Meet our new Father General

Miguel de María Márquez Calle, OCD

Miguel of Mary Márquez Calle, O.C.D. was born 5 October 1965 in Plasencia (Cáceres), Spain, and has held numerous positions of responsibility and leadership in the life of the Discalced Carmelite Provinces of Castilla and Ibérica.

In the Province of Castilla, Father Miguel served as a Provincial Councilor from 1999–2002, then as Vicar Provincial from 2002–2005, a position to which he was elected once again at the Provincial Chapter of 2008; next, he served as the Provincial Superior of the Castilian province. He also has served as a formator in that province, directing the students for six years in the community of Salamanca.

Father Márquez entered the Discalced Carmelite Order in 1983 and made his religious profession in 1985. He was ordained a priest in Medina del Campo in 1990.

He is a prolific author of numerous publications on theology and spirituality. We mention a few of his books that are available on Amazon as we publish this biographical note:

• ¿Hacia dónde mirar? Espiritualidad en la vida cotidiana (To where should we look? Spirituality in daily life)
• Amar no es acertar: Espiritualidad para naufragos (Love doesn’t mean getting it right: Spirituality for the stranded)
• La imagen de Dios en el Magnificat (The image of God in the Magnificat, with Dolores Aleixandre)
• A la puerta de la cueva: Experiencia de Dios a la intemperie (At the entrance of the cave: Experiencing God in the outdoors)

Father Miguel also has written many articles as a regular contributor to magazines and journals such as Teresa de Jesús and Revista de Espiritualidad (Spirituality Review). Father has a degree in Dogmatic Theology from the Comillas Pontifical University in Madrid, with a thesis on the image of God in the Magnificat.

Father Márquez also has served as a professor of mysticism and Mariology in the CITeS University of Mysticism in Avila, as a professor of Mariology in the Carmelite renewal program at Stella Maris Monastery on Mount Carmel, and he also has served as a professor of pastoral ministry in the Institute of Spirituality of Santo Domingo.

Father’s activity as an expert in the spiritual life is well known. He has directed many retreats and days of recollection (as you see in the photo above), and has provided assistance to numerous prayer groups. He also has dedicated much time and effort to the spiritual direction and accompaniment of many people, including priests, religious, nuns, and laity.

In February 2015, Father Márquez was the first provincial superior elected to serve the new Iberian Province of St. Teresa of Jesus, which was created from the union of all the smaller Discalced Carmelite provinces in Spain and the Balearic Islands during the extraordinary provincial chapter that was convened for this specific purpose. He was re-elected to serve once again in the first ordinary provincial chapter in April 2017 for a term from 2017–2020, when the provincial chapter could be held again.

Since his ‘retirement’ following the 2020 provincial chapter, Father Miguel spent six months at St. Teresa’s Church on Clarendon Street in Dublin, where he perfected his knowledge of English. Since May 2021 he has resided in the friars’ convent in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands.

Source: Carmelitas Descalzos Provincia Ibérica
Photo credit: Ángel Cantero, Iglesia en Valladolid / Flickr