In the Jewish tradition, wealth was seen as a blessing from God and the wealthy person as especially favoured by God. Along with the idea of divine blessing and favour came a divine obligation (often ignored) – the care of God’s poor. What Jesus invites him into is the total transformation of his life – to go in a new direction. Rather sadly, the rich man cannot take this step. Read more

Celebrating At Home 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time [PDF]
Celebrating At Home 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time [ePub]

July 24, 2021 marked the 450th anniversary of the death of Blessed John Soreth. He was a reformer, spiritual writer and the founder of both the Carmelite Nuns and the Lay Carmelite Third Order. He was born near Caen in Normandy in 1394 and entered the Carmelite house there. Ordained priest around 1417, he became a doctor of theology in Paris in 1438 and then regent of studies there. He was Provincial of the French Province from 1440-1451 and Prior General of the Order from 1451 until his death. He was unflagging in his efforts at renewal, during what was an especially critical period for both the Church and the Order.

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. From the earliest days of the Order's beginnings, Mary has held a special place in the lives of Carmelites. Mary embodies everything that we hope for - to enter into an intimate relationship with Christ, being totally open to God's will and having our lives transformed by the Word of God. Like Mary, we too want to listen so deeply to the Word of God that he becomes flesh in us. pdf Read the letter of the Prior General for the Feast. (256 KB)   Watch the video.

Happy feast day to all members of our Carmelite Family!

Today we are remembering all healthcare workers and medical researchers in our prayer. We thank God for the care, compassion and skill of our healthcare workers, especially those working with COVID-19 patients. We also ask that God will guide the work of medical researchers working on new medicines and vaccines to help end this disease.

Pray the Novena Prayer. Visit our Novena of Prayer page.

You can also join us on Facebook anytime during the day and download the prayer and intentions for each day.

This Sunday's Gospel helps us understand that it is ordinary people like you and me, not only those formally commissioned by the Church, who are called to read the face of God in ourselves, in others and in the world around us. We try not to get lost in our own power and wealth and self-importance which can easily blind us to the presence of God. We try to be people who become sacraments of God’s presence for one another, who allow God to anoint God’s people with acts of love, compassion, hope and healing. Read more

Celebrating At Home 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time [PDF]
Celebrating At Home 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time [ePub]

Today we are remembering all those who experience hardship and difficulty in their lives, especially those affected by COVID-19. Many have been hurt physically and emotionally. Others have lost jobs and hope. Some are overcome with worry and anxiety. We ask that they will know that God is still with them in their difficulties and that God will surround them with good friends and support. Pray the Novena Prayer. Visit our Novena of Prayer page.

You can also join us on Facebook anytime during the day. You can download the prayer and intentions for each day.

On this 3rd day of our Novena we pray for all who have died, especially those who have died as a result of COVID-19. We remember, too, their families and friends who mourn them. We pray that God will receive the dead into his loving care and heal the boken hearts of those who mourn them. Pray the Novena Prayer. Visit our Novena of Prayer page.

You can also join us on Facebook anytime during the day. You can download the prayer and intentions for each day.

Welcome to Day 2 of our Novena of Prayer for the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on 16 July. On each day we will be praying for different groups of people around the world who are experiencing or affected by COVID-19. Today we are praying for for all who are ill, both Australia and Timor-Leste and around the world. We especially remember all those who are suffering from COVID-19 and all who are caring for them. Pray the Novena Prayer. Visit our Novena of Prayer page.

You can also join us on Facebook anytime during the day. You can download the prayer and intentions for each day.

Welcome to Day 1 of our Novena of Prayer for the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on 16 July. On each day we will be praying for different groups of people around the world who are experiencing or affected by COVID-19. Today we are praying for peace in our world, our neighbours, our families and ourselves.

You can also join us on Facebook anytime during the day. You can also download the prayer and intentions for each day.

On the 9 days before the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel (16 July), the Carmelites invite you to join with us in prayer. Every year we pray for the needs of our Carmelite Family in Australia and Timor-Leste. This year, in the midst of COVID-19, we are including the people of the world in our novena of prayer. Please join with us during this time between 7 July and Thursday 15 July You can also download the prayer and intentions. You can also join us on Facebook each day of the Novena or log into our Novena of Prayer page for each day's prayer intention. Watch a video of the Flos Carmeli, an ancient Carmelite hymn to Our Lady.

