Carmelite wisdom to encourage & inspire
In "The Spiritual Canticle," St John of the Cross writes, “let us go forth to behold ourselves in your beauty to the mountain and to the hill,” which is to “knowledge in the divine Word, who in his height is signified here by the mountain.” Here we share excerpts from the Saint's powerful commentary.
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St. Elizabeth of the Trinity explained to Canon Angles, “I live in thanksgiving.” What a blessed ideal to adopt today and everyday. Read this excerpt from her letter and discover the secret to her attitude of gratitude.
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On 17 November 1991, St. John Paul II presided at the Rite of Canonization for Raphael Kalinowski. A 7-year-old boy from Wadowice who was struck by a car and suffered massive brain trauma, experienced an astonishing miracle of healing. We have his story.
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“The soul is a terrible thing; it cannot die,” writes Carmelite poet Jessica Powers. Her masterful meditation on the soul’s “two destinies” is worth pondering as we commemorate All Carmelite Souls.
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The day before she died, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity foresaw her death: “It is our Lady, full of light,” she said, “who will take me by the hand to lead me into heaven.” Thank you for joining our novena!
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Elizabeth summed up her heavenly calling thus: “My mission will be to draw souls into interior recollection, by helping them to go out from themselves.”
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In her song of praise to Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, Elizabeth exclaims that it is “God in us and we in him.” For Elizabeth, the Eucharist is “heaven on earth.”
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A good Teresian Carmelite, St. Elizabeth has her own concept of how “Martha and Mary” blend together: while we are in action, “the soul can remain buried in its contemplation.”
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“I believe that the secret of peace and happiness is to forget oneself,” St. Elizabeth says. St. Paul explains: “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed… persecuted, but not forsaken.”
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St. Elizabeth quotes St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians, “set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died,” before she exclaims: “O blessed death in God!”
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St. Elizabeth defines her title, “Praise of Glory” as “a soul that gazes on God;” she also uses terms like reflector, bottomless abyss, and crystal. St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians provides the original context.
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“I have found my heaven on earth,” Elizabeth explains, “because Heaven is God, and God is in my soul.” St. Paul explains that Christ, who descended to earth, ascended “far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.”
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“He dwells in me—and I in Him,” Elizabeth writes to a priest. “I have only to love Him and let myself be loved.” St. Paul prays that we may we strengthened in our inner being as we are “being rooted and grounded in love.”
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Father Quang D. Tran, S.J.—a great devoté of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity—leads our meditations this year on the theme of God's indwelling, making our souls more each day, His Heaven on Earth.
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St. Thérèse described her sister Céline as someone who found God in all of nature, everywhere. In the poem, “Canticle of Céline”, which Thérèse wrote for her sister, Céline sings, “in Him I found peace forever!”
Bishop Silvio José Báez, o.c.d. reflects on Jesus's teaching about entering through the "narrow door". The Bishop reminds us that "it's necessary to make a daily effort to go through "the narrow door", which is nothing other than to shape our lives and orient our hearts to love with a love like that of the Father in Heaven."
"We have the very wisdom and the very beauty and the very fortitude of God in shadow, because the soul here cannot comprehend God perfectly," writes St. John of the Cross. In this excerpt from the Living Flame of Love, he describes how we enjoy God's glory in the shadow of his glory.
In one quote we see the foundation of the doctrine of immovable trust in God that was echoed, almost word for word, by St. Thérèse of Lisieux some 200 years later.
Blessed Mary Josephine of Jesus Crucified Catanea was a Discalced Carmelite nun from Naples who had experienced a miraculous healing and had great trust in God's will. We share one of her many famous quotes: "God's will is a kiss of His love..."
In her autobiography, St. Teresa of Avila writes about "the good that one who practices prayer possesses... I mean mental prayer—glory be to God for this good! If it were not for this good, even though I have little humility, I should not be so proud as to dare speak about mental prayer."
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Let nothing disturb you, Let nothing frighten you, All things are passing away: God never changes. Patience obtains all things. Whoever has God lacks nothing; God alone suffices. ~ St. Teresa of Avila
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