O.Carm
St. Martin of Tours Celebrated in Rome
The Feast of St. Martin of Tours Celebrated at the Carmelite Church in Rome
Since November 2018, the Carmelite parish of San Martino ai Monti in Rome has celebrated its patron’s feast day in the traditional way.
“In September 2016, I was made pastor of SS. Silvestro and Martino ai Monti parish,” explains Fr. Lucio Zappatore. “Delving into the figure of one of our patron saints, St. Martin, I dicovered his importance on the European level. In particular I discovered the procession in other places of St. Martin on horseback, followed by children with lanterns (recalling the transport of St. Martin's body from Candes, where he had died on November 8, 397, to Tours, the city where he was bishop). And this procession on the feast is the most popular processions in Europe. It was missing here in Rome, so it seemed important to us to establish it here as well.”
This year Bishop Rino Fisichella, the pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization and the man responsible for organizing the 2025 Jubilee Year, presided. This year’s Mass was extremely crowded; extra chairs provided and then people either sat on the steps of the side altars or stood. This year the 500 lanterns prepared were not enough. In addition to the children from the parish community, children from German schools here in Rome joined in with their own lanterns.
The procession started in the square in front of the church. It moved along to Via Merulana, a large tree covered street that connects the papal basilicas of St. John Lateran and St. Mary Major. At the square in front of St. Mary Major, the procession paused. As a surprise to the participants, the head of the basilica, Archbishop Rolandas Makrickas, invited all the children to climb, with their lanterns, to the central balcony of the basilica's facade to greet St. Martin from above!
“It was a wonderful sight,” said Fr. Zappatore.
The procession then returned to the square in front of San Martino church. There “St. Martin” met a poor man and gave him half of his cloak. This recalls an episode from St. Martin’s life. This was followed with the distribution of St. Martin's cake to the children and chestnuts with new wine to the adults. The families concluded the feast in the nearby Brancaccio Palace. The manager offered complimentary refreshments to the children and their parents.
One of the characteristics of the figure of St. Martin was his concern for the poor and the least among us ("gli scarti" as Pope Francis calls them) so the Carmelite parish community, for many years, has kept this aspect of charity in the forefront: twice a week the parish provides showers and a change of clothes to those living on the street. The parish also distributes food packages and linens to needy families who are referred by the parish Centro d’Ascolto.
The parish is working on establishing a Confraternity of St. Martin to carry out all the charitable activities of the parish. This will be connected to the large family of Confraternities of St. Martin Brotherhoods scattered around Europe.
Prior General Releases Letter to the Carmelite Nuns
On November 21, 2023, the Carmelite prior general, Míceál O’Neill, has released a letter to the Carmelite nuns to commemorate Pro Orantibus Day. In the letter he tells them that “the knowledge that you are there, serving the Lord as contemplative Carmelite sisters, is a source of strength and consolation for us all.”
Fr. Miceal speaks of Carmel as “a place of peace and your life exemplifies that.” He asks that “we unite in prayer and allow God’s peace and God’s desire for peace to fill our hearts and our minds …”
On November 21st the Church celebrates the Memorial of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary in the Temple. Pro Orantibus Day was instituted by Pope Pius XII on November 21, 1953, as a day for all the faithful to thank God for the gift of the enclosed religious life who promote the edification of the Kingdom of God with unceasing prayer day and night.
Carmelite Bishop Named to New Diocese in Brazil
Carmelite Bishop Francisco de Sales Named to New Diocese in Brazil
According to the Saturday Bulletin of the Press Office of the Holy See, Bishop Francisco de Sales Alencar Batista, O. Carm., has been nominated as the bishop of the diocese of Mossoró in Brasil. Bishop Sales was until now bishop of the diocese of Cajazeiras in Brasil.
