protect us and, through her heavenly intercession, grant us the strength, hope and joy we need to reflect God’s goodness as we serve humanity.
Fraternally in Carmel,
St. Elisha, prophet
June 14 | Memorial
Elisha, the Disciple Par Excellence
Elisha is not Elijah's only disciple. According to a Jewish tradition found in the Vitae prophetarum, in Jerome's introduction to his Commentary on the Book of Jonah, and in some other patristic writings, Jonah was the son of the widow of Zarephath, brought back to life by the prophet and became Elijah's disciple: “Jonah, after his death, was resurrected by the prophet Elijah: he followed him, suffered with him, and, because of his obedience to him, merited the favor of the gift of prophecy” (Arabic Jacobite Synaxarion of September 22).
G. Baconthorp knew this tradition, which he derived from Jerome. G. de Cheminot, following F. Ribot, makes a disciple of the man whom Elijah sent back when he was fleeing from Jezebel, the first one. It is this man whom Elijah sends to the top of Mount Carmel to watch for the coming of the rain.
According to the Vitae prophetarum, Obadiah, Ahab's steward who hid the hundred prophets, fifty by fifty, sent by Ahaziah, became a disciple of Elijah. Theodore Bar-Koni, an eighth-century Nestorian author, specifies that he was endowed with the gift of prophecy after following Elijah. Medieval Carmelites list Obadiah among the great disciples of Elijah. Philippe Ribot is the only 14th-century Carmelite to also make the prophet Micah a disciple of Elijah.
In this group of disciples, Elisha occupies the first place (Cheminot, Ribot).
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Photo © Nick ThompsonProphet Elisha from a series produced c1690 for the Chapel of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Couvent de Grande Carme, Toulouse by Marc Arcis. Musée des Augustins, Toulouse.
Bl. Hilary Januszewski, Priest and Martyr
June 12 | Optional Memorial
Hilary Januszewski was born on 11 June 1907 in Krajenki (Poland) and was given the name of Pawel. He received a Christian education from his parents, Martin and Marianne. In 1927 entered the Order of Carmel. He completed his noviciate in Leopoli and on 30 December 1928 made his simple profession. At the end of his philosophical studies in Cracow he was sent to Collegio Internazionale Sant'Alberto, Rome. He was ordained priest on 15 July 1934. He obtained his lectorate in theology and the prize for the best students of the Roman Academy of St. Thomas and in 1935 returned to Poland to the monastery in Cracow.
On 18 September 1940 the gestapo deported four friars from the Carmel in Cracow. In December, when other friars were arrested, Fr. Hilary decided to present himself in exchange for an older and sick friar. From that day his Calvary began. He was sent to the prison of Montelupi (Cracow), then to the concentration camp of Sachsenchausen and in April 1941 to the concentration camp of Dachau. There he was a model of prayer life, encouraging others and giving hope for a better tomorrow. Together with the other Carmelites, among whom was Saint Titus Brandsma, they often joined in prayer.
Meanwhile in barrack 25 of the concentration camp, typhus was spreading. To help the sick, 32 priests presented themselves to the authorities. A couple of days later, Fr. Hilary Januszewski spontaneously joined the group. His apostolate lasted 21 days because, infected by typhus, he died on 25 March 1945, a few days before the liberation of the concentration camp.
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A multi-lingual book on Bl. Hilary Januszewski is available from Edizioni Carmelitane. The book, giving the reader insight into this Carmelite's life and ultimate gift of his own life for other prisoners, is written in Polish, English, Italian and Spanish and is available at a special price in our webstore with a 30% discount (shipping expenses not included).
Enter the code Januszewski2026 at checkout to use the promo.
Prior General's Schedule for June 2026
Fr. Desiderio García Martínez, O. Carm., the prior general, has the following schedule planned for the month of June 2026:
June 1–13, 2026: General Council Plenary Session.
June 15–19, 2026: PCM Province Chapter (USA).
June 20–21, 2026: Meeting of the Prior General with students from the PCM Province.
