O.Carm
Pope's Message for World Mission Day 2024
The 98th World Mission Day will be celebrated on Sunday, October 20, 2024 on the theme “Go and invite everyone to the banquet” (cf. Mt. 22:9). Pope Francis has released his message for World Mission Day 2024 on 25 January 2024, Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul.
In the text, Pope Francis reflects on the Gospel parable of the Wedding Banquet, where the king tells his servants “Go therefore to the thoroughfares, and invite to the marriage feast as many as you find”.
The Pope noted that the king’s banquet “it is an image of ultimate salvation in the Kingdom of God.”
In the last part of his message, the Pontiff recalls that God wants "everyone to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth". “This is the heart of mission," Pope Francis stressed, "that ‘all’, excluding no one."
World Mission Sunday was instituted in 1926 by Pope Pius XI at the request of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith (Latin: Propagandum Fidei).
On the occasion of the 98th World Mission Day, the Carmelites of Australia and Timor-Leste have prepared the following resource that can be very useful in extending the Pope's invitation to all, especially those on the margins of society.
To see the resource on the pdf World Mission Day 2024(3.15 MB)
To see the Message of His Holiness Pope Francis
Conference Focuses on St. Mary Magdalene de' Pazzi
St. Mary Magdalene de’ Pazzi Subject of Upcoming Lecture at the Center for Carmelite Studies
The Center for Carmelite Studies at the Catholic University of America will host a lecture on October 24, 2024, given by Carmelite Simon Nolan, PhD, prior provincial of the Order’s Irish Province and former Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy of the Pontifical University of St. Patrick in Maynooth, Ireland. The lecture is entitled Awakening to God’s Love: Saint Mary Magdalene de’ Pazzi on the Mystical Dimension of Every Christian Life.
For those who wish to be present, the lecture will be held in the Curley Hall Boardroom. The lecture will take place from 5PM-6:30PM (Eastern US time). A light reception will follow the lecture. For those unable to attend in person, there is a livestream link.
St. Mary Magdalene de’ Pazzi (1566-1607) from Florence, Italy, is called the “ecstatic saint” because of her special gift from God to be aware of her union with God while both her internal and external senses were detached from the sensible world. She is attracting renewed interest today and a number of recent books have been published exploring her spirituality.
To learn more about the life of Mary Magdalene de’ Pazzi and her work and legacy, we suggest reading the following books from Edizioni Carmelitane, the publishing house of the Carmelite Order:
"Union with God as Transformation in Beauty. A Literary-Spiritual Analysis of the Colloquies of Santa Maria Maddalena de’ Pazzi", Charlò Camilleri, O. Carm.
"Prayer Life in Carmel: Historical Sketches", Redemptus M. Valabek, O. Carm.
To access these and many other fine publications at Edizioni Carmelitane, click here.
Vitam Coelo Reddiderunt
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Celebrating At Home - 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Servants, Not Masters
(Mark 10:35-45)
They’re at it again! One might be forgiven for wondering at just how slow the disciples are in getting Jesus’ message. For weeks he has been instructing them about the Kingdom of God and the conversion of heart needed to be his followers.
This Sunday’s Gospel episode shows that, yet again, they just don’t get it. This time it is James and John, who together with Peter form the ‘inner circle’, the group of disciples closest to Jesus. James and John are asking for the highest places of honour when Jesus comes into his ‘glory’.
While they understand that Jesus is the Messiah, they misunderstand what kind of Messiah he is and what kind of Kingdom he is bringing. While Jesus continues to talk about the path his own life will take through suffering, death and resurrection, the disciples are so focussed on themselves that they ignore his words.
Rather than brush aside the brash request of James and John, Jesus attempts to draw them deeper by hinting at the path of true discipleship. Using two biblical motifs, the cup (the fate that lies ahead of a person) and baptism (not the sacrament but the idea that undergoing trials and dangers is like passing through stormy, turbulent waters) Jesus asks if they can really commit to sharing his life and mission. Without hesitating they say, “We can,” and Jesus affirms that they will. But, as for the places of honour, these are for the Father to assign.
The other ten disciples have been standing near by, eavesdropping on the conversation between Jesus, James and John. They are angry at hearing of their attempt to get in first and claim the seats of honour for themselves – no doubt, they would have liked to do the same!