Sales studied at the Milltown Institute of Theology and Philosophy in Ireland and received a licentiate in spiritual theology from the Teresianum in Rome. He served as general secretary of the Order during a portion of the generalate of Fernando Millán. He was named bishop of Cajazeiras in June 2016 and was ordained bishop the following August.
The Diocese of Mossoró was created in July 1934. It has had six bishops before Sales. It covers 7,272 square miles/18,832 km2 and as of 2004 had a total population of 825,000, of which 793,000 (96.1%) are Catholic.
The Order congratulates Bishop Sales on his new appointment and assure him and his new diocese of the prayers of the Carmelite Family.
Causa Nostrae Laetitiae
PROFESSIO SOLEMNIS
27-09-23 Maria Jeanette Candelaria Malapit (SIG) Tarlac, Philippines
ORDINATIO SACERDOTALIS
08-09-23 Everton Ramos Cláudio (Pern) Petrolina, Brasil
31-10-23 Novaldus Adventus Wero Gedho (Indo-Est) Maumere, Indonesia
31-10-23 Yulius Dala Pede (Indo-Est) Maumere, Indonesia
31-10-23 Inosensius Sumbi Sola (Indo-Est) Maumere, Indonesia
14-11-23 Flor Vincent Toac (Phil) Quezon City, Philippines
14-11-23 Eduardo Adolfo, Jr. (Phil) Quezon City, Philippines
Celebrating At Home - 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Growing the Kingdom
(Matthew 25:14-30)
Continuing the theme of last week’s parable about the wise and the foolish women, this parable also concentrates on wisdom. The wise servants fulfil the bond of trust placed in them by the master by are being productive with an enormous amount of money entrusted to them. Like the perfect wife in the first reading, they are industrious in contrast to the third servant who uses fear as an excuse for doing nothing.
Like last Sunday, today’s Gospel is another ‘meantime’ parable - how do we live as disciples of Christ in the meantime as we wait for his return?
The master entrusts his property to his servants and goes away. On his return, he asks for an accounting of what they have done with his property. The servants who have been industrious and productive are praised.
Christ has entrusted us with the Kingdom of God.
We are called to work industriously and productively with the Spirit so that the Kingdom, the Reign of God’s grace, may be seen and experienced through us, and that others also may come to believe. The Kingdom gifts of love, justice, mercy, compassion and forgiveness are multiplied. The Kingdom grows.
Both the first reading and the Gospel today praise busy, energetic people - those who produce much from what has been given to them. In these readings we find an image of how to wait in this ‘in between time’ for the final coming of Christ. The Christian disciple is called to watch and wait, not in a lazy or self-indulgent way, but eagerly doing the work of the Kingdom and producing its fruits of justice, mercy, peace, hope and love as we go about our daily tasks.
It is the ideal of responsible stewardship which is proclaimed in the Gospel. We have been entrusted with the very life of God. What are we doing/will we do with it?
- pdf Celebrating At Home - 33th Sunday in Ordinary Time [PDF](2.81 MB)
- default Celebrating At Home - 33th Sunday in Ordinary Time [ePub](2.04 MB)
- Celebrando en Familia - 33 Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario
- Celebrando in Casa - 33 Domenica del Tempo Ordinario
- Celebrando em familia - 33 Domingo do Tempo Comum
Commemoration of All Carmelite Souls
November 15 | Optional Memorial
Gathered together by one and the same love for Christ and reverence for his most beloved Mother, the members of the Carmelite family continue to love one another fraternally, whether they are engaged in the struggle for Christ on this earth, or, their earthly pilgrimage over, they await the glorious vision of the Lord.
Therefore, the entire Order, united in prayer, commends to God's mercy its deceased brothers and sisters affirn that, through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, pledge of sure hope and joy, He may receive them among the glorious choirs of saints.
All Carmelite Saints
14 November Feast
"Like the prophet Elijah, all the Saints of Carmel have been shaped through a school of spiritual fire. They also intimated the example of Mary and made their truest expression in the experience of love and that love makes the history of the Order. They became a hymn of praise to offer to our God."
