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Candidates
Candidates
come here primarily to be hermit monks. Our calling is to be like Mary
seated at our Savior's feet, attending to His words as the only thing
necessary. Our call is not a preparation for the priesthood nor a step to
something else; it is itself the highest calling to a life of
prayer.
Men
who express an interest in our life are invited to visit the hermitage
for the first time for a weekend. If interest is expressed once again, the
candidate visits for a one month live-in observership
participating fully in the daily schedule of the hermitage. After this
visit if the candidate is interested in joining the hermitage he applies
to the Prior and starts his application papers. Those applying must not
be younger than 18 years of age, nor older than 35.
Our
life of prayer is nourished by the steadfast foundations of the eremitical
life: conversion of life, humility, solitude, silence, obedience
and simplicity.
It is important that the candidate not only have a desire for solitude,
but for communal life as well. A candidate needs good physical and
mental health to sustain our way of life, since we perform a good amount
of manual labor.
Aspirancy
The
candidate, having been formally accepted into the community, begins the
time of Aspirancy that lasts from a half a year to one year.
This is the first contact that he has with the new way of
life he aspires to embrace. The goal at this stage is to acquire a
consciousness of the Divine call, to test his strength and aptitudes as
he progresses in the experience of the monastic spirit. One very
important aspect of this period in the Hermit's formation is to form
gradually in himself a separation from people and activities of the
outside world, and surrender himself in following the Lord Jesus with a
great spirit of detachment and generosity in following his call to the
eremitical life.
During this time
he wears a brown monastic shirt without a hood with a short scapular for the community acts,
almost all of which he participates in.
Postulancy
The
Postulancy begins with the investiture of the brown tunic and a short
brown scapular, and lasts for six months to one year. During this time, the Postulant
immerses himself in the Carmelite eremitical life and deepens himself in
the knowledge of his Catholic faith. He continues discerning in prayer
with greater clarity the call of the Lord for this way of life.
Novitiate
At
the beginning of the Novitiate the Postulant is invested in the full
Habit of the Carmelite Hermits, consisting of the brown tunic, the long
brown scapular, the belt with Rosary, the wooden novitiate cross and the white mantle. The Novice
also receives his new name in Religion from the Prior, by which he will
be called from that time forward. The Novitiate lasts for two years and
is a time for the Novice to make a strong foundation in his Carmelite
eremitical life.
First Temporal Vows
At
the end of the Novitiate the Hermit makes his first temporary Profession
of Vows of Obedience, Chastity and Poverty for three years. The
Novitiate wooden cross is exchanged for the Profession Crucifix. During this time, the Hermit
deepens his spiritual life by performing all his tasks in the context of
his Vows to God, his obedience to his Superior and his place within the
Religious Community. This is the last formal stage of the Hermit's
formation as he contemplates the decision to give himself completely to
God and to bind himself to the community until death.
Solemn Profession of
Vows
The
public ceremony of Solemn Profession expresses a spiritual union and a
mystical death: the Hermit, by his taking of the Vows until death, turns
away from the glamour and empty show of the world, and opens his heart
to the advancing Kingdom of God, which has already taken root in his
soul. Through continual repentance and obedience, his life grows in the
grace of Christ, who died to the world in obedience to His Heavenly
Father for the life of the world. The Hermit, by his prayer and
spiritual death, also participates in the miraculous life-giving mission
of Christ, as he reforms his own life and intercedes in prayer for the
good of the Church and the salvation of souls. As he proceeds on his
spiritual journey, the Hermit tends towards the perfection of charity,
which is the goal of his Profession and of all monastic life.
As
one cannot imagine Carmel without Our Lady, who is the "Lady of the
Place" according to the early Hermits on Mount Carmel, candidates
should foster in themselves devotion to our Heavenly Mother whom we know
loves us. Daily prayer of the Rosary and consecration to Our Lady
through the wearing of the Brown Scapular is recommended for all
candidates. Doing this, a candidate should awaken in himself a desire to
wear the Holy Carmelite Habit and to emulate Our Lady's virtues of
humility, prayer of the heart and hiddenness.
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