O.Carm
Lectio Divina August, 2024
Opening Prayer
God our Father and protector, without you nothing is holy, nothing has value.
Guide us to everlasting life by helping us to use wisely the blessings you have given to the world.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Celebrated Around the World
July is a busy month for the Carmelite Order with celebrations of many of its saints and blesseds. The month also includes celebrations of both Our Lady of Mount Carmel and the Prophet Elijah. Each has a particular resonance with members of the Order and are celebrated in a variety of ways around the world. Here are a few of the celebrations we learned about over the past several days. We appreciate members sending a short summary as well as pictures of their celebrations.
Carmel in Albacete, Spain
From July 7 to 15, a novena to Our Lady of Mount Carmen was solemnly celebrated in the Cathedral of Albacete. Presiding and preaching the novena was Matias Tejerina, O. Carm.
There was a large crowd of the faithful and people devoted to the Virgin of Mount Carmel. There is a group of Carmelite Tertiaries and Confreres in Albacete who keep the Carmelite charism alive. They prepare the novena every year and have an oratory in the middle of the city which is open every day for prayer. Eucharist is celebrated there three times a month presided by Fr. Alfonso Herrera, O. Carm., the spiritual director of the Tertiaries. Also in Albacete is a community of Carmelite sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus who minister in the parish of San Pablo. They also lead a very active and pastorally committed group of Carmelite Laity.
Huesca, Spain
The Carmelite nuns of the Monastery of the Encarnation San Miguel in Huesca, Spain, provided a film of their celebration of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in 2024. The monastery dates to 1622. (Sor Mª Blanca de la Eucaristía Barril, O. Carm.)
To watch the video
St. Thomas Province, India
The celebration of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in St. Thomas Province (India), especially within its communities, is a deeply cherished event. Community members gather together-- in unity and reverence-- to commemorate this special occasion. Neighboring religious communities are invited, fostering bonds of friendship and solidarity. As a symbol of faith and protection, scapulars are ceremoniously distributed to everyone who attends, signifying devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The celebrations highlight the spiritual significance of the occasion through songs and homilies and prayers. Traditional rituals and processions enhance the solemnity and cultural richness of the event. Special meals are prepared and then shared among the gathered community, reinforcing bonds of camaraderie and fellowship. The celebrations serve not only as a religious observance but also as a joyful expression of our cultural heritage and communal identity. Ultimately, these celebrations deepen devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel and reaffirm the participants' faith and commitment. Overall, the festivities reflect a deep-seated reverence and devotion that resonate throughout the Indian province and their local communities. (Deepak Aracka, O. Carm.)
Province of Malta
The Carmelite feast in Valletta on the July 16 is a major event. Many streets are decorated. Bands march in the streets over a four day period. There is a musical concert and a fireworks display. The religious celebration includes a 2 hour Solemn Mass in the morning and an evening Mass lead by the Archbishop Scicluna. This Mass is followed by a procession with the statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.
The Carmelite community also hosted a lunch with guests including the prior provincial of the Discalced Carmelites of Malta, the Canon and his wife from the Anglican Cathedral of St. Paul in Valletta, the parish priests of Valletta, the Suore Carmelitane Missionarie di S. Teresa del Bambino Gesù, two Domincans, and all the Carmelites of the Maltese Province who could attend.
General Delegation of Kenya
On July 16, 2024 the Kenyan Delegation gathered at the newly formed Carmelite community in central Kenya (the priory at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Retreat Centre). The celebration was attended by many of the faithful as well as friars, religious sisters, Third Order Carmelites, and diocesan clergy.
Before the celebration of Mass, we held with a procession carrying a five foot (152.4 cm) statue of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, to a newly constructed grotto on the property.
We continue to seek Her intercession as a Kenyan delegation especially as we continue the construction of the retreat centre to serve the people. (Daniel Kyalo, O. Carm.)
Malaga (Spain) Area
The city of Malaga in southern Spain and many of the towns and villages along the Costa del Sol celebrated Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the patron of seafarers, special festivities and processions on July 16. Even some inland towns and villages join in on the celebrations.
St. Titus Brandsma, priest and martyr
July 27 | Obligatory Memorial (Feast: Ger, Phil, Del Colombia)
A noted writer and journalist, in 1935, St. Titus was appointed adviser to the Dutch bishops for Catholic journalists. In the period leading up to and during the Nazi occupation in the Netherlands, he argued passionately against the National Socialist ideology, basing his stand on the Gospels. He continually defended the right to freedom in education and for a free the Catholic Press. As a result, he was imprisoned.
