Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in her role as patroness of the Carmelite Order.
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ENLIGHTENMENT PRAYER
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
My God, I firmly believe that Thou art everywhere present and seest all things...cleanse my heart from all vain, wicked, and distracting thoughts. Enlighten my understanding, and inflame my will, that I may pray with reverence, attention, and devotion.
BIOGRAPHY
Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in her role as patroness of the Carmelite Order. The first Carmelites were Christian hermits living on Mount Carmel in the Holy Land during the late 12th and early to mid-13th century. They built in the midst of their hermitages a chapel which they dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, whom they conceived of in chivalric terms as the "Lady of the place." Our Lady of Mount Carmel was adopted in the 19th century as the patron saint of Chile, in South America.
Since the 15th century, popular devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel has centered on the Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, also known as the Brown Scapular. Traditionally, Mary is said to have given the Scapular to an early Carmelite named Saint Simon Stock (1165-1265). The liturgical feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is celebrated on 16 July.
The solemn liturgical feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel was probably first celebrated in England in the later part of the 14th century. Its object was thanksgiving to Mary, the patroness of the Carmelite Order, for the benefits she had accorded to it through its difficult early years.
The Carmelite Order was the only religious order to be started in the Crusader States. In the 13th century, some of its people migrated west to England, setting up a chapter and being documented there about 1241–1242. A tradition first attested to in the late 14th century says that Saint Simon Stock, had a vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary in which she gave him the Brown Scapular. This formed part of the Carmelite habit after 1287. In Stock's vision, Mary promised that those who died wearing the scapular would be saved. This is a devotional sacramental signifying the wearer's consecration to Mary and affiliation with the Carmelite order. It symbolizes her special protection and calls the wearers to consecrate themselves to her in a special way.
REFLECTION
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel is a title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Order of the Carmelites was founded on Mt. Carmel in the 12th Century and survives to this very day. Many Catholics wear the Brown Scapular of the Carmelites as a spiritual devotion.
Reflect on this:
What does this saint’s life mean to you?
Sit quietly and consider this:
How can you live holier based on this saint’s life?
THANKSGIVING PRAYER
Almighty and eternal God, I adore Thee, and I thank Thee for all the benefits which Thou, in Thy infinite goodness and mercy, hast conferred upon me.
RESOLUTION
Based on this reflection, I resolve to avoid all sin.
However, I should especially resolve to avoid one particular deadly sin:
(Lust, Envy, Gluttony, Greed, Wrath, Pride, Sloth)
Find more about the seven deadly sins
RESOLUTION PRAYER
My God, I offer Thee these resolutions; unless Thou deignest to bless them, I can not be faithful to them. And Lord Jesus Christ, at midday You mounted the cross for our salvation. Give us Your light, which will bring us to eternal life. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Thank You and God Bless ☦️
And until next time … stay holy my friends!