“Follow Me” – Who are Secular Carmelites?

 


St Teresa Of Jesus
“I am yours.
I was born for you.
What do you want of me?””Follow Me” (John 21.19)

“a commitment to follow Jesus, like Mary, the perfect model of all the disciples of Christ”

Our Identity

Carmelite Seculars, together with the Friars and Nuns, are sons and daughters of the Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and of St Teresa of Jesus.  As a result, they share the same charism with the religious, each according to their particular way of life.  It is one family with the same spiritual possessions, the same call to holiness (cf. Ephesians 1.4, 1 Peter 1.15) and the same apostolic mission.  Secular members contribute to the Order the benefits proper to their secular state of life. (Constitutions 1)

Our Values

  • Live in allegiance to Jesus Christ;
  • Be diligent in meditating on the law of the Lord;
  • Give time to spiritual reading, especially to works of the Saints of the Order;
  • Participate in the Church’s liturgy, both the Eucharist and the Liturgy of the Hours;
  • Be concerned for the needs and the good of others;
  • Arm ourselves with the practice of the virtues, as we live an intense life of faith, hope, and charity;
  • Seek interior silence and solitude in our life of prayer;
  • Strive to deepen our prayer life which leads to service in God’s Kingdom on earth;
  • Use prudent discretion in all that we do;
  • Participate in frequent and meaningful reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation

Our Commitments and Obligations

  • Daily Mass if possible.
  • Daily recitation of Morning and Evening Prayer from the Liturgy of the Hours.
  • Recitation of Night Prayer each night, if possible.
  • Spend one half-hour each day in the practice of mental prayer to strengthen our relationship with God, so that we can become true witnesses to His presence in the world.
  • Members will always wear the little brown cloth Scapular.  The scapular medal, properly blessed, may be substituted for the cloth Scapular.
  • Attend monthly community meetings to receive the Initial Teresian Carmelite Formation leading to Profession and ongoing formation for life.
  • Members are called in a special way to exercise fraternal charity and the apostolate.
  • In addition to the days of fasting and of abstinence proper to the Church in Canada and in response to our Carmelite traditions, Secular Carmelites, unless excused by reason of age or illness, will fast on the vigils of specified feast days as stated in the Statutes of the Secular Order.

Admission Requirements

  • Constant in professing the Catholic Faith, and in good conscience sacramentally active in the Catholic Faith.
  • Not members of any Religious Order or Congregation or any other Secular Order, either as a professed member or novice.
  • Minimum age for admission to the Secular Order is nineteen years of age; an upper age limit is not prescribed as long as the person is able to undertake the commitments and obligations of the Secular Carmelite life.
  • Obligation to participate in community life must be undertaken and met, otherwise the person may not be admitted to the Secular Order.

Periods of Formation

There are three periods of initial formation over a six year span: Aspirancy (one year); Formation for First Promise (two years); Formation for Definitive Promise (three years).  The candidate does not become a member of the community until the First Promise (cf. Constitutions 36)

Vows may be taken no less than five years after the Definitive Promise.


St Therese of Lisieux
“My whole strength lies in prayer and sacrifice,
these are my invincible arms;
they can move hearts far better than words.
I know it by experience.” (Story of a Soul)

 

“Seek in reading
and you will find in meditation;
knock in prayer
and it will be opened to you
in contemplation.” (Sayings # 158)

St John of the Cross

St Joseph
Patron of the interior life,
he is an example of faith
and being ‘constantly attentive to God,
open to the signs of God’s presence
and receptive to God’s plans.’
(Constitutions 31a)