With so many of us in lockdown once again, the Gospel today is an apt reminder that God is found not only in readily-identifiable religious places and things, but also in ordinary and everyday people and things. The presence of God surrounds us if only we have the eyes to see it. Read more

Celebrating At Home 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time [PDF]
Celebrating At Home 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time [ePub]

Yesterday 15 of our young Carmelites in Timor received the ministries of Lector (reader) and Acolyte during Mass in our community at Hera. Lectors proclaim the Word of God in liturgical assemblies, instruct adults and children in the faith and prepare them to receive the sacraments. Acolytes assist the priest during the celebration of the Eucharist, holding the Missal, preparing the altar and the vessels and cleaning them after Communion. They may also distribute Communion if necessary. For those preparing for Priesthood in the Church, receiving these ministries is another step on their journey to Ordination. More story & photos

Faith is about entering into relationship with Jesus. It is not the work of the mind but of the heart. In this Sunday's Gospel, with an honesty born out of desperation, 2 people seek out Jesus and begin their relationship with him. Jesus responds to both, and the dialogue between them grows. Even death is not an obstacle to the kindness of God. Jesus is God’s healing for death itself (the Way to eternal life).

Celebrating At Home 13th Sunday of Ordinary Time [PDF]
Celebrating At Home 13th Sunday of Ordinary Time [ePub]

Last Wednesday, Fr Carlito, a Carmelite from Timor-Leste, went to the audience with the Holy Father and had the opportunity to meet the Pope. “When the Holy Father went by I asked him to bless and pray for me, my family and God’s people in my country. The Holy Father asked me, ‘Where are you from?’ I replied that I am from Timor Leste and the Holy Father said to me, ‘Keep your faith, you are still young, pray diligently and do the best in your study.’” Then the Holy Father put his hands on my head and blessed me,” Fr Carlito said. More photos & video

It is wonderful to see Jesus, again and again, looking at life and at what’s happening around him, for things and images that might help the people to detect and to experience the presence of the Kingdom. Parables are meant to leave the hearers wondering. They are not straight-forward answers to questions. They are food for thought. In Mark’s Gospel the Kingdom is not something yet to come, it is a present reality. It is the presence and action (reign) of God among his people. Read more

Celebrating At Home 11th Sunday of Ordinary Time [PDF]                            
Celebrating At Home 11th Sunday of Ordinary Time [ePub]

World Environment Day is this Saturday, 5 June. The theme: This is our moment. We cannot turn back time. But we can grow trees, green our cities, rewild our gardens, change our diets and clean up rivers and coasts. We are the generation that can make peace with nature. Let’s get active, not anxious. Let’s be bold, not timid. 

You can download pdf the Day of Prayer liturgy (15.07 MB) - a mixture of readings, reflections and prayer produced by the Carmelite NGO and pdf 14 Little Changes of Behaviour to take care of our Earth. (13.33 MB)

The Church is in a crisis. Whilst uncomfortable, this is not a bad thing for us. A crisis is an opportunity for new growth. The challenge is to accept and respond to this opportunity. Taking up our priestly and prophetic role and being a Eucharistic people in the lived circumstances of our lives is called for. The Plenary Council is a vehicle for facilitating this. I pray that we don’t squander it. Boldness is called for in hearing and responding to the voice of the Spirit, discerned in the voices of the people. May we advance in hope and trust in the Spirit.

pdf Read this issue of our JPIC Newsletter (1.21 MB)

Dutch Carmelite, Titus Brandsma (1881-1942), has moved a step closer to being officially recognised by the Church as a saint. On 25 May 2021 the Congress of Theological Consultors recognised as a miracle the scientifically inexplicable healing of Fr Michael Driscoll, OCarm, attributed to the intercession of Blessed Titus Brandsma. This positive result now allows Fr Titus' Cause to be submitted to the Cardinals and Bishops of the Congregation for Causes of the Saints. If the outcome is positive the Congregation will then submit its conclusions for the approval of the Pope who will then meet with the council of cardinals (Consistory) during which the recognition of Titus Brandsma as a saint will be officially announced. More story & images

This Sunday's Feast of the Trinity helps us to realise that though we are very used to thinking of ourselves as being God's servants, the truth is that it is God who is always serving us, who is totally committed to us, who is always there for us, whether we realise it or not. When we allow God’s heart to speak to ours in love we begin to absorb more of God’s life into our own. We are being transformed. Our values and attitudes, our ways of looking at and being in the world start to change. We begin to see with God’s eyes and feel with God’s heart and become God's presence in the world. Read more

Celebrating At Home Trinity Sunday [PDF]
Celebrating At Home Trinity Sunday [ePub]

The Carmelites of Australia & Timor-Leste have launched a new charity to help those in need in Timor-Leste called Carmel Impact. The new charity can receive tax deductible donations to enable children to attend school, Carmelite students to study philosophy and English, young men and women to receive community scholarships for further study, our work with disenfranchised youth through sporting and cultural activities and the teachers and volunteers in our schools to receive ongoing professional development. pdf You can read more in this issue of our newsletter, Carmel Contact. (662 KB)