^ The Brothers out for Recreation

Life in Carmel is a balanced human life and noted for both its joyful laughter and its holy silence. Following St. Teresa, we give recreation an important place in our lives. We live in communities marked by fraternal sharing. Traditionally our communities are kept fairly small so that this atmosphere of genuine brotherhood may be nourished. A cheerful simplicity enlivens our whole way of life.

“Our vocation unites us as brothers in a family modeled on the community of Christ and the Apostles. There should be mutual acceptance in a true family relationship, with no one being made to feel excluded. The inevitable difficulties of community life should be faced up to in truth and charity, and overcome in a spirit of humility and forgiveness, so that all grow in mutual esteem and true friendship” (Constitutions, 74).

The contemplative, in St. Teresa’s vision, must not seek to evade the difficulties of life or the needs of others. She felt intensely the problems of her own day. One of the reasons she founded the Order was the compassion she felt for the Church wounded by disunity (especially in the wake of the Reformation). For her, prayer was at the heart of the Church and was itself intensely apostolic. Our prayer is in fact the source and strength of our prophetic mission. We aim to live the Gospel in the midst of a troubled world and to reveal to it the secret of true joy and hope.

“Christ, sent into the world by the Father, is the source and exemplar of every apostolic mission. We must identify with him both in our hearts and in our behavior, so that our life bears witness to the Gospel and brings its joyful message to people, especially to the poor” (Constitutions, 87).

This life of allegiance to Jesus Christ is at the heart of our vocation. We strive to imitate Him both in His prayer in the desert and His compassion for the multitudes. As we are called to share His spirit and to be instruments of His grace, we cannot be content with any small-mindedness or mediocrity of apostolic spirit. We have especially made our own the work of helping others in their spiritual quest. Our own experience of prayer is then an apostolic resource and inspiration.

“Our vocation is a grace by which we are called to a hidden union with God, in a form of life and fraternal sharing in which contemplation and action are blended to become a signal apostolic service of the Church” (Constitutions, 15).

The example of St. Teresa, St. John of the Cross and many saintly Carmelites over the centuries encourages us to study seriously the Bible, theology and spirituality. The delicate work of spiritual direction requires a broadly based and thorough knowledge of the human heart and great personal sensitivity. The attainment of this proficiency demands consistent application. The value of all work whether intellectual, pastoral or manual is upheld by our Rule. It is a necessary element in our life.

“You must give yourselves to work of some kind, so that the devil may always find you busy; no idleness on your part must give him a chance to pierce the defenses of your soul” (The Rule of St. Albert).