New Carmelite Monastery In Elysburg, Pa

[InHisLove726]

I am posting this for a friend who attended the open house this weekend at the Carmel in Elysburg, PA. She shared with me some wonderful articles and I thought I'd post them here for everyone to see. As some of you know, the Carmel in Elysburg was refounded from the Valparaiso, NE Carmel which was over capacity (they had 33 when St. Teresa desired that her Carmels have only 21 members). The news articles tell about the monastery itself, which is very important for someone who wants to discern there. They also have some pictures.

http://bulletin.aarp.org/states/pa/2009/33/articles/weekend_events_open_elysburg_monastery_area_clergy.html

http://www.republicanherald.com/news/new_set_of_nuns_at_home_in_elysburg_monastery
(click image gallery on this article to see more pictures; its also important to note that the pictures of the nuns are of the older nuns of Elysburg; the current ones wear the full habit and veil)

http://www.newsitem.com/news/elysburg_carmelite_nuns_enclosed_by_harrisburg_bishop_chapel_and_monastery_blessed
(see image gallery here, too, for more pictures; also my friend noted a mistake on this article--the CFRs were not in attendance, however, the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate were)

http://www.hbgdiocese.org/News/Detail.aspx?PageID=542ba2be-b1d4-4bce-8da6-e3ad7c86fd8b&NID=dd120f90-24eb-44b3-89f9-da847455caaa

http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2009/09/solemn-mass-and-enclosure-at-elysburg.html

Enjoy!

[TotusTuusMaria]

thanks for posting these.

[InHisLove726]

You're welcome.

[Saint Therese]

thanks for posting these links. Its great to see that the trend continues: communities that are returning to traditional observances are having increased vocations.

[InHisLove726]

It's not problem. Reading them was very edifying for me since I am very interested in the Carmelite life. I think it would be very intriguing for there to be a study between all the Carmels to see what practices all of them have, and what their differences are.


edit for: typo

Edited September 16, 2009 by InHisLove726

[Thomist-in-Training]

Soooo interesting! Thanks!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/28378419@N03/3885366205/in/set-72157622233735714/

It looks like there are windows that look into the choir from the upstairs hallways. Does anyone know why that would be?

So, do Carmelites [strict varieties anyways] just never use kneelers because they are that awesome? Or do they put them away for the photo? http://www.flickr.com/photos/28378419@N03/3886157574/in/set-72157622233735714/

Someone mentioned "the reforms of Mother Maravillas. In their constitution, things such as habit and grilles and times of strict fast and silence are specified." Who was she?

[quote]One noteable difference is that the French School did NOT have a tradition of "seeing Mass" - rather they heard it on the other side of the wall of the altar, where their choir stalls were. [/quote] From the comments at NLM. That was a bit what it was like at my monastery--a large stone high altar with an organ behind it and the nuns hidden behind that in choir stalls--but when they've renovated it I don't know what it will be like. In a way though it's encouraging to know that there were some nuns at some time who just didn't [i]see [/i]Holy Mass.

[InHisLove726]

[quote name='Thomist-in-Training' date='17 September 2009 - 12:07 AM' timestamp='1253160451' post='1967941']
Soooo interesting! Thanks!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/28378419@N03/3885366205/in/set-72157622233735714/

It looks like there are windows that look into the choir from the upstairs hallways. Does anyone know why that would be?

So, do Carmelites [strict varieties anyways] just never use kneelers because they are that awesome? Or do they put them away for the photo? http://www.flickr.com/photos/28378419@N03/3886157574/in/set-72157622233735714/

Someone mentioned "the reforms of Mother Maravillas. In their constitution, things such as habit and grilles and times of strict fast and silence are specified." Who was she?

From the comments at NLM. That was a bit what it was like at my monastery--a large stone high altar with an organ behind it and the nuns hidden behind that in choir stalls--but when they've renovated it I don't know what it will be like. In a way though it's encouraging to know that there were some nuns at some time who just didn't [i]see [/i]Holy Mass.
[/quote]


I think the windows are in the hallway where the nuns' cells are?

You know Carmelite nuns are awesome! I don't believe they use kneelers.

Mother Maravillas of Jesus' story can be found [url="http://www.vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/ns_lit_doc_20030504_maravillas_en.html"]here[/url].

[Orans]

[quote][url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28378419@N03/3885366205/in/set-72157622233735714/"]http://www.flickr.co...57622233735714/[/url]

It looks like there are windows that look into the choir from the upstairs hallways. Does anyone know why that would be? [/quote]

I'm guessing that they might be to a tribune for sick Sisters, or Sisters in retreat or the like. It would be a way of staying in choir without being visible.


[quote name='Thomist-in-Training' date='17 September 2009 - 12:07 AM' timestamp='1253160451' post='1967941']
Someone mentioned "the reforms of Mother Maravillas. In their constitution, things such as habit and grilles and times of strict fast and silence are specified." Who was she? [/quote]

Saint Maravillas of Jesus, OCD -(1891-1974)- was a Spanish Carmelite who founded several OCD monasteries in Spain during the XX century, and reformed others. Those monasteries were very strict as in the original Rule of St. Teresa of Avila, even down to small traditions, and without any mitigations.

These Carmel monasteries of St. Madre Maravillas where the ones who worked on and requested to the Holy See the 1990 Constitutions' approval after the Vat II.

