Carmelite Conversations

This is the second episode in a new monthly series of talks by Deacon Rusty Baldwin, a Secular Discalced Carmelite who gives a presentation to our Community in Dayton each month. These are recorded live during our Holy Hours. In this program, Deacon Baldwin discusses Carmel and the Evangelical Counsels.

August 26 is the day the Discalced Carmelite Order celebrates the supernatural grace of the “Transverberation of the Heart” of St. Teresa of Avila.  What does that entail?  To what purpose can it be associated with?  How do you discern this grace?  St. Teresa gives us a detailed explanation of the first time she experienced the transverberation of her heart.  God has given us a great grace through...

Prayer is to the soul what air is to the lungs.  If we don’t pray, we die spiritually.  St. Mary of Jesus Crucified, a Discalced Carmelite Mystic, talked about how we can be a “cell for Jesus”  and how Jesus wants to come to you.  In the depths of prayer, the Lord sometimes grants supernatural graces, which leads us to the deep prayer of 3 great Carmelites:  St. John of the Cross, St. Mary of Jesu...

Recently canonized, St. Mary of Jesus Crucified is a Discalced Carmelite nun and mystic who received incredible supernatural charismatic gifts from God for the Church.  She is like the “Padre Pio” of the Carmelite world.  This conversation touches briefly on some highlights of her life and on some of her gifts. Her famous prayer to the Holy Spirit is also prayed on this podcast. We quote St. Mary...

If you are looking for a deeper understanding of the nature of the Lord's call to all baptized souls, and you want to discover the depth of commitment and devotion to which a soul can be carried, then you will want to listen to this series. Mark and Frances present here a Catechism on St. Therese of Lisieux's Act of Oblation to Merciful Love. It is the Saint's formal written expression and promise...

Continuing with the series on the life of the Discalced Carmelite mystic, St. Teresa Margaret Redi of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, this program delves into the depths of aridity that caused this Saint to view her religious duties and devotions with repugnance; yet, because of her insatiable desire to love God, she obediently continues with the utmost charity for the other nuns, who never had any ink...

In this conversation, the battle of scrupulosity and aridity in the Dark Night of St. Teresa Margaret are examined.  What is it like to be in the midst of these battles?  What is the cause of scrupulosity and aridity?  What are some good counsels and strategies we can use to overcome these trials? How does God uses these battles to purify and perfect us?  What virtues are most needed? 

After the great grace of “Deus Caritas Est/God is Love,” the Discalced Carmelite St. Teresa Margaret Redi of the Sacred Heart of Jesus enters a stage of marked passivity in which God is purifying her soul.  This stage is referred to as the Dark Night of the Spirit and falls in the 6thMansion of the Interior Castle of St. Teresa of Avila.  How does this purification through the dark rays of contemp...

An important Marian celebration associated with the Order of Discalced Carmelites is the Memorial of ”Our Lady, Mother of Divine Grace,” celebrated on July 23.  What connection does this title have to “Our Lady of Mt. Carmel?”  What other connections are present?  How is it important for all of us?  What is “grace” and what kinds of grace are available to us?  How do we obtain more grace?  What un...

What exactly is required of us in the spiritual journey? How do we make progress? What disposition of heart is necessary for us to be drawn into the heart of the Lord? These are important questions. If we are truly seeking the Lord and we genuinely desire to be transformed into the persons we were created to be, then these are questions we need to explore for ourselves. It is always nice, however,...

After the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Joseph was the greatest Saint ever! In pondering the “glories” of St. Joseph, we are made aware of how God prepared him and used him for the lofty mission of being the Spouse of Mary and the foster father of Jesus. In this “live” presentation given to the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites in Dayton, OH at their general meeting, Frances pinpoints a few of the...

We are beginning a new monthly series of talks by Deacon Rusty Baldwin, a Secular Discalced Carmelite who gives a presentation to our Community in Dayton each month. These are recorded live during our Holy Hours. In this program, Deacon Baldwin compares the God-given gifts we have to flowers in a spiritual bouquet. How are we using our gifts? What does St. Therese, the little flower, say about our...

