Reports from International Commissions and Curia Offices Become the Focus of the General Chapter

The General Chapter turned its attention to the work of the offices in the General Curia and the International Commissions on Friday and Saturday. This includes reports from the Bursar General, the Procurator General, the International Commission for Safeguarding, the International Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation Commission, the International Commission for Liturgy and Prayer, the General Secretariat for Carmelite Laity, the International Commission for Youth. Saturday afternoon saw reports from the Office of the Postulator General, and the Order’s Communications Office, the Institutum Carmelitanum, and the International Commission for Communications.

The Chapter then adjourned to the chapel for Evening Prayer, followed by dinner. Sunday was a free day. An optional trip to various parts of Malang in the afternoon and evening was offered. It will be the subject of a future update.

All of these reports will be published in Analecta (2025) #2 by Edizioni Carmelitane.

Bursar General and Finance Commission

Friday began with a report on the financial condition of the Order. The Bursar General, Christian Körner, outlined the work of the General Finance Commission which meets each year and explained the work of his office. He also spoke about the November 2024 bursars meeting in Fatima and the revisions to the Order’s Economic Directory. Issues regarding the former Domus and CISA, the Institutum and Order’s archives were explained. Grants from the General Curia to the Order’s mission areas were also explained. The Society of the Little Flower (UK and Ireland) no longer accepts donations and is in the process of being completely closed. A central fund was established in September 2022 for development and formation using only the interest earned by the fund. The fund for the nuns, created by the General Council in 2008, has allowed the Order to respond to requests of various monasteries around the world. Fr. Christian concluded by outlining what some of the challenges in the months and years ahead. Members of the General Chapter then had the opportunity to react to the report or raise other issues.

Procurator General

The financial presentation was followed by that of the Procurator General, Michael Farrugia. This was done over two sessions. The first presentation referenced the work of the procurator’s office in general. He highlighted that some changes have been made to adapt Canon Law to new challenges and situations arising in the life of the Church. Consequently, the Order’s Constitutions must be updated as well to reflect these changes.

His final area dealt with liturgical texts and the approval of the Order’s own calendar. However, other requests (such as, the elevation of the celebration of St. Titus Brandsma to feast) and liturgical texts remain in process at the appropriate dicastery. The procurator general also participated in several provincial and general Chapters of the Carmelite sisters and helped revise the texts of the Constitutions.

International Commission of Safeguarding

The next session, also led by the Procurator General, was dedicated to the work of the International Commission of Safeguarding. Since its establishment, the Commission worked to prepare a manual, subsequently approved by the General Council, that each province will be expected to implement. The members of the General Chapter expressed thanks for this important work being finalized.

In recent years, the Order, the General Curia, and the International Commission for Safeguarding have made an effective and targeted commitment to ensure that every abuse or mistreatment of minors or vulnerable persons is prosecuted in accordance with the law.

The reform of the Dicasteries by Pope Francis in 2022 simplified the governing structures but is constantly evolving. Michael then reviewed the documents of the Holy See from October 2019 through September 2025 which are closely related to the life and mission of Order. He also reviewed new canons in the 1983 CIC regarding the life of the Order’s members and topics dealt with within the Order.

International Commission of Justice, Peace, and the Integrity of Creation

Saturday also held a full day of presentations to the Chapter members. The morning started with a report on the International Commission of Justice, Peace, and the Integrity of Creation by Conrad Mutizamhepo, General Councilor for Africa, who heads the commission.

The overarching goals for the six-year period included: promotion fo the personal and communal encounter and relationship with the Lord; promotion of the formation, development, and animation of Carmelite JPIC structures; planning and international Carmelite Family JPIC Conference to share experiences on working in JPIC ministries as well as exploring ways to implement the document From Contemplation to Action. It was hoped that accessibility to the document would help to deepen reflection and discussion of JPIC issues within affiliated congregations, provinces, and regions.

The Commission failed to realize greater collaboration with the Carmelite NGO and setting up a JPIC blog on topical issues as it hoped to do. Technical difficulties stopped an online survey of Carmelites working in JPIC ministry in provinces, commissariats and institutes affiliated to the Order. The JPIC Conference, scheduled to take place in July 2024 in Fatima had to be cancelled because the enrollment fell short of the number necessary for the event to be viable.

However, the Commission was able to offer webinar presentations on four well researched topics with time for questions and discussions.

A weakness is that JPIC ministries in geographical regions are generally not networked or well-coordinated. JPIC ministerial activities are often erroneously associated with political party activism. Conrad concluded, “The ball is in our court as an Order to revive this prophetic dimension (of Elijah) of our charismatic identity by incorporating justice, peace, and integrity of creation according to the ecclesiastical and Carmelite traditions in the formation program.

