Carmelite Quote

St. Therese of the Child Jesus:

Ah! What peace floods the soul when she rises above natural feelings. No, there is no joy comparable to that which the truly poor in spirit experience. If such a one asks for something with detachment, and if this thing is not only refused but one tries to take away what one already has, the poor in spirit follow Jesus' counsel: "If anyone take away your coat, let go your cloak also."

To give up one's cloak is, it seems to me, renouncing one's ultimate rights; it is considering oneself as the servant and the slave of others. When one has left his cloak, it is much easier to walk, to run...

Peace be with you!
Rosemarie, ocds
____________________

SATURDAY OF OUR LADY

Prayer to Our Lady for Religious Vocations 

by Pope St. John Paul II

Photo: R. Massaro (C)2021 Spirit Singing Walsh University Chapel Canton, Ohio

Mary, Mother of the Church, to you we turn. With your "yes" you have opened the door to the presence of Christ in the world, in history and in souls, receiving in humble silence and total submission the appeal of the Most High.

Grant that many men and women may know and hear, even today, the inviting voice of your Son: "Follow me." Stretch out your motherly hand over all missionaries scattered throughout the world, over religious men and women who assist the elderly, the sick, the deficient, the orphans; over those who are engaged in teaching, over the members of secular institutes, the silent leaven of good works; over those who in the cloister live on faith and love and beg for the salvation of the world. Amen.





Peace be with you!
Rosemarie, OCDS

CARMELITE QUOTE

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, O.C.D.S.

Photo: (C) Spirit Singing-R. Massaro Byzantine Catholic Cultural Center Cleveland, Ohio

Merry Christmas from the Secular Carmelites-Community of the Holy Family.

A Nativity Poem by St. John of the Cross:

When the time had come

for him to be born,

he went forth like the

bridegroom

from his bridal chamber,

embracing his bride,

holding her in his arms,

whom the gracious Mother

laid in a manger

among some animals

that were there at the time.

Men sang songs

and angels melodies

celebrating the marriage

of Two such as these.

St. John of the Cross

Excerpt from the Romances, No. 9.

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, OCDS

SATURDAY OF OUR LADY: WILL YOU SHELTER HER

The Virgin, weighed
with the Word of God,
comes down the road:
if only you'll shelter her.
St. John of the Cross

 



Will you shelter her?


"In the history of the Church, the Order of Carmel has come to be known for its dedication to a life of prayer and to Mary, the Mother of Jesus."

This quote is from Fr. Emmanuel J. Sullivan, O.C.D. from his work entitled, Mary and the Holy Spirit in the Writings of St. John of the Cross.
As we reflect on this quote by by Fr. Sullivan, let's keep this theme in mind: shelter.

Fr. Sullivan tells us that Carmel is known for its life of prayer, but not just a life of prayer, but dedication to a life of prayer. As Secular Carmelites, we can ask ourselves these questions: Are we dedicated to our life of prayer that the church has called us to? Are we dedicated to imitate the Virgin Mary who pondered the Word in her heart? Do we look forward to the time of mental prayer?

We can be assured that if we make a place for Mary in our lives, we are creating a holy shelter for Christ as well. Wherever Mary is present, Christ is present.

"You are an enclosed garden, my sister, my bride." Songs 4:12

The image of the enclosed garden (the monastic cloister or enclosure) has come to represent the life of Carmel, the life of intimate prayer with the Beloved, where we remain with Him in the shelter of our heart. We often say that we have chosen Carmel, but is it not the Lord who first chose us to follow this path?

He asks us and all men to find a shelter of rest in Him. "Come to me all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest." Yes, holy rest of contemplation; this is His gift to us in which we do not have to labor with our intellect or imagination during the time of prayer.

We can turn to our Holy Father Elijah to see the symbolism of shelter in his life. In the book of Kings we read that Elijah took shelter in a cave. But the Lord cried out to him, "Why are you here?" He responds with the famous anthem of the Carmelites, "I have been zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts." He was asked a second time, "Why are you here?"

Elijah took shelter in fear for his life, but because he listened to the voice of God, and was intent on doing his own will, the Lord fed him with bread for the journey

(a prefigurement of the Eucharist) and sent him on mission. 

Carmelites continue the mission of Elijah in the world today. By our prayer life, regular reception of the Holy Eucharist, our dedication to the Mother of God, and to the Church, we provide a holy witness to the world. A deep prayer life is a powerful witness against secularism, materialism, and individualism. These are the idols worshipped today that we must denounce with our promises of chastity, poverty, and obedience.

During this Advent season, Let us meditate on this same question that was asked of Elijah. Why am I here? Why am I in the family of Carmel?

The vocation of prayer in Carmel is not for ourselves alone, but for the Church and the world. We have to leave the shelter of our prayer life to attend to daily duties. This can be extremely difficult. St. Teresa tells us it is painfully difficult for people who are given to prayer to attend to duties of business. But we know, too, that the Lord sends the Holy Spirit to help us and we may be given the type of prayer that we can go about our daily duties while being in deep communion with the Lord. Sometimes, we may find that it is a mystery and an especially delightful one as to how this takes place.

Our local Secular Carmelite community is named after the Holy Family. In these remaining days of preparation and waiting for the Lord, let us meditate on the theme of shelter. How do we shelter the Holy Family in our spiritual life? How do we shelter and keep company and find rest in the Holy Family of the Most Holy Trinity?

Let us look to Our Lady, the Daughter of the Eternal Father, the Mother of the only-begotten Son, and the Spouse of the Holy Spirit, she who is caught up in the mysterious love of the Holy Family of the Trinity. Mary will obtain for us the grace we need to become holy Carmelites, to be holy dwelling places of God.


The tabernacle is a holy shelter for our Eucharistic Lord. We are living tabernacles where God is ever-present in our soul!

If we provide a place for Mary in our lives, we welcome the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as well.

WILL YOU SHELTER HER?
Peace be with you!

Rosemarie
_______________________

 ALL SAINTS OF CARMEL

FEAST DAY: November 14

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, O.C.D.S.

CARMELITE SAINT OF THE DAY: St. Elizabeth of the Trinity

FEAST DAY: November 8

I would be all silence, all worship,

so that we can penetrate more into Him

and live so full of Him

who could deliver it through prayer

to those poor souls who do not know the gift of God