Author: ocd web master

On Saturday, June 17, 2023, at the Carmelite nuns’ monastery in Logbakro, two jubilees were celebrated, one golden and the other silver: that of Sr Marie Pacis of Jesus and that of Sr Marie Bernadette of Eternal Love.

Religious men and women from the United States, Belgium, Rwanda, Burkina Faso and the Ivory Coast took part in the celebration. The new bishop of Yamoussoukro, Mgr. Joseph Aka, presided at the Eucharist which was concelebrated by a dozen priests, including Discalced Carmelites. The celebration was full of singing and dancing as a sign of gratitude to God.

After the Mass, a meal was offered and shared in a convivial atmosphere. At the end of the day, after Vespers and dinner, recreation took place together with parents, friends and our Carmelite sisters.

 

The canonical erection of the OCDS communities of St. Joseph and Our Lady of Hope, in Malawi, took place last May. The solemn ceremonies of canonical erection brought much joy to everyone and great celebrations were organized.

We are grateful for the establishment of these two OCDS communities of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, and ask God to continue to bless the Discalced Carmelite Family in Malawi.

 

Inauguration of the Academic Year 2023-24 and Lectio brevis

The inauguration of the academic year 2023-24 of the Pushpashrama Institute of Philosophy and Religion took place on June 3rd Saturday. The solemn inaugural Eucharistic celebration was presided over by Rev Fr Silvestre D’Souza OCD, the Provincial Superior of Karnataka Goa Province. At 11.00 am, Fr Oswald Crasta OCD, the Rector welcomed the gathering, Fr Wilfred Rodrigues OCD, the Dean presented the annual report, and the students put up a chorus and a piece of instrumental music. The Lectio brevis was presented by Dr. M. Daniel, a Professor at Mysore University. Students’ wall magazine ‘Cosmos’ was released by Fr Provincial. The program ended with a Pushpashrama anthem.

 

Called to serve our Mother, the Church!

On June 5, 2023, his Excellency Most Rev Peter Paul Saldanha, Bishop of Mangalore, ordained five Carmelite Brothers of the Karnataka Goa Province as deacons, in Jeppu, along with eight Diocesan Brothers. Many dioceses and religious priests participated in the Mass. Each of the brothers’ families was present. The Mariya Jayanti Hall on the Seminary grounds organized a brief felicitation programme to congratulate the newly ordained deacons. We express our deep joy at the ordination of these Brothers to the diaconate and pledge our fervent support for their ministry.

 

From the 8th to the 11th of June 2023, the 16th Provincial Congress of the North/Northeast OCDS of the Province of São José took place in Fortaleza, Ceará. After two years of absence due to the pandemic, the Congress was even more special with the participation of secular Carmelites from various regions of the country and the presence of Father Provincial, Fr. Emerson of Jesus OCD and the three Delegates for the OCDS, Fr. Alzinir Debastiani OCD, Fr. Luis Fernando OCD and Fr. Wilson Gomes OCD and the OCDS Provincial President,  Rose Lemos.

The Congress was structured around various moments for reflection, prayer, fraternal communion and joy.  Carmelite spirituality was discussed, as an authentic testimony of our vocation, addressing our identity as Carmelites and belonging to the Order of Discalced Carmelites. Emphasized was the importance and necessity of promoting vocations and a more active presence of the communities of the Secular Order in the activities of the Church and with apostolates that promote the Carmelite charism.

 

On Saturday, the 29th of April 2023, the St John of the Cross OCDS Community, Melbourne, gathered in the parish of the Good Shepherd Church in Gladstone Park, Victoria, to celebrate the first centenary of the beatification of St Thérèse of the Child Jesus. Fr Dishan Candappa, OCDS, celebrated St Thérèse’s votive Mass for the Community and its guests in his parish, with her first class relic was present on the altar.

After the celebration of the Mass, we gathered in the parish hall and enjoyed a beautiful feast of food and fellowship together. We had two display tables with Carmelite resources: one dedicated to the occasion, and the other with various Carmelite pamphlets. It was a most joyful and blessed occasion. May we always strive to follow St Thérèse’s Little Way as we delve deeper into the richness of her life in Christ. “In the heart of the Church, my Mother, I shall be Love.”

 

At the initiative of the Pontifical Russicum College in Rome, the relics of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus and her parents, Louis and Zélie Martin, came on pilgrimage to Rome from the 6th to the 16th of June.