It is often convenient for us to imagine that the Saints all had a continuing series of mystical experiences throughout their lives. It is believed then, that these experiences are what drew them to holiness, complete transformation and ultimately union with Christ. It is simply easier for many of us to imagine that the Saints were just special people, and by consequence, we could not really be ex...

One of the single most important disciplines we can adopt is the continual practice of the presence of God in our lives. This practice is not achieved by simply thinking about God be everywhere, though certainly He is all around us as well as in us, and we should take great comfort in this reality. Beyond this, however, we should recognize that the real challenge of the practice of the presence of...

Do you have a loved one who was raised Catholic and is no longer practicing their faith? Do you wish there was something you could do to help bring them “home?” Carmelite Conversations host, Frances Harry, interviews Teresa Gooding, a Secular Order Discalced Carmelite, on the “St. Monica Ministry” that she was inspired to introduce to her parish, in Beavercreek, OH. What is the St. Monica Ministry...

At some point in our individual spiritual journey, most of us will decide to make a more formal, firm and specific commitment to the Lord. It may be, like many Saints, that we will choose to write out our commitment, or our oblation. This is exactly what St. Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart of Jesus chose to do. She even went so far, with the approval of her spiritual director, to write out her...

n honor of the upcoming feast day of Corpus Christi Sunday, Frances pulls together thoughts and teachings on how to improve one’s preparation for the reception of Jesus in the Eucharist. Many approach Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament in a routine way. This is so sad! Let’s get fired up and ignite the fire of divine love by considering what some of our Carmelites and others say in their own love of J...

Following her entry into Carmel, at the young age of 17, the future St. Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, committed herself unflinchingly to two great Carmelite practices for those who aspire to holiness. In this program, Mark and Frances discuss how these ascetical (which in the Greek means exercise) contributed to Teresa Margaret being raised to such a high degree of union with the L...

Saint Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart is known as the forgotten Saint of Carmel. This is unfortunate as she has much to offer all of us in our spiritual journey. As sometimes happens when we read the lives of the saints, we can be put off by what we perceive to have been special graces or benefits they were granted by God. And we can become discouraged that we could never hope to attain to the...

June is the month the Church dedicates to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. This is a very rich and powerful devotion, and one all Catholics should take the time to learn more about. In this conversation, Mark and Frances discuss the importance of devotion to the Sacred Heart and how it can serve as an avenue into deeper union with God. The discussion begins by discussing the image of the narrow door, fo...

Carmel is privileged to have the “Refulgent Flower of Florence, St. Mary Magdalen de Pazzi” as a beacon of light of the love of God.  Though she was a mystic and stigmatic with many extraordinary supernatural gifts, it was her love of God and purity of soul that were the primary impetus for her canonization.  What was her motto?  What were her dying words?  What connection did she have with other...

Building upon last week’s conversation and using the spiritual navigational tools of 1) rest on the bosom of Jesus/in His Heart/in adoration; 2) embrace Jesus in the night via night vigils; 3) silence the faculties of the soul and listen interiorly to the Lord, Mark and Frances share a perspective on the actions of St. Peter during Holy Week and how that applies to the purification of the memory a...

In honor of National Poetry Month, and with Holy Week in mind, Frances recites two of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity’s poems: My Cruicified Love and The Carmelite. Both may be found in the book, Barb of Fire translated by Alan Bancroft, Gracewing Publications. Purcahse the book, Barb of Fire, on Amazon .    

The life of contemplation is itself a lifetime journey. Just as with any significant journey, and there is no more important journey then the journey to the interior of our soul, we must make preparations. We must understand the mode of transportation we will use for different parts of the journey, and we have a few means of navigation to ensure we stay on course, or that we are able to find our w...

Frances chats with Tim Bete, poet and Secular Carmelite, about the how poetry can increase your faith, its relationship to Scripture and what some of the Carmelite saints said about poetry. Tim is also poetry editor for the Catholic Poetry Room feature at IntegratedCatholicLife.org. Resources Catholic Poetry Room @ IntegratedCatholicLife.org Tim's book, The Raw Still of Heaven at Amazon Some of Ti...