Defending God

Defending God

“In our time more than ever before, the greatest asset of those disposed toward evil is the cowardice and weakness of good men, and all the vigor of Satan's reign is due to the easygoing weakness of Catholics.” – St. Pius X As we see the world marching on its obstinate path away from God, we take heart in the example of souls who did believe, did hope and indeed loved! And were instruments of good and grace to transform the world, not only in their own time, but in centuries to come. These were the souls who found strength in understanding deeply their own weakness - and God's mighty strength. St. Teresa and St. Therese are two familiar names, but we also remember Blessed Nuno Alvarez, who was a knight become Carmelite, and St. Joan of Arc, who battled for the reign of Christ the King.

During this month of the rosary, in WEBSITE NEWS we remember other types of prayer beads called Chaplets.

These past few months have been full of projects – maintenance projects, landscaping projects, repair projects – and in COMMUNITY NEWS we share pictures of just a few of them. We also answer a question asked by many of our readers, “what are Carmelite recreations like?” Read More….

Freedom and the Martyrs of Compiegne

Freedom and the Martyrs of Compiegne

The day after the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, is the feast day of the Martyrs of Compiegne, sixteen Carmelite Sisters who were put to death during the French revolution for remaining faithful to their religious life. We briefly visit their story, which is not well known, and discuss the irony – that though these woman were imprisoned and put to death for their Faith, not many experience the true freedom that they had. What exactly is freedom? To do whatever we want? “Liberty in the eyes of the world, is freedom to disobey as well as to obey, freedom to do evil as well as to do good. True liberty, according to the saints, is not freedom to disobey but only to obey, it is not freedom to do evil, but only to do good... It is the power to say with Satan: "I will not obey." ... If liberty is thus understood, clearly it is impossible to see how Jesus was free, He who never rebelled against divine authority or the commandments of His Father, and who could not rebel against them.” - Fr. Reginald Garrigous-Lagrange

In WEBSITE NEWS we have re-designed our Sacred Heart relic badge and describe the history of this devotion, beginning with Saint Margaret Mary herself. We also give suggestions for good spiritual reading.

All-night Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament for the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the highlight of our COMMUNITY NEWS. We also finished a vestment dedicated to St. Therese, the first face we have attempted with embroidery! Read More….

Why must we do Penance?

Why must we do Penance?

Once again it is the season of Lent, and we have again taken up the Christian warfare against sin in and around us. The true Christian always has the answer to the question, "Why do we suffer?" And closely related to that question, especially during Lent, is, "Why must we do penance?" The questions remain at the heart of many sorrowful, confused lives - and they are answered by the most sound, consoling responses, all rooted in the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Our Saints and the holy friends of God give us the key to understanding suffering.

In WEBSITE NEWS we look at the history behind and symbolism contained in the St. Benedict Medals. It is the only medal blessed by the Church with a special exorcism and is very powerful against the devil! Holy water is also a very powerful weapon against temptations, and we briefly discuss its significance, especially in light of the upcoming feast of Easter. Our Lenten newsletters also always contain suggestions for good Lenten spiritual reading.

A beautiful vest in honor of St. Joseph, complete with green velvet and intricate embroidery, is finally finished. We share some of the adventures with you in our COMMUNITY NEWS section, along with an important discovery we made for the Lenten Carmelite diet, fava beans! Read More….

The Law of Praying is the Law of Believing

The Law of Praying is the Law of Believing

The liturgy, as Saints and Doctors of the Church so often instruct, is the most fruitful source for individual spiritual life, personal prayer and progress in our union with God. This is vividly brought before us at this time of year, as we end the liturgical year and begin another. The liturgical texts of Advent bring before our minds and hearts the sentiments we should have as we prepare for the two-fold coming of Christ, both at Christmas and then again at the end of time: “The Lord shall come to save the nations, and the Lord shall make heard the glory of His voice in the joy of your heart.” (Isaias 30:30)

In WEBSITE NEWS we give suggestions for Christmas gifts, including many new books for children that have been added to our site.

In COMMUNITY NEWS we share our joy with you at one of our Novice’s final profession and veiling. The ceremony of receiving the black veil is both a symbolic and moving one. Read More….

Remembrance of the Holy Souls

Remembrance of the Holy Souls

This SPECIAL EDITION of our newsletter is dedicate to the Poor Souls in Purgatory as the month of November will shortly be upon us. A custom here at the Chapel is to place the names of our deceased family members and other loved ones on the altar to be remembered at all of the Masses here during the entire month. We invite you to do the same!

