SECULAR ORDER OF DISCALCED CARMELITES
England, Wales and Scotland

Today's feast of St Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus, reminds me of my journey into the Catholic Church. I grew up...

One of the great blessings I have received in Carmel is the encouragement to follow the daily office of Readings in the Breviary. I...

I have friends who tell me that they have long had an urge to enter monastic life but circumstances have not allowed it to be fulfilled. ...

We had our Virtual Community meeting last night. This is a meeting online which is like a shortened version of a Secular Carmelite...

Is there any particular connection between the Apostle St James - whose feast day is today - and St Teresa of Avila? Yes there is. St...

Today is the feast day of a hugely important figure in the history of our Order, Blessed John Soreth (1391-1471), who was Prior General...

Fr Matt Blake, our Delegate from the Friars, makes a very precious contribution to our life in the Secular Carmelites. We prize many of...

The first meeting of the new Northampton OCDS group in the Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour took place last Thursday. We had...

In our Northampton group last night we discussed the balance between reading and praying in spiritual growth. Two of us had been...

Yesterday was the feast day of the Blessed Martyrs of Compiegne, France. They died on the guillotine on this day in 1794 in Paris. They...

A hymn and prayer honouring Our Lady of Mount Carmel. In the Carmelite Rite of the Mass, this hymn was the sequnce for the Feast of...

I recently discovered that there has been a great reverence in Chile for Our Lady of Mount Carmel - whose feast day is today - since she...

I came across this prayer I didn't know on the 'Friends of the OCDS' site 'I beg you Lord, let the fiery gentle power of your love Take...

During our Carmelite Retreat at Douai Abbey last week three ladies from Wales made their final promises. Their journey into Carmel had...

'A word or a smile is often enough to put fresh life in a despondent soul.' I have often thought that the first duty of love is to pay...

I have just discovered the 'Carmels in Communion' Facebook page of the Carmelite Sisters in the Philippines - 'the official website of...

Reflecting on our Secular Carmelite retreat at the Benedictine Douai Abbey last week, I am struck by the different charisms of our two...

PS: I just published my blog for the day forgetting to add intercessions. An individual is greatly in need of prayer today as she is...

We had our annual week of retreat for the Southern area at Douai Abbey, a Benedictine establishment between Reading and Newbury, last...

I am off on retreat later this morning, I will be going to Douai Abbey, a Benedictine foundation. I have never been there before so it...