- The vocation to Carmel is a precious gift abundantly given, but, alas, answered only by a few. If you are a young, single, Catholic woman between the ages of 18 and 35 and have great desires for a life of solitude, silence, prayer and joyful penance as well as an open, teachable heart, good health, good common sense and a deep love for the Church and the Priesthood, then you may be one of those blessed ones called to Carmel.
For one called to this life we do not expect perfection immediately, but only a great desire to grow in perfection and a deep willingness to learn from both the Superiors and the community. It is a gradual, continual growth that we look for, yet, at the same time, there should be great desires for perfection and as Our Holy Mother says, “a very determined determination,” “for great desires will be the sign that God is calling her to this state.”
Within the “liberating gift” of Papal Enclosure, we strive to fulfill Our Lord’s desires, confided to Our Holy Mother St. Teresa of Jesus, by living the vows of Chastity, Poverty and Obedience as faithfully as we can. Through our prayers and sacrifices, we hope to obtain from God the holiness of the theologians and preachers of the Church.
The conversion and salvation of souls, which so inflamed the heart of St. Teresa, has also become our great charism. So much so, that our sister, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, who lived her Carmelite life entirely hidden in God within her enclosure, was named the Co-Patron of the Missions. We, too, wish to follow her example of zeal for souls and holiness in a life of prayer and humility.
Our communities are small (10-21 Sisters) for “where there are few, there is more harmony and quiet.” We form what St. Teresa called the “little college of Christ” and try to help one another advance toward sanctity. The central moment of our lives is our Daily Mass at 7:45 a.m. each morning. For without the Presence of Our Beloved, Jesus, in our Tabernacle and in our hearts each day, we could not live such a life. Our Holy Mother called Him, “our Companion in the Most Blessed Sacrament” and exhorted us to keep our eyes “fixed on Him.” If we do this, everything will become easy for us and we will give ourselves more and more completely to God, living only for Him.
May our lives and those who come after us truly become that “mysterious source of apostolic fruitfulness and blessings for the Christian community and for the whole world”! (Verbi Sponsa)