Madre Maravillas was canonized by JPII in Madrid, Spain in May 4, 2003.
[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cv4mi73FykQ"]http://www.youtube.c...h?v=Cv4mi73FykQ[/url]

You can see her name among the Carmelite saints in this calendar, on December 11:
[url="http://www.meditationsfromcarmel.com/carmelite_calendar.html"]http://www.meditatio...e_calendar.html[/url]


More information: [url="http://www.lasvegasmariancenter.com/madre.htm"]http://www.lasvegasm...r.com/madre.htm[/url]

This is a good page in Spanish which you can read with Google translator:
[url="http://carmelitasdescalzas1990.blogspot.com/2008/12/blog-post.html"]http://carmelitasdes.../blog-post.html[/url]

Edited September 17, 2009 by Orans

[TotusTuusMaria]

[quote name='Orans' date='17 September 2009 - 02:17 AM' timestamp='1253164657' post='1967971']
I'm guessing that they might be to a tribune for sick Sisters, or Sisters in retreat or the like. It would be a way of staying in choir without being visible.
[/quote]

Yeah. Above that choir where the back windows are is the novitiate. And those two windows on either side are a special place where the sisters can retreat too... little mini-hermitage cells. They can open those two windows at the top and pray/look down into the choir where the sisters actually have a dove tabernacle hanging down. You can something similar to it below:

[img]http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles_of_faith/dove.jpg[/img]

Jesus is reserved there, and the sisters can make a little retreat in those above rooms, and then also, like said, the middle window is actually at the end of that upper hallway and is a place for the sick sisters to retreat to.

Actually, you can see the dove/tabernacle (I forget the correct term for it) in the picture posted already in this thread:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/28378419@N03/3885391827/

Edited September 17, 2009 by TotusTuusMaria

[TeresaBenedicta]

MY FRIEND IS ONE OF THEM NUNS!!!!

Seriously. ;-)

She entered the Carmel in NE a few years ago. And we found out through letters circulated that she would be part of setting up the new monastery. Originally both she and I were from the West coast. Now both she and I are pretty much in the same state! (I'm about ten minutes from PA).

Beautiful!

[TotusTuusMaria]

[quote]From the comments at NLM. That was a bit what it was like at my monastery--a large stone high altar with an organ behind it and the nuns hidden behind that in choir stalls--but when they've renovated it I don't know what it will be like. In a way though it's encouraging to know that there were some nuns at some time who just didn't [i]see [/i]Holy Mass.
[/quote]

These nuns actually do see the Mass. They have a "Mass choir" that is to the right of the extern altar that we see in all of the pictures of the Mass. Then they have the choir in the back, that is seen in these photos, where they pray the Liturgy of the Hours, rosary, and other community prayers.

I heard too though that up until Vatican II Discalced Carmelite nuns did not see the Mass... which, in a way, I think is kind of neat too.

...however with all that iron and the number of sisters in front of you (if you are a professed sister) and the angle you are actually viewing the Mass at... and then with the priests and altar boys sitting in front of the grill I don't imagine they actually are able to "see" the Mass very well now either.

Edited September 17, 2009 by TotusTuusMaria

[TotusTuusMaria]

[quote name='InHisLove726' date='17 September 2009 - 01:38 AM' timestamp='1253162314' post='1967959']
I think the windows are in the hallway where the nuns' cells are?
[/quote]

Almost. Actually down that hallway is a storage room, the classroom in the novitiate, a novitiate wash-room, and those two hermitage cells that have nothing in them. Those two are very very small cells/hermitage spaces. The next hallway begins the actual cells where the sisters sleep, pray, etc.

[TotusTuusMaria]

[quote name='InHisLove726' date='17 September 2009 - 01:38 AM' timestamp='1253162314' post='1967959']
I don't believe they use kneelers.

[/quote]

Yeah, they don't

and yeah... that is pretty awesome.

[Thomist-in-Training]

Wow, thanks, everyone!

OK, the explanations about the upper hallway were very interesting. Orans, I don't know what a tribune is though. I looked on Google and found a book about Poor Clare architecture, actually, which mentions not being able to see the altar at Mass as we were discussing.

[size="1"]http://books.google.com/books?id=A7Cv3YAuLK8C&pg=PA280&lpg=PA280&dq=tribune+monastic&source=bl&ots=sX3zy4xswP&sig=N8z82ccnY5CFnW1Rb0vghFj4i68&hl=en&ei=A1KySqO9H47-MNuSvbsL&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6#v=onepage&q=tribune%20monastic&f=false[/size]

But it didn't exactly say [i]what [/i]it is, so would you explain or link to a photo? Thanks!

.....................................................................
From the Vatican article on Mother Maravillas:

[quote]This was the first of the series of [i]Teresian Carmelite Monasteries [/i]that she would establish, according to the Rule and Constitutions of the Discalced Carmelites. María was not being called to found a new order or to "branch off" from the Discalced Carmelites - she herself was very careful in pointing this out; she only sought to live deeply and to transmit the spirit and ideals of St Teresa of Jesus and St John of the Cross. [/quote]

I've heard the phrase "Teresian Carmelites" before. But I always thought it meant the same as "Discalced" since the Discalced Carmelite are sort of the 'Reform of St. Teresa.' Does "Teresian" sometimes imply then specifically "Discalced Carmelite monasteries in the more primitive tradition of the Discalced, as restored by Mother Maravillas"?

[Saint Therese]

I love to see the traditional Carmelite habit, which is so beautiful.