The Commission’s report ends with four recommendations and the statement that JPIC ministry is not a peripheral ministry for Carmelites. The values of JPIC are constitutive values of the Kingdom of God as well as part and parcel of the Carmelite prophetic heritage and charismatic heritage.

The time following the report was short, but a number of observations were made by the members regarding the work of JPIC throughout the Order.

International Commission of Liturgy and Prayer

The report of the International Commission of Liturgy and Prayer followed, presented by its chair, Richard Byrne. The General Council approved to continue updating the liturgical rites and books of the Order. The Council also approved preparing additional materials from Carmelite authors for the Carmelite Office of Readings for the BVM on Saturday and other days with particular devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel. There was also to be a collaborative project with the Formation Commission regarding the liturgical preparation of students in formation, liturgical studies as part of ongoing formation, and the promotion of good preaching. There was to be promotion of ways of celebrating the liturgy from a Carmelite perspective, to foster the shrines of the Order at an Order level, and congresses and meetings organized that foster the liturgical and prayer life of the members of the Carmelite Family.

Noting low numbers of young Carmelites studying liturgy, it was decided one scholar from each of the four geographical areas would be selected to earn a doctorate in liturgy. Liturgy is now one of four areas of postgraduate study the Curia will fund.

A document on the ministry of Carmelite shrines was developed. The document offered some ideas as a way of giving guidance to the renewal of shrines within the Order.

A liturgical conference was held in May 2025 with an emphasis on the pastoral and lived dimension of our liturgical and prayer lives. The overall theme was Encountering the Risen Lord: Liturgy and Prayer in Carmel Today. Eighty people attended the Congress.

Richard then reviewed the status of the various liturgical texts, including the Rite of Profession, the Third Order Ritual, the Office of Readings/Saturday Memoria of Our Lady, and the texts for the Spanish martyrs, Blesseds Angelus and Luke, and the celebration of St. Titus Brandsma being raised to a Memorial for the whole Order. It will be a Feast in those provinces where Titus is the patron. There continue to be difficulties in getting the Proprium Missarum and Liturgia Horarum to completion.

International Secretariat for Carmelite Laity

Following a break, Luis Maza, a member of the General Council, presented on the work of the General Secretariat for Carmelite Laity. At the beginning of the six-year period, an International Secretariat for the Laity was set up. All meetings were held online. Two training meetings were organized over zoom in Spanish and Portuguese for the TOC leaders.

The Secretariat prepared the 4th International Congress of the Carmelite Laity in September 2024. The Congress was based on four fundamental areas: formation, service, fraternity, and prayer. These themes were developed in lectures and workshops that encourages reflection and dialogue. Two hundred Carmelites from 30 countries participated.

A General Assembly of Carmelite Tertiaries was held in Fatima from February 25-March 2, 2025. The assembly aimed to enhance the identity and unity of the Carmelite Family through better communications, collaboration, and formation. The Assembly recognized the vital role of lay people witnessing as inspiring the transformation of secular society.

Because of references in the TOC rule to parts of the Constitutions that no longer exist, the rule needs to be revised. Among the areas suggested for further regulation are tertiary priests, use of the traditional habit or scapular, formation, admission, discernment time, and profession.

A key outcome of the Assembly was the creation of a provisional (2025-2027) International Council (Task Force) charged with drafting rules of procedures for governance of the TOC and preparing future assemblies.

Partial statistics indicate that there are 16,482 Solemn Tertiaries; 3,003 Temporary Tertiaries; 1463 in formation; and 542 communities.

International Commission for Youth

General Councilor Robert Puthussery reviewed the work of the Carmelite Youth during the last six-year period. Recognizing the significance of youth engagement, the 2019 General Chapter mandated the creation of an International Commission for Youth to explore new methods and contemporary approaches for involving young people in the life of the Church and the Order. Seven key action areas were identified by the Commission to be worked on: an in-depth study of Christus vivat; assistance with organizing Carmelite events at World Youth Day; strengthening geographical area youth ministry through regional commissions; developing and delivering online formation content; organizing Carmelite Youth Days within geographical areas; promoting communication between regional youth commissions; and establishing and supporting a network of Carmelite schools.

Robert then reported on the activities of the Asia-Australia-Oceania Youth Commission. He later gave a random overview of youth ministry across the Order. He also spoke about the Carmelite Day during the World Youth Day 2023 in Lisbon. He concluded with some thoughts on challenges of the commission including personnel, structural integration, financial, and transitioning from occasional to integrated ministry.

Postulator General

Following lunch and a pause, the Postulator General, Giovanna Brizi, gave updates on the various current and future causes her office is dealing with as well as other activities her office participated in during the last six years. She made her report via zoom from Rome.

She began with the 70-year process that culminated on May 15, 2022, with the canonization of St. Titus Brandsma by Pope Francis. There are currently seven causes for individual Blesseds to be canonized, as well as groups of martyrs of the Spanish Civil War. Four causes, all women, are at the Venerable stage. Fifteen cases are at the Servant of God level. The postulator then reported eight cases in the diocesan phase. There are three cases to be opened soon and eight cases under study. Three cases have been suspended.