June 22, 2026: Fraternal visit to the Carmelite Monastery, Sisters of Hudson (USA).
June 23–25, 2026: Fraternal visit to Hermitage Lake Elmo (USA).
June 27–29, 2026: Carmelite Family Meeting, Iberian Region (Spain– Portugal).
Celebrating At Home - 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Growing Disciples
(Matthew 9:36-10:8)
This week’s Gospel contains the first part of Jesus’ instructions to the disciples as they set out on their mission.
At the beginning of the reading we hear that Jesus is moved with compassion for the crowds. He loves them and feels for them and responds to their need since ‘they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd’. It is Jesus’ compassion for the people that compels him to act.
Then he urges the whole group of disciples to pray to ‘the Lord of the harvest’ for more labourers. Then, from the broader group of disciples, Jesus chooses twelve who Matthew names as ‘apostles’ or emissaries.
To these twelve Jesus entrusts the mission of proclaiming that the kingdom of God is close at hand. This is not an ‘end of the world’ prediction. We could better translate it as: the kingdom of God is very close to you. To a people who had constantly been told that God despised them, that they were sinners and very far from the kingdom of God, this was good news indeed.
Jesus gives the disciples the authority to accompany the proclamation of the Good News with the healing of ‘all kinds of diseases and sickness’ to break the idea that illness (in whatever form) was a curse sent by God or punishment for sinfulness. Instead, the disciples are to be a sign of God’s kindness which brings health and wholeness. The proclamation of the Good News is always to be done generously and without counting the cost.
Through the words of the Gospel may we hear again our own call to be emissaries of God’s love and bearers of Good News. May we allow the kindness and compassion of God to touch one another through us.
Five Or Six Mass Extinctions? The Future Is Today
Fr. Simone Gamberoni, O. Carm.
It was lovely to take a walk and hear the cry of the swallows as they chased insects in the sky amid the summer heat, or perhaps to stroll after a summer storm and see the large, sly green lizards searching for a ray of sunshine, while frogs and toads hopped through the verdant countryside… and then, in the evening, to go out into the glow created by thousands of fireflies… They seem like stories from another time! Yet it is simply about when I was young and herded sheep on the hills around Florence.
The world is changing, and perhaps we don’t always realize it.
To promote awareness and sensitivity regarding ecological issues, an exhibition has been organized titled: “Five Or Six Great Mass Extinctions? The Future Is Today!” The exhibition, held inside the Casa di Accoglienza, adjacent to the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Carmine in San Felice del Benaco (BS), aims to allow people—and especially young students—to reflect on the importance of preserving Creation, offering a simple starting point for reflection, grounded in science, regarding climate change and its consequences for Creation itself. It is a mere drop in a vast ocean that would require much more attention.
The world is, after all, a closed system with limited resources, and every human being, regardless of their religious, political, or philosophical beliefs, should consider the future of the world in a perhaps slightly more prudent manner. Paleontology reminds us that after every mass extinction, life has recovered over the course of millions of years, but how many species have disappeared… To give a simple example, the Permian–Triassic mass extinction (about 252 million years ago), which is the greatest biological catastrophe ever to occur on Earth, saw the disappearance of between 90% and 96% of marine species, about 70–75% of terrestrial vertebrates, and about 30% of insect orders. Thus, approximately 57% of all families of living organisms existing at that time and about 83% of the genera disappeared. It took about 10 million years to reestablish complete and complex ecosystems.
After the sixth mass extinction, life will always recover, but will there be people capable of telling others about it? Following the geological eras that have marked the history of the Earth and life on it, many today speak of the Anthropocene, as a proposed new geological epoch in which human activity has such a profound impact that it alters the Earth’s climatic, environmental, and geological balances. The term combines the Greek words ànthrōpos (human being) and kainos (recent) and was coined in the early 1980s by biologist Eugene Stoermer and popularized in 2000 by Nobel Prize-winning chemist Paul Crutzen; it suggests the end of the previous geological epoch, the Holocene, which began approximately 11,700 years ago.