Celebration of Bl. Mother Maria Teresa Scrilli
13 November Optional Memorial in the Italian Provinces
Some Observations on the Spirituality of Mother Scrilli
From childhood she showed signs of extraordinary piety and, thanks to the positive influence of her teachers, cultivated her spiritual life through assiduous attendance at the sacraments and readings from the lives of the saints, especially St. Mary Magdalena de'Pazzi. Her mother’s lack of love for having a second daughter and her own long serious illness at the age of 15 drew her ever closer to the suffering of Christ and his Cross. Suffering experienced as an act of love made her delve more and more into the mystery of the Cross. “Patire per amore” (To Suffer for Love) was her motto.
In addition to devotion to Christ’s passion and the Eucharist, she had a tender love for Mary whom she considered her “dear mother.”
When she attempted to live as a cloistered nun at the monastery of St Mary Magdalen de’Pazzi, who she had a devotion to as well, she found that God had other plans for her. She and some friends started teaching. But that too did not work out because of the anti-Church attitudes in Florence at the time. Years later, in 1875, they restarted the Istituto di Nostra Signora del Carmelo knowing that this was God’s will.
To her intense activity, Mother Scrilli united a profound and continuous life of prayer. She knew how to harmonize prayer and work, contemplation and action, self-giving to God and service to her brothers and sisters. This became the goal of the Institute.
While she endured many constant physical sufferings, she also endured moral one with a spirit of faith and conformity to Divine Will. Her whole desire, in fact, was to fulfill God’s will. The “fiat” was the constant that accompanied her throughout her life.
Read more on Mother Maria Teresa Scrilli...
To learn more about the life of Mother Maria Teresa and her work and legacy, we suggest reading The Autobiography of Maria Teresa Scrilli, Foundress of the Institute of Our Lady of Mount Carmel published by Edizioni Carmelitane
From: Dizionario Carmelitani, 2008
Carmelite Nuns in Wahpeton Celebrate Elective Chapter
The Carmelite nuns of Wahpeton (USA) held their triennial elections on November 1, 2023. Presiding over the election was Bishop John T. Folda, Bishop of Fargo. He also offered Mass before the beginning of the meetings and opened the Chapter with a prayer that the Holy Spirit would open minds and hearts to God’s grace in the lives of the sisters and the community and that the prioress would be a servant after the Heart of Jesus.
The monastery was founded 69 years ago by Sr. Rosa of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and six nuns from the Carmelite monastery in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The date of the foundation is October 24, 1954.
The website of the monastery is https://www.carmelofmary.org
The results of the elective chapter were as follows:
Prioress | Priora | Priora:
Sr. Madonna of the Assumption Morales, O. Carm.
1st Councilor | 1ª Consejera | 1ª Consigliera:
Sr. Margaret Mary of the Sacred Heart Sticka, O. Carm.
2nd Councilor | 2ª Consejera | 2ª Consigliera:
Sr. Joseph Marie of the Child Jesus Bedard, O. Carm.
Treasurer | Ecónoma | Economa
Sr. Veronica of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Hartley, O. Carm.
Formator | Formadora | Formatrice
Sr. Margaret Mary of the Sacred Heart Sticka, O. Carm.
Sacristan | Sacristana | Sacrestana
Sr. Veronica of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, O. Carm.
Celebrating the End of World War I with True Peace Today
Today, November 11, we remember the end of World War I, the so-called "Great War," the "War to End All Wars," on this date at the 11th hour in 1918.
Listen to the guns go silent in an recreation of the moment based on based on actual recordings.
The war was not great nor did it stop future wars. As we find our world in conflict in at least 32 places 105 years after this armistice, let us make this Day of Remembrance also a Day of Prayer for the transformation of the hearts of all.
Let us realize the words of St. Pope Paul VI: "If you want peace, work for justice" is the task of each and every one of us.
