Our Lady of Mount Carmel
- July 16th
Mt. Carmel is a mountain in Palestine. It became famous when the prophet Elias, who lived before Our Lord was born, worked a great miracle there. For many years there had been no rain in that land, and everything was dying. Elias went up Mt. Carmel to beg the Lord to send the rain, and his prayer was answered.
Much later, after Pentecost, some of the Jews who had become Christians decided to build a shrine on Mt. Carmel in honor of Mary, the Mother of God. There, several times a day, they went to pray together. For this reason the people started to call them “friars of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel.” This was the way the Carmelite Order was begun.
Many, many years later, St. Simon Stock, an Englishmen, became Superior of all the Carmelites. Since they were bring persecuted, he prayed with great confidence to Our Lady. In her goodness, she appeared to St. Simon and gave him the brown scapular, promising her protection to all those who would wear the blessed habit. Many miracles proved her words.
St. Pius X said that the same blessings could be had by wearing the scapular medal, which has a picture of Our Lady of the Scapular on one side and the Sacred Heart on the other.
Let us wear the holy scapular or medal. We will be protected by Our Lady in life and helped by her in death. And after death, she will bring us to Heaven.