He passed from one prison or camp to another until he arrived in Dachau where he was killed on July 26, 1942. He was beatified as a martyr by Pope John Paul II on November 3, 1985 and was canonized by Pope Francis on May 15, 2022, in St Peter’s Square.
The Order’s petition to have the celebration of St. Titus Brandsma changed from an optional memorial to an obligatory memorial for the whole Order was accepted. The Provinces of Germany and the Philippines as well as the General Delegation in Columbia who have St. Titus as their patron celebrate the day as a feast.
Read more about the life of St. Titus Brandsma
Special Announcement:
We are proud to announce that Volume 5 in the Titus Brandsma series is due from the printer in the coming days. This incredible collection of the writings, speeches, and letters of St. Titus Brandsma, translated into English, provides the martyr of Dachau's life story in his own words.
Edizioni Carmelitane also provides a number of other excellent publications on Carmel's most recent saint including a theatrical play, a professionally produced tv production in multiple languages, as well as books in a variety of languages.
St. Joachim and St. Anne, Protectors of the Order
July 26 | Memorial
The names of the parents of Mary are known from the apocryphal “Proto-Gospel of James” (II century). The cult to Saint Anne is documented in the East in the VI century, in the West in the X century; that of Saint Joachim in the XIV century.
The Carmelite Order celebrates, with special devotion its Saints, gathering in them the most living and genuine expression of the Charism and the spirituality of the Order throughout the centuries.
Read more ...
Celebrating At Home - 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
We Are Fed That We Might Feed
(Jn 6:1-15)
Unusually, our reading of St Mark’s Gospel will be interrupted for the next five weeks during which we will read the ‘Bread of Life’ passages from Chapter 6 of St John’s Gospel. These passages form a kind of meditation about who Jesus is and what is happening when we gather for Eucharist - we are being nourished by Jesus in Word and Sacrament, and we are being sent to feed and nourish one another.
In last Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus fed the crowd, hungering for the Word of God, with his teaching. This week, Jesus also feeds the crowd with bread and fish. Once again, Jesus is deeply conscious of the human needs of others. Despite there being so many, not only are all fed, but there is food left over. In the story there is a sense of super-abundance.
When God answers needs and provides for people there is never just enough; there is always more than enough.
Seeing what Jesus had done, the people think they know who Jesus is (“the prophet who is to come into the world”) and what his role should be (a king who will provide anything they want). But they have the wrong idea about Jesus’ kingship. He isn’t a national liberator, a political leader or a magician. So Jesus escapes into the hills by himself.
In next Sunday’s Gospel Jesus will explain what this sign of feeding the multitude is really about. As we begin this meditation on Jesus, the Bread of Life, our thoughts also turn to how we can be living bread for each other; how we can feed and nourish with the kinds of bread that do not perish: truth, justice, love, kindness, compassion, honesty, integrity, faith, hope and forgiveness.
What words can we speak, what actions can we do that not only feed bodies, but which also feed hearts hungry for comfort, hope, forgiveness, justice, mercy, acceptance and love? How can we be the ‘bread of God’ in our world today?
The ‘food’ is entrusted to us. We are fed that we might feed one another.
- pdf Celebrating At Home - 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time [PDF](3.42 MB)
- default Celebrating At Home - 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time [ePub](4.86 MB)
- pdf Celebrando en Familia - XVII Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario(495 KB)
- pdf Celebrando in Casa - XVII Domenica del Tempo Ordinario(524 KB)
- pdf Celebrando em família - Décimo Sétimo Domingo do Tempo Comum(487 KB)
Blessed John Soreth, priest
July 24 | Memorial
John Soreth was unflagging in his efforts at renewal, during what was an especially critical period for both the Church and the Order. He dedicated himself entirely to the reform of the Order, travelling across Europe, making canonical visitations and promoting a more faithful observance of religious life both in the older Provinces and convents and in the Mantuan Reformed Congregation.
He was instrumental in the development of the Lay Carmelite Third Order.
Read more ...
Books Available on John Soreth (in Italian):
Il B. Jean Soreth (1394-1471). Priore generale, riformatore e maestro spirituale dell’Ordine Carmelitano
Giovanni Grosso, O. Carm.
Expositio paraenetica in regulam carmelitarum: Un commento alla regola del Carmelo
Giovanna D’Aniello, O. Carm.
St. Elijah, prophet
July 20 | Solemnity
Elijah made himself available for God's work and was sent into various situations to proclaim God's word.
