"The deeper one is drawn into God, the more one must 'go out of oneself'; that is, one must go to the world in order to carry the divine life into it."

MISSION and PURPOSE

Our Mission is to bring the essence of the Carmelite tradition of contemplation, service and hospitality to the community through a range of spirituality based programs and experiences. The Carmelite tradition honours the individual, embraces community and welcomes people who seek spiritual and personal enrichment.

Our Purpose is to facilitate spiritual journeys, growth and community by encouraging contemplation, independent and free thinking, and an attitude of simplicity, humility and gratitude.

VISION and HERITAGE

Our Vision is to be a leader in facilitating spiritual journeys, growth and ethical communities in the Carmelite tradition.

The Carmelites are members of an international Catholic religious order of friars, nuns and lay people with a continuous spiritual tradition spanning eight centuries and cultures of both East and West. The Order originated around the 1190s in a group of hermits living by the “spring of Elijah” on Mount Carmel in Crusader Palestine. Between 1206 and 1214 they obtained a “Rule of Life” from Saint Albert of Vercelli, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, and some decades later began founding houses in Europe. By 1247 they had joined the thriving mendicant or friar movement, adding preaching and pastoral care to their contemplative tradition. Their patron, the Virgin Mary, and their place of origin, give them their official name, Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel; in England they were popularly called White Friars.

Today more than 50,000 friars, nuns, sisters and lay Carmelites around the world continue in the same spiritual lineage. The photo above shows Mount Carmel today and the Carmelite monastery on the highest peak. [used with permission from biblewalks.com]

Carmelites, conscious of being part of the Church and of history, live in a fraternity that is open to God and to people, able to listen and give an authentic response to the evangelical life according to their own charism, and they commit themselves to build the Kingdom of God wherever they are. Indeed they are committed to evangelisation in houses of prayer, centres of spirituality, parishes, Marian sanctuaries, schools, religious associations; and to Justice and Peace wherever human dignity is trodden underfoot, especially among the poor, the marginalised and the suffering.

For more information about The Carmelites, please visit  The Official Website of the Carmelite Order.