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 The Province has opened a new Carmelite residence in Chicago and it has been given the name ‘Carmel of Sant’Angelo.’ In many ways, making Sant’Angelo (Saint Angelus) the patron explains the purpose of the house.
Sant’Angelo was a hermit in Sicily in the early 1200s. Although trying to live the eremetical (hermit) life, he would also be ‘active,’ working with the poor, teaching youth, and he is especially noted for confronting wrongdoing. He is seen as a good example of blending both the hermit life of prayer and the active life of ministry. And this is the goal of this newly opened house—to blend these two.
Blending these two lifestyles has always been difficult and oftentimes the active life of ministry overwhelms the quiet life of prayer. This is even seen in one of the earliest Carmelite documents, The Fiery Arrow, written around 1270 by an early Prior General of the Order, Nicholas of Gaul calls the busy Carmelites of that day to remember their hermit origins. He writes, “As long as they remain in their cells instead of running about the world…they are true sons of Carmel.” Saint Teresa of Avila, around 1570, writes a beautiful essay entitled Martha and Mary Must Combine in which she calls the Carmelites of her day to combine the active life (seen as Martha in Luke 10) with the prayerful life (seen as Mary in the same Gospel passage). A popular maxim from this essays says, “To render our Lord a perfect hospitality, Martha and Mary must combine.” Blessed Titus Bransdma, martyred in 1942, in my favorite quotation on this matter, says the same thing when he writes, “The lives of the Carmelite saints are proof that the contemplative and active life can be successfully combined and lead to sanctity.” This is the mission of this house.
Another way of looking at this balance is to look at how the Carmelite Order describes itself. About ten years ago the Priors General sent out a letter entitled A Praying Community in Service to the People. This one line contains the three main elements of the Carmelite life—prayer, community and service. Depending on their own personality and disposition, though, everyone naturally leans toward one of these three. Some like the life of prayer and so naturally want to put their time there. Others do that with community life. Still others, with ministry. Since it feels natural, they think everyone should lean the same way. Yet, the Carmelite ideal is to give all three a balanced share. With this in mind, the residents of Carmel of Sant’Angelo will all have ministries, but they must never let their ministries overwhelm either the chapel prayer schedule, their personal prayer time or time given to the community. The Liturgy of the Hours will not be something to be quickly recited but instead given conscious and intentional effort with chanted psalms, purposeful silences. Similarly, time in community will not be short-changed but given due time seen in meals that are longer than merely the time it takes to eat the food; seen in occasional days of recollection, and in guest speakers from time to time.
It will also be a place to ‘try on’ the common life. In talks given last summer to the Carmelites, Father Donald Cozzens, a noted author about the priesthood and religious life, said that many young people have a desire to live the religious life but want to try it out first without officially joining a community and entering their formation and training program. Carmel of Sant’Angelo would be a great place for those who would like to ‘try out’ a life of prayer, community and ministry because the founding mandate for this community is to keep the focus on all three.
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