Hundreds of years ago, Christian hermits settled on Mount Carmel in the Holy Land to practice contemplation, manual labor, and prayer. These were the first Carmelites. They took as their patron Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the Blessed Virgin, whose feast we celebrate today.
The Carmelites followed the example of the Prophet Elijah, who had a profound experience of God on that same Mount Carmel. They practice the twelve points of their rule: obedience, chastity, poverty, reconciliation, mental prayer, divine office, chapter, abstinence from meat, manual labor, silence, humility, and supererogation (that is, extraordinary good works).
On this feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, let’s consider how all Christians can learn from the Carmelite order. Here are 10 ways to bring Carmelite spirituality into your ordinary life.
