Carmelite life has always been centred round the Eucharistic celebration. Be it St. Teresa, St. John of the Cross, The Little Flower, St. Edith Stein, Blessed Titus Brandsma, or St. Elizabeth of the Trinity - they all loved the Eucharist because they believed that by receiving communion we enter into union with Christ. They all write about the importance of receiving the Eucharist. The first hermits on Mount Carmel gathered daily for the Eucharist. The Eucharist was their one daily, community exercise. The one and only time they came together was for the Mass. The Carmelites chose to be together for daily Mass from their first days on Mount Carmel.
Reduced to its most fundamental expression, Carmelite spirituality is centred on prayer, understood as loving friendship with God, and contemplation as the free gift of God. We have set apart special times for prayer – morning, evening and night. Our morning prayers are known as Lauds and the evening prayer Vespers. Saints Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross speak of prayer and contemplation as ‘friendship with God’ and ‘union with God’ respectively.
Another aspect of the Carmelite Spirituality is Word of God. We are a community centered on the Word of God.
We meditate on the Word of God. We not only read the Scriptures, we study them. We read the writings of Carmelite saints and take St. Joseph as our role model. Hence, Carmelite spirituality is focused on attention to one’s relationship with Jesus.
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