Jesus takes the opportunity to tell them, yet again, that real greatness in the Kingdom of God lies in self-sacrificing service to humanity. Authority among the people of Christ is not to be exercised by ‘lording it over’ others or by using positions and capacities for self-serving ends. Authority is always to be at the service of and for the benefit of others. Disciples are called to be servants, not masters.
As we follow Jesus through the Gospel, we see that his ‘authority’ over demons, illness and death, as well as his teaching, always brings liberation, restores health and wholeness and sets others at rights with God and neighbour.
That is the pattern that he asks the disciples to follow. The only way to enter into Jesus’ ‘glory’ is to follow him in self-sacrificing service of humanity, as one who gives up their life as a ransom for many.
- pdf Celebrating At Home - 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time [PDF](3.34 MB)
- default Celebrating At Home - 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time [ePub](5.12 MB)
- pdf Celebrando en Familia - XXIX Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario(445 KB)
- pdf Celebrando in Casa - XXIX Domenica del Tempo Ordinario(459 KB)
- pdf Celebrando em família - XXIX Domingo do Tempo Comum(443 KB)
St. Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church
October 15 | Feast
Saint Teresa of Avila is among the most important figures of all time for Catholic spirituality. Her works - especially the four best known (The Life, The Way of Perfection, The Mansions and The Foundations) - together with her more historical works, contain a doctrine which encompasses the whole of the spiritual life, from the first steps right up to intimacy with God at the centre of the Interior Castle. Her Letters show her occupied with a great variety of everyday problems. Her doctrine on the unity of the soul with God (a doctrine which was intimately lived by her) follows the Carmelite tradition which had preceded her and to which she herself contributed in such a notable way, enriching it as well as passing the tradition on, not only to her spiritual sons and daughters, but also to the whole Church which she served so unsparingly. When she was dying, her one joy was to be able to affirm that "I die a daughter of the Church".
Read more ...
In November, Edizioni Carmelitane will release a very timely new publication by renowned Philippino author Macario Ofilada Mina, A Spirituality of Truth: Philosophical Explorations of St. Teresa of Jesus.
In the meantime, to learn more about the life of St. Teresa and her work and legacy, we suggest reading the following books from Edizioni Carmelitane The Heirs of St. Teresa of Avila and "I Consider the Labor Well Spent" A Mini-Course on the Interior Castle.
To access these and many other fine publications at Edizioni Carmelitane, click here.
Celebrating At Home - 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Nothing is Impossible for God
(Mark 10:17-27)
In the Jewish tradition, wealth was seen as a blessing from God and the wealthy person as especially favoured by God. Along with the idea of divine blessing and favour came a divine obligation (often ignored) – the care of God’s poor.
As the conversation between the rich man and Jesus unfolds, we see that he a good and upright man. The commandments which Jesus spells out are those to do with one’s treatment of others. These, the rich man says, he has always kept.
Jesus’ love and affection for the man recognises his very genuine efforts to live according to the commandments. This love ushers in the call to discipleship: ‘There is one thing you lack. Go and sell everything you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ Jesus wants this man to be a follower of his. He is inviting him to move from a way of life centred on the Torah (Jewish law) to a way of life centred totally on Jesus.
When the man first approaches Jesus he asks what more he must do to inherit eternal life while still maintaining the present direction of his life. What Jesus is inviting him into is the total transformation of his life – to go in a new direction. Jesus is inviting him to an even more radical fulfilment of his obligations to neighbour by selling all he has, giving the proceeds to the poor, and then becoming a follower of Jesus.
Rather sadly, the rich man cannot take this step. He is trapped and controlled by his possessions and cannot let them go in order to enter into joyful and life-giving companionship with Jesus.
When Jesus talks about how hard it is for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God the disciples are astounded. They, too, think of wealth and possessions as a sign of God’s favour and blessing. Jesus drives home his point by insisting that, ‘It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.’ The disciples are even more astounded and conclude that if rich people can’t make it into the kingdom, then what hope do the rest of us have?
Jesus’ reply to the disciples tells us clearly that if we rely on human resources and means it is impossible to find salvation. But if we rely on God, then we can be saved - the good and gracious God who gives the Kingdom as pure, unmerited gift.
Sometimes, the very things we love, in which we find our security and in which we place our trust can turn out to be our undoing and stumbling blocks on our journey into the kingdom.
Jesus’ reply about God who can do the impossible is also a reassurance that God stands ready to journey with us, to help us find the way to move our hearts from reliance on ourselves and human resources to rely on God’s love and companionship.
