July 1, 2009

Triduum at Carmelite monastery open to the public

Denver Catholic Register

The nuns of Carmel of the Holy Spirit Monastery invite everyone to celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel by participating in their annual triduum liturgies set for 7 p.m. on July 14, 15 and 16 in the monastery chapel.

The liturgies include the rosary, Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, the prayer of the triduum, the blessing and distribution of the brown Carmelite scapular and a sermon.

The feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel remembers Mary’s gift of the scapular to St. Simon Stock in Cambridge, England, on July 16, 1251, with the promise that whomever dies wearing it would be spared the fires of hell.

“All are most welcome to join us at the triduum services,” said the prioress, Mother Gemma Maria Hughes. “We love to praise the Blessed Mother and we want to especially pray for our priests during this Year for Priests. Without priests we wouldn’t have the Mass or the Blessed Sacrament.”

Priests leading the liturgies and delivering the sermons will be: July 14, Father Joseph Hearty, F.S.S.P., assistant chaplain of the Latin Mass Community; July 15, Father James Jackson, F.S.S.P., chaplain of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Latin Mass Community; and July 16, Father Marcus Mallick, pastor of Sacred Heart of Mary Church in Boulder.

Ten Discalced (shoeless) Carmelite sisters and a novice reside at the monastery. The community is a branch of the Carmelite order founded by St. Teresa of Avila.

In 1947, when the Littleton monastery was founded, a branch of the Archbishop’s Guild called Friends of Carmel was established to help the nuns with the monastery’s upkeep. Each year Friends of Carmel ask the laity to send a check of any amount directly to the monastery in a fundraising drive. The drive is vital to the nuns, who rely entirely on alms for their support. Organizers hope that the laity will again respond generously to their appeal for the nuns. The sisters spend their lives praying for the needs of the whole Church, but especially for the archdiocese.

“People are welcome to give us a call or to mail or drop off their prayer intentions all through the year, but especially during the triduum,” the prioress said.

In addition, the public is always invited to the monastery’s 6:30 a.m. Mass, which is offered seven days a week in the chapel.

Send donations and prayer requests to Carmel of the Holy Spirit Monastery, 6138 S. Gallup St., Littleton, CO 80120. Your check is your receipt.

TRIDUUM

What: Prayer services on three consecutive nights leading up to the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
When: 7 p.m. July 14, 15 and 16
Where: Carmel of the Holy Spirit Monastery, 6138 S. Gallup St., Littleton