The exhibition was inaugurated on October 15, 2025, by His Excellency Monsignor Domenico Pompili, Bishop of the Diocese of Verona, approximately two years after the collection of materials began, along with the acquisition of permits and collaboration with scientific professionals. The roundtable discussion accompanying the inauguration featured the following speakers: Dr. Diego Sala, a paleontologist from Trento; Dr. Davide Grigoletto, a professor of Natural Sciences; and Dr. Gianmaria Pisani, a wildlife veterinarian. The roundtable was introduced by Fr. Simone Gamberoni, a Carmelite religious and the creator of the initiative, and was presided over by His Excellency Bishop Domenico Pompili, in the presence of more than sixty students from the Valtenesi school complex and many other people, including religious, civil, and military authorities.
As planned, the exhibition features original specimens and casts, displayed in special museum cases, accompanied by explanatory panels curated by three paleontologists from the University of Padua (Dr. Luca Giusberti, Dr. Mariagabriella Fornasiero, and Dr. Eliana Fornaciari), with contributions from a paleoanthropologist (Dr. Luca Pagani) and a climatologist (Dr. Paolo Tarolli), also from the University of Padua, as well as an archaeologist (Dr. Paolo Biagi) from the University of Venice. The exhibition also features an educational tour, curated by a paleontologist from Trento (Dr. Diego Sala) and a professor of natural sciences (Dr. Davide Grigoletto). The room also features multimedia content, which provides a detailed explanation of the artifacts on display, the 14 casts of hominid skulls, the five major mass extinctions, and some of the key animal species driven to extinction by human activity, as well as a diorama that deliberately recreates a “Jurassic Park”-style setting. As a final element, seven small display cases have been set up, presenting minerals classified according to the Nickel–Strunz system, which remind us of the primordial order and harmony that God has inscribed even “in the stones.” The exhibition was curated by Dr. Paolo Ferretti, a geologist at the Muse in Trento. The mineralogy section also features digital microscopes for magnified observation of the perfection of crystalline macrostructures. Other educational elements are also present to facilitate workshops and games for students.
In the cloister, as an introduction to the exhibition, panels have been placed featuring prayers, reflections, and texts drawn from the three major monotheistic religions, the teachings of the Church, and ancient and modern literature.
Recently, a collaboration has also begun with the Medi State-Recognized School in Salò (BS), represented by Ms. Elena Cancellerini, to expand the educational offerings by including students in the School – Work program, who will accompany various groups of visitors to the exhibition, and by developing differentiated educational programs tailored to the various age groups of students, from middle school to high school. Contacts have already been established with the Regional School Office and with a Regional Councilor, Ms. Claudia Carzeri, to involve both educational institutions and municipal administrations in Lombardy.
Humankind has placed itself within its environment, not always respecting it, but the tools we possess today have a destructive potential that no era has ever known since the human or humanoid foot first trod the earth!
“What is the ratio of one to a thousand? And yet it is a common proverb that a single man is worth a thousand, whereas a thousand are not worth a single man. Such a difference depends on the varying abilities of the intellects…”.
With this quote from Galileo Galilei’s Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems, we wish to remind you that anyone willing to commit to knowledge and collaboration can help improve the fate of our planet.
If you’d like to learn more:
The exhibition is located at: Casa per Ferie Il Carmine, Via Carmine 11A, San Felice del Benaco (BS).
The Casa per Ferie is adjacent to the Santuario del Carmine.
Phone: +393400547915
Email: Esta dirección de correo electrónico está siendo protegida contra los robots de spam. Necesita tener JavaScript habilitado para poder verlo.
Formation at the “Mater Unitatis” Federation (Spain)
We are pleased to share with you the news of the formation course for Prioresses and Formators held at the Convent of the Most Pure Blood of Christ in Onteniente (Valencia), Spain.
The instructor was Rev. Fr. Rafael Belda Serra de Cristo Jesús, CVMD (Cooperator of the Truth).