On June 7, the relics were present at the general audience of Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square. Pope Francis consecrated his catechesis to Therese, “patroness of the missions”.  He affirmed that the presence of Therese was a consolation for him and announced that he wanted to dedicate an Apostolic Letter to her this year. “Pope Francis stated that the engine of mission is precisely this ‘power of intercession moved by charity’, and underlines that missionaries ‘are not only those who travel long distances, learn new languages, do good works, and are good at proclamation, no, a missionary is also anyone who lives as an instrument of God’s love where they are. Missionaries are those who do everything so that, through their witness, their prayer, their intercession, Jesus might pass by’”.

On Thursday, June 8, the relics were received at the Teresianum. That same day, a Seminar on holiness in Thérèse of Lisieux began, with 17 specialists sharing the fruit of their research. At 6 p.m., at the Teresianum, there was a solemn Eucharistic celebration at which Fr. General, Fr. Miguel Márquez Calle, presided, in the numerous presence of many devotees and many members of the great Carmelite Family, men and women religious and secular. At the end of the celebration, the relics were transferred in procession to the nearby Basilica of St. Pancras, of the Discalced Carmelites of Central Italy, for an Adoration animated by young people that lasted throughout the night. On Sunday the 11th, the relics were present, from 8.30 am, in our Saint Teresa of Avila parish in Corso d’Italia. At 10:30 a.m., Father General presided at the solemn Mass of Corpus Christi, in the presence of the relics. In the afternoon, the relics continued on their Roman pilgrimage.

[1] https://www.vaticannews.va/it/papa/news/2023-06/papa-francesco-udienza-generale-zelo-missioni-santa-teresina.html

 

The first Carmelite Day in Burkina Faso took place on Sunday, April 30, 2023 at the monastery of our O.Carm Friars, in Bobo-Dioulasso. Ninety-two people from the cities of Gourcy, Ouagadougou, Nouna, Dédougou and Bobo-Dioulasso took part in this Day. They belonged to the great family of Carmel: O.Carm., OCD, Carmelite Missionary Sisters, Sisters of Providence of la Pommeraye, Sisters of Saint Teresa of Avesnes, Teresian Sisters (Gourcy), Missionaries of the Immaculate (Sisters of Living Water), Secular Carmel, Carmelite Third Order and the Donum Dei Family.

Sunday Mass was presided over by a new priest, Fr Joseph Bassié O. Carm.  During the day there were lectures, meetings, exchanges on the topics presented, and the presentation of each community or institution of the great Carmelite family, with details on the founder, the charism, the genesis of their affiliation to the Order of Carmel and their mission.

The day ended with a cultural and recreational evening enlivened by the choir of Notre Dame du Mont Carmel of Bobo and some performances offered by religious communities. This first edition has allowed us to set out together, as Pope Francis invites us, as the great Carmelite family present in Burkina Faso.

 

The Secular Carmel has a long history in Cuba. The communities of the cities of Havana and Matanzas continue to enrich their respective dioceses with their lives of prayer and service. We had the opportunity to meet María Marta of the Virgen of Carmel. In the photo, we see her showing her certificate of profession, made in Havana on July 15, 1955. She has been a secular for almost 70 years and continues her life of prayer and service with great generosity and joy.

In the city of Santa Clara there is a Confraternity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, which meets in the parish of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, served by Salesian Priests. All feel they are members of the Carmelite Order and promote devotion to the Virgin Mary through their various apostolates. Rejoicing in their vocation, they promote vocations so that others too can experience the joy of feeling part of the Order of Our Lady. We ask Our Lady of Mount Carmel to protect all her sons and daughters.

 

From Monday 17 April to Sunday 7 May 2023, the Lord gathered the Carmelite nuns of the Indian Ocean (Madagascar, Mauritius, Reunion Island) and France, for a three-week formation meeting, in Itaosy, at the house of our Carmelite friars, who were gathered for a Chapter.

Each community was represented by one or more sisters. At the school of Our Mother St. Teresa, we studied in depth the different foundations and elements of our Carmelite life. This meeting was very rich for all of us and enabled us to reassess our lives in depth.

The great novelty of this meeting was that the speakers were French Carmelite nuns (Sister Élisabeth of the Carmel of Surieu and Sister Sabine-Marie of the Carmel of Angers), and this crowned the teaching from our Carmelite Friars.

Let us thank the Lord for what we have shared together under His gaze, encouraging each other to live our Carmelite life better.

 

On April 30, 2023, the traditional procession of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, known as Taalat al-Adra (the Ascent of the Virgin), took place in the city of Haifa (Israel). Every year, a 900 kg statue, mounted for procession on a car without engine, is drawn by men and women from St Joseph’s Carmelite parish church up the side of Mt Carmel to the Stella Maris Carmelite monastery on top.