From Elijah, Carmelites learn to listen for the voice of God in the unexpected and in silence. We seek to allow the Word of God to shape our minds and our hearts so that the way we live and the things we do may be prophetic
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Causa Nostrae Laetitiae
INITIUM NOVITIATUS
05-07-24 Frederick Ovko Owino (Kenya) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Moses Mukwanha Wekesa (Kenya) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Matthew Mweu Wambwa (Kenya) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 John Kheri Madava (Bruna-Tanzania) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Faustine Innocent Nh'Umbili (Bruna-Tanzania) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Ansbert Protace Mulaly (Bruna-Tanzania) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Felicino Abgalao Massango (Pern-Moz) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Juvencio Eusco Alvesta (Pern-Moz) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Gabriel Tomas Congolo (Pern-Moz) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Sulyvan Amalio Jaime (Pern-Moz) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Simbarashe Matenza (Hib-Zim) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Munashe Chimwamuchere (Hib-Zim) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
05-07-24 Kudakwashe Maposa (Hib-Zim) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
PROFESSIO TEMPORANEA
06-07-24 Sydney Mukwenha (Hib-Zim) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
06-07-24 Tallon Simbarashe Tafirenyika (Hib-Zim) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
06-07-24 Blessmore Murimambeva (Hib-Zim) Nyazura, Zimbabwe
16-07-24 Patrisius Bimasakti (Indo) Malang, Indonesia
16-07-24 Jona Dipa Manurung (Indo) Malang, Indonesia
16-07-24 Jekki Tua Sipayung (Indo) Malang, Indonesia
16-07-24 Albertus Agung Dwi Kristianto (Indo) Malang, Indonesia
16-07-24 Andreas Ferdian Ginting (Indo) Malang, Indonesia
16-07-24 Aldo Alberto Panjaitan (Indo) Malang, Indonesia
PROFESSIO SOLEMNIS
16-07-24 Bintang Parhusip (Indo) Malang, Indonesia
16-07-24 Nuryatmaja Gora Pawana (Indo) Malang, Indonesia
Celebrating At Home - 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Shepherding Each Other With God's Love
(Mark 6:30-34)
In the first reading the prophet Jeremiah laments the poor leadership given by those to whom the flock of God has been entrusted. He tells of the days to come when God will raise up true shepherds look after the flock and pasture (feed) them. The reading also looks forward to a true shepherd-king from the House of David who will act with wisdom, honesty and integrity to look after the people. He will ‘save Judah’ and will be called: The Lord, our integrity.
In the Gospel Mark shows Jesus to be a true shepherd whose heart is moved by the needs of both the people and his own disciples. The disciples have returned from their preaching and tell Jesus everything that happened to them. These exhausted shepherds are weary but the people keep coming to them, so much so that they had no time even to eat.
Jesus, moved by compassion for them, invites them to a place of quiet and rest, but the people guess where they are going and follow them. Instead of sending the people away, Jesus himself sets about teaching them while the disciples rest. He feeds the people with the Word of God. It is what genuine love does, isn’t it? It helps us go the ‘extra mile’ even when we think we are at the end of our tether.
And that is how Jesus meet us, too, as a shepherd-king, with genuine concern for us - not as a warrior-king with threats and punishments.
In the Gospel next Sunday Jesus will feed the people with the loaves and fish. Like a true shepherd Jesus looks after all the needs and hungers of his flock – feeding hearts as well as bodies. It is a very grounded approach that Jesus offers which does not ignore either spiritual or physical hungers and needs. As followers of Christ, we, too, try to be people who meet the real hungers and needs of our brothers and sisters and all entrusted to our care.
- pdf Celebrating At Home - 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time [PDF](2.86 MB)
- default Celebrating At Home - 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time [ePub](4.96 MB)
- pdf Celebrando en Familia - XVI Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario(489 KB)
- pdf Celebrando in Casa - XVI Domenica del Tempo Ordinario(492 KB)
- pdf Celebrando em família - Décimo Sexto Domingo do Tempo Comum(488 KB)
Bl. Teresa of St. Augustine and Companions, OCD
July 17 | Optional Memorial
When the full terror of the French Revolution began, a community of sixteen Discalced Carmelite nuns from the monastery of the Incarnation at Compiégne offered themselves as sacrificial victims to beg God for peace for the Church and for their country.
Arrested and imprisoned on the 24th June 1794, they continued to share their joy and their faith with others. Condemned to death for their loyalty to the Church, to their religious vows and for their devotion to the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, they were guillotined in Paris on 17th July 1794 whilst singing hymns and after having renewed their vows to their prioress, Teresa of St. Augustine.
Mother Teresa of St. Augustine and companions were beatified in 1906, the first martyrs of the French revolution. The believed what they said: "We are the victims of the age, and we ought to sacrifice ourselves to obtain its return to God."
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