If we knew we could still help those we love who have departed from this world, wouldn’t we want very much to do it? Learning more about this doctrine can up us help them, and we give several reading suggestions on this topic. Read More….

The 5th Centenary of St. Teresa of Avila

The 5th Centenary of St. Teresa of Avila

A few centuries ago, this feast day was instituted to celebrate the victory of one of the greatest Christian battles in history, the battle of Lepanto. This year also marks the 5th Centenary of the birth of St. Teresa of Avila, a cause to celebrate for all Carmelites! St. Therese, and the Holy Angels and also remembered during this month of October.

In WEBSITE NEWS we’ve added two new chaplets to our website, the chaplet of St. Raphael (known as the healer and also “the matchmaker” and patron of those seeking a spouse) and the chaplet of St. Peregrine (patron saint of cancer sufferers).

In COMMUNITY NEWS we celebrate the final profession of one of our Sisters. Keeping up with canning and gardening is a challenge at this time of year! Read More….

The Sacred and Eucharistic Heart of Jesus

The Sacred and Eucharistic Heart of Jesus

The Church dedicates this entire month of June to the Sacred Heart, encouraging her children to this devotion, which is, simply enough, devotion to the love of Our Savior, of which His Heart is the symbol. “My Son, give Me your heart,” God says to all souls (Proverbs 23:26). We visit the miracle of Lanciano, one of the most astounded and scientifically verified miracles of all time, where Our Lord showed us a cross-section of that Heart in the most Blessed Sacrament.

In WEBSITE NEWS we explain the features and improvements we incorporated into the new website which has finally launched.

COMMUNITY NEWS shares some of the stories and adventures we encountered creating the new site, as well as some other projects – completing our hermitage and keeping up with the gardens. Read More….

Advent and the Christmas Gift

Advent and the Christmas Gift

Advent once again, and we recall the beautiful lessons it teaches us - the preparation for the renewal of the First Coming of our Lord in hiddenness and mercy, and the preparation for His Second and Final Coming in judgment. In this Advent letter, we tell you about Stephene, a customer who became a friend and shared with us a Christmas poem she wrote about having a gift to give to Our Lord Himself on His birthday.

In COMMUNITY NEWS we share are story of trying to stain some stores in freezing weather as well as preparations for Christmas. Read More….

Prayerful Remembrance of the Holy Souls in Purgatory

Prayerful Remembrance of the Holy Souls in Purgatory

It is a prayerful month, as we answer the call of Holy Mother Church to pray for the Faithful Departed, “that they may be released from their sins,” as the Book of Machabees expresses it. Carmelites have ever been devoted to praying for the souls in Purgatory, as the history of the Order documents, especially from the time of our Holy Mother St. Teresa. “Marvelous is the mercy of God to have provided sinners with a Purgatory – a place of purification in unchangeable eternity; a robing room for those whose wedding garments are earth-soiled; a period when God Himself, jealous for the beauty of His bride, finishes the life-work which the negligent soul has left undone.” – Divine Crucible

In WEBSITE NEWS we are still constructing our new website, and with Advent coming soon, we recommend some good spiritual reading to help prepare for Christmas.

In COMMUNITY NEWS we share with you pictures from the funeral and requiem vestment sets we just completed. The weeping willow design was based on an old vestment that we have. Read More….

Fires and Floods

Fires and Floods

The events of this long, difficult summer have kept us from writing a newsletter sooner! Our sincere thanks to all who have emailed and written with concern to ask about our safety during the June forest fires and the heavy rains and floods of September. Sadly, many who have not faith, question how a loving God could allow such devastation to take place. And even those who do have faith very often do not understand why we suffer. Why are we left to our loneliness and loss? Has God forgotten us, our troubles, our need? On the contrary, the God of heaven and earth - our sovereign, strong, living God - sends and permits trouble and sorrow for the very purpose of making us know our need and to draw us from the superficial things of life. "Suffering, when accepted in the right spirit, enhances the understanding: it reveals the secret nature of things and shows everything as it is.

In WEBSITE NEWS we are still working on the new website, and have added a woodcarved image of Our Lady of Mount Carmel to our site. We decided to embroider the tiny scapulars for this image ourselves!

In COMMUNITY NEWS the Black Forest Fire only a few miles from us encouraged us to do some mitigation on our own property. We were able to have a procession to celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Read More….