He masterfully explored the theme of the Apostolic Exhortation “Vita Consecrata” by Pope John Paul II—an essential and ever-relevant document for consecrated persons. He particularly emphasized the dimension of the contemplative life from a contemporary perspective.
Celebrating At Home - Body and Blood of Christ
The Real Presence of Jesus in Us
(Jn 6:51-58)
The Eucharist is not only an object to be looked at, but an action to be done so that the living presence of Jesus continues to touch and heal.
Maybe we need to think more deeply about the real presence of Jesus being in real, living human beings.
Bread and Wine have no eyes to gaze with love, no face with which to smile, no mouth to speak soothing words, no arms to hold the grieving and the sick, or to lend a hand, no ears to hear the pain. But we do.
So we are called to become the Eucharist that feeds those around us with the nourishment of breadth of heart and vision, respect, love, compassion, hope and forgiveness.
May we become what we receive. (St Augustine)
- pdf Celebrating At Home - Body and Blood of Christ [PDF](2.91 MB)
- default Celebrating At Home - Body and Blood of Christ [ePub](2.42 MB)
- pdf Celebrando en Familia - Santísimo Cuerpo y Sangre de Cristo(638 KB)
- pdf Celebrando in Casa - Santissimo Corpo e Sangue di Cristo(624 KB)
- pdf Comemorando em família - O Santíssimo Corpo e Sangue de Cristo(630 KB)
Pope Leo XIV Releases First Encyclical
Pope Leo XIV’s First Encyclical Calls for “Preserving the Human Person in the Age of Artificial Intelligence”
There were strong indications of what one of his pontificates main focuses would be when Robert Prevost chose the name Leo for his new life as leader of the Catholic Church. He also mentioned artificial intelligence when addressing the crowd in St. Peter’s Square and the world via the various forms of communication we now have available. In May 1891, Pope Leo XIII released the encyclical Rerum novarum addressing the condition of the working class in the period of the Industrial Revolution. It discussed the rights of workers, owners, and the state.
On the 135th anniversary of that encyclical, Pope Leo XIV released his first encyclical, entitled Magnifica humanitas: On Safeguarding the Human Peron on the Time of Artificial Intelligence.”
The co-founder of Anthropic, Chris Olah, was invited to speak at the presentation of the encyclical. In his talk, Mr. Olah raised some interesting issues, pointing out that “every frontier AI lab … operates inside a set of incentives and constraints that can sometime conflict with doing the right thing.” He echoed the pope’s call for discernment and highlighted three questions that companies need to discern about and “where I think the Church’s voice is most needed.” First is our duty to the global poor. Secondly is the need for moral imagination and ambition regarding human flourishing. Finally, the world has need for discernment on the nature of AI models.
The reactions have been generally favorable with many being very enthusiastic about the pope’s words. The Archbishop of Chicago, Cardinal Blaise Cupich, is quoted in an interview with Vatican News as giving very high praise for the encyclical. He sees this encyclical as “a new lens to read the entire Social Doctrine of the Church.”
Following interviews with Church leaders in Africa, ACI Africa summed up the leadership’s reactions as seeing the document as “a decisive intervention on the ethical, spiritual, and social implications of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies. Bishop Badejo of Nigeria recalled that just four days after his election, Pope Leo met with the media, challenging them to safeguard the true nature of communication as creation of culture and of human and digital environments that become spaces for dialogue and discussion.”
In response to those who may dismiss the pope’s call in his encyclical, Cardinal Cupich pointed out that “Pope Leo XIV is clear that this is Church doctrine and not simply a body of teaching that Catholics may choose to accept or ignore.”
Bishop Badejo sees the letter’s strongest point is its call for discernment and vigilance regarding the control of emerging technologies. The document is “now calling all segments of society to a shared discernment process guided by the Holy Spirit to discern how to navigate responsibly this intriguing era of AI.” Cardinal Cupich concurs. “The new technology has the potential to overtake our capacity to control it, and the pope is giving us a wake-up call to seize this moment with urgency."
Read to the Encyclical Magnifica humanitas