- pdf Celebrating At Home - 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time [PDF](3.46 MB)
- default Celebrating At Home - 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time [ePub](5.84 MB)
- pdf Celebrando en Familia - XXVIII Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario(420 KB)
- pdf Celebrando in Casa - XXVIII Domenica del Tempo Ordinario(422 KB)
- pdf Celebrando em família - XXVIII Domingo do Tempo Comum(419 KB)
General Chapter of Carmelite Sisters Held in Caracas
General Chapter of the Hermanas Carmelitas de Madre Candelaria Held in Caracas
From August 30 to September 6, 2024, the Congregation of the 'Hermanas Carmelitas de Madre Candelaria' celebrated their XVII General Chapter. “Walking Together in Communion, Participation and Mission” was chosen as the theme of the gathering.
The General Chapter was held at the generalate in Caracas-DC, Venezuela, with the participation of 31 sisters from the congregation’s communities in Venezuela, Bolivia, and Brazil.
After a previous week of spiritual exercises, the chapter days were taken up with reflection on the experience of religious consecration in the institute. An agreement was arrived at on the courses of action to be taken in order to promote fraternal communion, and the spiritual and apostolic vitality of the congregation.
The Carmelite Family will celebrate 100 years of the congregation’s aggregation to the Carmelite Order on March 25, 2025.
The XVII General Chapter also elected the sisters who will form the general government of the congregation during the sexennium 2024-2030:
General Superior | Superiora General | Superiore generale:
Sr. M. Luisa América Córdova Cova
1st Councilor | 1ª Consejera | 1ª Consigliera:
Sr. Carmen Moreno García
2nd Councilor | 2ª Consejera | 2ª Consigliera:
Sr. Ana María Montilla
3rd Councilor | 3ª Consejera | 3ª Consigliera:
Sr. Yaritza Jackeline Rujano Durán
4th Councilor | 4ª Consejera | 4ª Consigliera:
Sr. Yusmilat Emenencio
Celebrating At Home - 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Gracious and Generous Love
(Mark 10:2-16)
No doubt, many will find this Sunday’s Gospel difficult reading.
One of the great themes of Mark’s Gospel is that, in Jesus, all things are being restored to God’s original purpose. That gives us a bit of context for the words of Jesus.
Among Jewish scholars and rabbis of Jesus’ time there was often fierce debate about the grounds for divorce permitted by Jewish Law (Deuteronomy 24:1). As the Gospel recalls, a man could draw up a ‘writ of dismissal’, give it to his wife and they would be considered divorced. At least one line of thought allowed the husband to do this for almost any reason whatever. In a way, the writ was meant as a kind of protection for the woman lest she be accused of infidelity.
When the Pharisees approach Jesus, they already seem to be aware of his teaching about divorce and may be trying to trap him into saying something against Moses and the Law. Something they could use against him.
Jesus, however, talks not about the Law, but about God’s original intention for marriage using quotes from the Book of Genesis.
The words of Jesus make clear that marriage is part of God’s design for human beings. The rich imagery of the husband being so drawn to his wife that he leaves home and family and the two become ‘one body’ implies great love, warmth, intimacy and companionship. When God draws human beings together like this, man must not divide them.
Later, the disciples question Jesus about his teaching. It is important to understand that Jesus’ reply is about a situation in which one party in the marriage divorces the other in order to marry someone else. It is not talking about a person fleeing an abusive relationship or one which has failed for some other reason. So, it is important not to take these words of Jesus and use them as a judgement on those who have divorced, or who have remarried some time later.
It is also worth remembering that the Church itself has a process to assist people whose marriages fail, often enabling them to marry again.
The reply that Jesus gives recognises husband and wife as equal partners in marriage. No longer, according to Jesus, is it permissible for a husband to divorce his wife ‘because he finds something displeasing about her’ (Deut 24:1) and neither can the wife.
Jesus does the same thing in the following story about the little children. When people (probably their mothers) bring the little children to Jesus for a blessing, the disciples, acting as minders, shoo them away. Once again, the disciples have got things wrong, and Jesus rebukes them. They seem to have forgotten already Jesus’ teaching in last week’s Gospel about welcoming the little child.