Communications Office of the Order

This was followed immediately by a report from William J. Harry, the director of the Order’s Communications Office. He made an appeal that the Order take seriously its responsibility to create the most effective communications program throughout the Order to make the Carmelite charism, its spirituality and history, available not only to the Carmelite Family but to other seekers of ways to holiness. He reminded the Chapter members that the Order has made significant contributions to the life of the Church over the last 800 years in writings, art, and the model lives that many of the members live.

His report included a review of the work of the Task Force which established a single office of communications and redesigned the website. He highlighted the popularity of Lectio divina and the weekly reflection on the Sunday Gospel reading, originating from the Australia-Timor Leste province. Both are emailed to over 20,000 email addresses. CITOC-online emails average 186 messages per year although the CITOC-online Updates include 3-5 news items per mailing. Twitter and Facebook are also utilized for CITOC messages.

A considerable percentage of the work in Communications is actually spent working with the authors and printing houses on publishing new books. Because of the business model for Edizioni Carmelitane established at an earlier Chapter, considerable time and expense is spent mailing the books to the communities. The value in investing this amount of time and expense is that all members of the Order will have these resources available to them in their own communities. Various proposals to improve this model will be proposed to this Chapter by the International Communications Commission.

Since the change from the previous Edizioni Carmelitane website to a Shopify store, book sales have increase significantly. Between July 1, 2024 and January 2025, there was a 183% increase in customers. As of July 1, 2025, the clients increased to 594 or a 225% increase. No longer is a company other than Edizioni receiving 50% of the profit. All profit comes directly to Edizioni. In addition, we now know who our customers are and their purchasing patterns. We can direct market them. In 2015, Edizioni sold €12.799,90 worth of books to non-Carmelite communities. In the year July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025, gross sales was €50.848,63.

William outlined a number of other initiatives that have been undertaken during the last six years to improve Edizioni’s name recognition and presence in various markets. Some have been sucessful. Some have not.

The director also reported on the three-part meeting held in January 2025 with communications directors from around the Order. This included a professional development component of three days at Santa Croce University in Rome, a celebration of journalism as part of the 2025 Jubilee, and a zoom call with those around the world who could not be present in Rome to discuss steps the Order as a whole should take to make its communications program more effective. A follow-up online meeting was held by request of those attending.

Reform of the Institutum Carmelitanum

In 2019 the General Chapter voted to reform the Institutum Carmelitanum, A committee was appointed and two years later they presented the text of the revised Norms to the General Council for review and approval. As a result, the Carmelite Library and the General Library of CISA were merged to become the Carmelite General Library. The reform makes explicit the type of interdisciplinary research, collaboration with other research bodies and scholars, the link between research and pastoral activity and between research and formation. A dozen areas were emphasized.

During the presentation, the new leadership of the Institutum Carmelitanum, the archives, and the library were introduced, although one is not a member of the Chapter and was absent.

International Communications Commission

The report from the International Communications Commission was given by its chair, Richard Byrne. He stated that the objective of the Order’s communications program is to communicate Christ’s Word through our Carmelite charism. It does this through both internal and external aspects. The General Council first established a Communications Task Force which functioned from 2019-2022. Twenty-five meetings were held online.

The Task Force proposed a single office of communication (which was accepted), that the online presence would extend beyond the news of the General Curia, the website would be reconfigured to enable people to learn about Carmelite spirituality and tradition as well as finding out about the Order. A single director was appointed and a lay man, Marco Pellitero was hired as Communications Assistant. Technical assistance for the website is outsourced. Bookkeeping for Edizioni is part of the General Bursar’s office.

A Communications Commission was appointed and has functioned until the current day. It has met 11 times, 7 times online. Primary among its work was the development of a communications plan with professional input from José Maria La Porte from Santa Croce University’s Department of Communications. During the Commission’s final meeting, a meeting was held with the Vatican Dicastery for Communications, including the prefect, Dr. Paolo Ruffini and Dr. Nataša Govekar, director for the Theological-Pastoral Department.

Finally, the Commission made some recommendations to change the current business model for Edizioni Carmelitane. That model, approved of by a previous chapter, calls for each house to receive a copy of each of its publications. This makes the resources available to all members of the Order where they live and helps pay for the expenses of the Communications Office. Four different models for distribution and four financing models were proposed for the Chapter’s consideration.

The report concluded that while much work had been done in the previous six years, challenges remain. Members of the General Chapter were reminded that we hold a precious treasure that is to be passed on, a treasure that brings light and hope.

The chapter members then celebrated Vespers in the chapel, followed by dinner.

On Monday, the Chapter finished listening to the reports of the various offices and commissions.