Our Lady Of Mount Carmel
by Miriam Hogan, O.C.D.
The title Our Lady Of Mount Carmel helps us to gently focus on the presence of Our Lady in our lives. Further, Mary’s presence invites us ever so tenderly to grow in a deeper awareness and appreciation of the presence of Christ in our own lives and of our calling to prayer and contemplation. In this article, I will briefly describe the origin of this particular way of honoring Our Lady and touch upon the meaning this has for those of us that are responding to the spirit of Carmel.
We can trace the devotion to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel back to the twelfth century in the Holy Land where hermits built a chapel and dedicated it to Our Lady. These hermits who settled on Mt. Carmel near the spring of Elijah were mysterious, silent people who chose to live away from the mainstream of society. History has not left us their writings, and even their icons have been taken from the niches in their caves. However, the foundations of their oratory are still visible and the oral tradition that has been passed down to us is remarkably consistent. They were simple dedicated men who were proud to be known both as sons of Elijah and brothers of Our Lady.
They Built A Small Chapel
They built their small chapel or oratory on the side of a dry riverbank known as the Wadi 'ain es-Siah. At this beautiful (delightful) location near the present city of Haifa overlooking the Mediterranean Sea one can still visit the site where the Order of Carmel was born. The caves of the hermits are on both sides of the mountain within easy walking distance of the centrally located chapel. Here the choice of location tells us more than can be expressed in words. The chapel was the center of their physical building and was dedicated to Mary the Mother of God who, with Christ, was central in their spiritual lives. Further, there is a channel cut into the stone where the hermits could let water from the spring of Elijah run by gravity first into the sacristy and then down to the terraced garden below. Today, it is not difficult to believe that these hermits, who had given up all but the most necessary of possessions, were making a powerful statement by keeping the symbols of Mary and Elijah in central proximity to their daily activities.
In his book, "The Latin Hermits of Mount Carmel," Father Elias Friedman further states that:
"The principle that the Carmelites had come into existence for the service and honour of Mary, Mother of God, is affirmed by the Chapter-General of the Carmelites held in Montpellier, 1287. Peter de Millaud, Prior-General of the Order, in a letter to King Edward I of England, promised his prayers to the Virgin [in whose praise and glory the Order had been specially founded]"1
Star Of The Sea
There are many other stories and legends connecting Our Lady with the early Carmelites,2 but the Oratory is the most basic and most concrete evidence of the origins of Carmel's constant devotion. It is easy to imagine that the hermits felt a need to keep Mary close to them in their daily thoughts. They chose to name their place of prayer in her honor. Later, in 1263, the name of the oratory (St. Mary of Carmel) was given to the first monastery. At this Holy Ground so rich in tradition, we can also perhaps best get a feeling for the Marian title "Star of the Sea," so often used in early Carmelite hymns.3 The first monastery had a view of the Sea; and in a land plagued by drought during much of the year, a cloud even on a natural level can easily be interpreted as a sign of a special presence and grace. Thus, the hermits who were used to looking to the heavens for signs, easily interpreted the cloud mentioned in the scriptures about Elijah and knew with a mystical certainty beyond the physical evidence that Our Lady was present in their lives and prayers. Now, we also ask Our Lady to be near as we pray. We ask this privilege with the knowledge that this prayer has been asked and answered many times over for our sisters and brothers in Carmel. Carmel's devotion to Mary is almost too deep for words.
St. John of the Cross first experienced the powerful protection of Mary as a child when he fell into a well and reached for her hand and was saved from drowning. One might expect that he would have included many chapters to her in his spiritual writings. We know that he loved her dearly and that it was his desire to remain in Our Lady's Order that caused him to listen to St. Teresa and to enthusiastically embrace her reforms. Yet, when he does briefly write about Mary, it is almost assumed that the reader understands the primacy of importance that he gives her in the development of our spiritual lives. With one beautiful exception, however, in his poem "Del Verbo Divino" St. John of the Cross expresses volumes in four short lines:The Virgin, weighed
With the Word of God
Comes down the road;
If only you'll shelter her.4
Intimacy With MarySt. John of the Cross, in this poem, reveals a special relationship and intimacy with Mary. Usually, we invoke her as mother and protector. Here, St. John of the Cross reminds us of her vulnerability and of her need for shelter and acceptance. Like Christ, thirsting for souls until the last one is saved, St. John of the Cross sees the Mother of God seeking to enter into our lives so that we may provide the contemplative space where the word of God will be reborn in our hearts and in our times. This all-pervasive consciousness of Mary's presence is equally expressed in the devotion of our Carmelite spiritual mothers. St. Teresa called her monasteries "little dovecotes of the Virgin, our Lady,"5 and in her writings makes it clear that Carmel is unequivocally Mary's order.
In addition to the writings of the saints, however, we also appreciate the lived experience of Carmelite sisters and brothers that continue to model their lives of prayer on the example of Our Lady. Thus, when we pray to Our Lady of Mount Carmel and when we celebrate her Feast Day on July 16, our prayers are united with the prayers of all the Carmelite family on earth and in heaven, and our common request grows in meaning and depth as our song continues: "Mother of Mount Carmel hear".
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*Note: This revised article was first entitled A short study of Carmel and published on the internet in 1999. The author visited the site of the first monastery in 1981. The niches for the icons in the caves were very evident at that time.
1 Elias Friedman, O.C.D. The Latin Hermits of Mount Carmel [A study in Carmelite origins] (Roma Teresianum 1979) p. 180
2 For example, in Stella Maris Monastery on top of Mount Carmel there is a stained glass window depicting the visit of the Holy Family to Mount Carmel . It was a common belief during the time of St. Teresa that the Holy Family had often visited Mt. Carmel , which is within a short distance from Nazareth , and that the hermits had settled in the same location that they had visited.
3 Some of the Hymns are: "Hail Thou Star of Ocean", "Star of the Sea", "Hail, Queen of Heaven" which contains the lines: "Mother of Christ, Star of the Sea, pray for the wanderer pray for me."
4 John of the Cross, The Collected Works of St. John Of the Cross trans. Kieran Kavanaugh, O.C.D., and Otilio Rodriguez, O.C.D. (Washington, D.C.: ICS Publications 1973) p. 737
5Teresa of Avila, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila Vol. III, trans. Kieran Kavanaugh, O.C.D., and Otilio Rodriguez, O.C.D. (Washington, D.C.: ICS Publications 1985) p. 115
Mother of Mount Carmel hear
When we call oh be thou near.
Such was the ancient song!.
Such is our song today!