Jesus astounds the disciples by insisting that the Kingdom of God belongs to those who welcome it like little children, who open-heartedly embrace the Kingdom as sheer gift from a gracious God. The Kingdom cannot be earned, or bought, or bargained for. It is ours for the taking. All we need is the conversion of heart to believe in a God who is so good and so gracious as to give us the Kingdom freely and without measure.
In both parts of the Gospel today, Jesus teaches that married women and children are not to be treated as possessions or objects, but with dignity and respect. As well as recalling God’s initial intention for marriage, Jesus also recalls God’s initial intention about the treatment of other people including those thought to be of lesser or no account.
The disciples need to learn that only those who receive the kingdom of God with the openness and receptivity of a child will be able to enter into the mystery of God’s gracious and generous love.
- pdf Celebrating At Home - 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time [PDF](4.65 MB)
- default Celebrating At Home - 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time [ePub](5.24 MB)
- pdf Celebrando en Familia - XXVII Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario(894 KB)
- pdf Celebrando in Casa - XXVII Domenica del Tempo Ordinario(880 KB)
- pdf Celebrando em família - XXVII Domingo do Tempo Comum(903 KB)
The Congress of Lay Carmelites Held in Rome
The Congress of Lay Carmelites was held in Rome from September 15-21, 2024 to Discuss Formation, Service, Fraternity and Prayer
The Carmelite retreat center Il Carmelo, located in Sassone, Italy, hosted 200 members of the Carmelite Laity from 30 nations for a week of conferences and sharing experiences about formation, service, fraternity and prayer in their lives and in their local communities. The theme of the Congress was Lay Carmelites: Called to ignite the world.
From October 15, 2023 to March 25, 2024, local communities reflected on a questionnaire, sent by the International Secretariat for the Laity. A total of 643 responses were received from all five continents. These responses were used to prepare an Instrumentum Laboris, a preparatory document that guided the discussions of the Congress.
At a later stage, the Congress was held in Sassone. The Lay Carmelites, in addition to the presentations and the sharing of experiences, had the opportunity to share meals and free time, as well as to participate in the papal audience and to visit the city of Rome.
The third phase will be to implement some of the ideas raised at the Congress and to present some proposals to the General Chapter of the Order to be held in 2025.
In addressing the theme of the Congress, the Congress agrees with the emphasis of Pope Francis on the need for openness of our Church; to go out to others to reach out to the human peripheries. One participant expressed: “We want to emphasize that we are mission, a laity in action, that we seek to go out of ourselves and out of the comfort of our communities, to set out on the road (...) the love of God, like the Prophet Elijah, burns our hearts and impels us to share that love with others to change the world”.
Luis José Maza Subero, General Councilor, who is the liaison between the General Council and the International Secretariat of the Carmelite Laity, expressed the following at the closing of the Congress: “The Carmelite Order is promoting the role of the laity, an example of which was this Congress, in which our laity expressed themselves in the final paper. “Our Order has much to offer to the world, as Carmelites we have been able to live this Congress as a transforming experience, we return different from how we came, prayer and shared fraternity gives us strength for the mission; we have seen how the Spirit in our diversity, acts and urges us to move forward. We are not building for today. We are not working for tomorrow. We are forging a path for eternity”.
A book is being prepared by Edizioni Carmelitane containing the presentations and other materials from the Congress, to make the ideas presented during the week available to those who could not attend, as well as to those who are interested in the latest developments in the Lay Carmelite communities.
Feast of St. Thérèse of Lisieux
For the feast of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, the Communications Office is proud to present three reflections on her life and teaching by Fr. Giampiero Molinari, a member of the Italian Province. These three conferences were part of the ongoing formation program for the European region. The first conference was given in October 2023, the 150th anniversary of the birth of the saint and the 100th anniversary of her beatification by Pope Pius XI. The third and final conference was given on April 20, 2024.
Each conference includes questions for reflection.
We hope you enjoy these presentations on Thérèse’s life experiencing mercy and grace, Thérèse’s “Little Way,” and Thérèse and the Church and are drawn to a further reflection of them in your own life.
Conference 1: Mercy in Fragility and the Primacy of Grace
pdf Reflection Questions(365 KB)
Conference 2: The ‘little way’: a spirituality of the everyday
pdf Reflection Questions(365 KB)
Conference 3: “In The Heart of the Church” (ms B 3v): The Apostolic Horizon of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
pdf Reflection Questions(366 KB)
To read more on the life of St. Therese of Lisieux, Virgin and Doctor of the Church