This tradition dates back to the First World War: when Turkish soldiers gave the Carmelite Fathers three hours to evacuate the Stella Maris monastery on the top of Mount Carmel. They left with only a few archival documents and the statue of Our Lady. At the end of the war, on April 27, 1919, the statue was returned to the monastery in procession, to thank the Virgin Mary for protecting the city during the war.

This year, after the restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic, about 3,000 people from Palestine and Israel took part in the procession. In a festive atmosphere, the faithful walked the three kilometres from the parish, then the 130 metres of rather steep ascent, singing psalms and hymns in honour of the Virgin Mary. Several leaders of various Churches were present, including the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Msgr. Pierbattista Pizzaballa.

In front of the Stella Maris Monastery, the Patriarch presided over the final prayers. He stressed the need for vocations to consecrated life for the Church and asked the Virgin Mary to intercede so that the Lord protects all Christian families.

 

Photo credits: © Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem

 

In April, the Secular Order and the Confraternities of Our Lady of Mount Carmel met in the La Sabatina parish in Mexico City. Members of communities and confraternities from all over the country were present. After a solemn Eucharistic celebration, the participants were able to share fraternally the beauty of their vocation in Carmel.

The Secular Order has recently elected its Provincial Council which, in communion with all communities, seeks to promote unity and dialogue. For their part, the Confraternities of Our Lady of Mount Carmel have demonstrated their fidelity to the devotion and service of the Virgin. In Mexico there is a large number of Confraternities of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, some of which are very old and have their own statutes. There is a close collaboration between the Secular Order and the Confraternities of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Each recognizes the unique and special vocation of the other. All feel brothers and sisters, all members of Carmel under the protection of the Virgin Mary and very proud to be at her service.

The meeting was marked by several very special moments, full of joy and reflection. Discussed were identity, membership of the Order of Discalced Carmelites, the current reality and the challenges of the communities. The need to promote vocations and synodality was emphasized.

 

The friars of the General Delegation Taiwan-Singapore had a double occasion to rejoice in the Solemn Profession and the Diaconal Ordination of three of their confreres — Brs. Benedict Mary, Reginald Marie, and Bartolo Maria. The Solemn Profession took place on 19th March 2023 while the Diaconal Ordination took place on 5th May 2023.
Both celebrations took place at the Church of Sts Peter and Paul in the Archdiocese of Singapore. At the ordination mass, the friars were blessed with the presence of General Definitor Fr Christianus Surinono OCD. The Archbishop of Singapore Cardinal William Goh confered the diaconal ordination. The joy of the friars were shared with the people of God as all were invited to join in a celebratory reception after the masses.

 

On April 16, as a parish, we joyfully took part in the Parade for Life and the Family, an event organized by the Regional Coordination Committee for Life.

In the morning, the members of our parish prepared our float for the event. We then took part in the event with white clothes, balloons and posters that recalled the objective of the event.

We must continue to bear witness to our commitment to the defence of Life from the moment of conception, including every human life, as well as to the nucleus of society which is the family.

 

On Sunday, March 19, 2023, the Statutes of the “Friends of Carmel” were approved for five years Ad experimentum. The group began on January 12, 2017 at the Carmelite Monastery of Bujumbura. On that same day their current residence was inaugurated.

Some of these Friends had begun to frequent the convent from the first days of its establishment in Bujumbura, attracted first by the availability of the sacrament of reconciliation, then by the morning Mass, whose schedule easily harmonized with that of work, and finally, by adoration of the Blessed Sacrament every working day from Monday to Friday.

Starting from this pastoral attention to all of them, this group of faithful gradually found themselves in spontaneous friendship with the Carmelites to the point of actively sharing in the liturgy, to the point of contributing to it with song and the readings, especially on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Then, they showed solidarity with each other and with the Carmelites in different situations of life, to the point of recognizing each other as “Friends in Christ” according to the words of Saint Teresa of Jesus (cf. Life 16:7). After an informal process that lasted six years, they were encouraged to draw up statutes to constitute themselves as an Association of the Faithful. The Provincial asked the Regional Vicar to approve these statutes. They placed themselves under the co-patronage of Saints Joseph and Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face. The aggregation of the first eighteen was marked with an act of commitment.

 

In an atmosphere of joyful fraternity, on  March 23, we celebrated the Eucharist marking the Day for the Secular Carmel, on the occasion of their 429th anniversary. Fr. Victorino Bal, Assistant of the OCDS Communities in our country presided at the Eucharist, assisted by Fr. Javier, our parish priest.

At the end of the Mass, the Seculars received a special blessing from our two priests and were subsequently invited to enter the convent, where the friars had prepared a banquet for them.

Fr Victorino told us that fraternal sharing among all the branches of Carmel is vital, because it enables us to cultivate the joy and friendship that characterizes the Teresian charism, in order to share it then with others.