Protocol 403 – 2012 R
Rabweh 19/08/2012
Sermon of His Beatitude Patriarch Gregorios III
For the Golden Jubilee
Of the Carmel of the Mother of God and Unity – Harissa
24/08/12
Most Reverend Mother Superior, dear sisters of the Carmel of the Mother of God and Unity
Your Grace, dear Reverend brother, Archbishop Cyril Salim Bustros, Metropolitan of Beirut for Melkite Greek Catholics and ecclesiastical superior of the Carmelites
Your Graces, dear Archbishops
Reverend Father Elias Aghia Superior General of the Society of Paulist Missionary Fathers, godfathers of the Carmel
Reverend Mother Nicola Herro, Superior General of the Sisters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, godmothers of the Carmel
Dear brothers and sisters
“God the Lord hath appeared unto us; let us celebrate the Feast, and let us rejoice and magnify Christ.…let us raise our voices unto Him with praise, saying, Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord, our Saviour.”
On Palm Sunday, the Church welcomes our Lord Jesus Christ with this hymn1.
And with this same hymn we welcome the Golden Jubilee of the foundation of the Carmel of the Mother of God and Unity in this wonderful place in dear Lebanon, which is considered a spiritual oasis for its flourishing patriarchates, monasteries and convents and world-famous Marian sanctuary.
This convent was founded on 24 August 1962 and we are gathered together to celebrate this Golden Jubilee. Meanwhile, in Spain, the Order in its masculine and feminine branches is celebrating the jubilee of 450 years since the foundation of the Carmel of San José in Ávila, the name of which province remains linked with that of the saintly doctor of the Catholic Church, Teresa of Ávila.
Firstly, I should like to convey some ideas from the letter of His Holiness Benedict XVI to the Bishop of Ávila, Mgr Jesús García Burillo, on the occasion of the foundation of the Carmel in Ávila, where Saint Teresa of Jesus began the Carmelite Reform. The Pope’s letter is dated 16 July 2012, feast of Our Lady of Carmel.
His Holiness begins with Jesus speaking to Saint Teresa in a vision, during which He encourages her to undertake the Reform. The Carmel of San José would be a star shining in great splendour, "Resplendens stella.” (Libro de la Vida, [The Book of My Life] 32, 11). That is the mission of the Carmel and especially of contemplative monasteries. That is what our Lord, Jesus Christ said: "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.” (Matthew 5:14-15) The house here means Lebanon and the world. This flourishing monastery is the light on the candlestick and the city on this hill.
His Holiness the Pope emphasises these points:
- The Jubilee should enlighten the hearts of those who take part in it, (in Spain and here) and be an opportunity for spiritual renewal.
- Silence, contemplation and a life enlivened by prayer are constituents of this spiritual renewal. Saint Teresa of Ávila, in her Book of her Life, gave a definition of prayer as, “being on terms of friendship with God, frequently conversing in secret with Him who, we know, loves us.” (Libro de la Vida 8, 5)
- The Carmel, according to Saint Teresa of Ávila, is a form of life that favours personal encounter with the Lord, for which “we have only to find a place where we can be alone and look upon Him present within us. Nor need we feel strange in the presence of so kind a Guest.” (Camino de perfección [the Way of Perfection] 28, 2)
- Saint Teresa of Ávila, the Spiritual Doctor, adds, “The friends of God should be strong, in order that they may support the weak.” (Libro de la Vida 15, 8
- This is the role of contemplative monasteries such as this monastery. Nuns, as his Holiness says, "protect with their fervour those who proclaim Christ’s name everywhere, so that they may pray for the Church’s needs and bring the cry of all the peoples to the Saviour’s heart.” 2
- His Holiness emphasises on this occasion the “need for the baptized to renew their hearts through personal prayer which… is also centred on contemplation of the Most Holy Humanity of Christ as the only way on which to find God’s glory” (cf. Libro de la Vida, 22, 1; Las Moradas [Interior Castle] 6, 7).
- His Holiness emphasises the importance of working to encourage vocations to the priesthood and “consecrated life which, [is] a treasure of the Church and an outpouring of graces … in both its active and contemplative dimensions.” 3
- The presence of the cloistered Carmel is a factor that meets the needs of our Church. Our female congregations were, at first, contemplative and cloistered behind grills, as was also the case in the Maronite Church. In the course of time they became apostolic to meet pastoral, social and educational needs. The Church is very grateful to these nuns for their apostolate.
- The Carmel is an oasis of eremitical and contemplative life in our Church through consecration to prayer, solitude and contemplation.
- The Carmel raises its hands in prayer in the name of and on behalf of those who cannot pray. It intercedes for those who are sorely buffeted by the roaring tides and harsh demands of this life. My brothers and sisters participating in this Jubilee, you have intercessors, representatives and delegates in prayer, silence, contemplation and solitude: the Carmelites.
- This Carmel has two names: that of Mary, Mother of God and Unity. It is the place of prayer and sacrifice for Christian unity, so that there may be just one flock and one Shepherd; that the world may believe. All believers are called to join in the prayers of the nuns of this monastery and other monasteries for communion, unity and witness. That is the pivot on which the 2010 Synod for the Middle East rests and that His Holiness the Pope, during his expected visit in September, will set out in the Apostolic Exhortation.
- It seems that the Carmel is the Upper Room where the Apostles gathered around Mary, Mother of Jesus, and where the Holy Spirit was poured out over all of them, in tongues of fire, calling all to unity and courage in bringing the message of Jesus and his Holy Gospel to our society torn as it is by crises, wars, divisions, hatreds and rivalries especially in our Arab society that is experiencing difficult times, unique in its history. And Lebanon itself is experiencing this state of affairs. On this blessed Jubilee, we should like to thank the Spanish Carmelites who struggled to realise their dream and the dream of the Greek Catholic Church by founding the Carmel in Lebanon. They struggled hard, leaving their country, detaching themselves from their traditions, their Latin Roman rite and their everyday life … They learned to read Arabic, studied the Eastern rite and chant… God knows how much heroic, exhausting effort that takes!
- Among the blessed days in the history of this holy monastery is 11 May 1997 when Blessed Pope John Paul II visited it for ten minutes. He blessed the nuns and encouraged them to continue praying for Church Unity, saying: "I know that you live here and pray here and that you suffer here for Church unity. So you must continue, because Lebanon is really a significant point… You have to go on in this direction. May God bless you."
وكلَّ عامٍ وأنتم بخير And many happy returns to you all!
With my love, blessing and good wishes,
+ Gregorios III,
Patriarch of Antioch and All the East,
Of Alexandria and of Jerusalem
For Melkite Greek Catholics
- Megalynarion for Palm Sunday (Tone Four)
- href='http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/messages/pont-messages/2012/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20120716_avila_en.html'>Message of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI to the Bishop of Ávila for the 450th. Anniversary of the Monastery of San José in Ávila and the Beginning of the Reform of Carmel, No. 3
- ibid. No.4
- Ikos sung at Matins of the Feast of the Transfiguration