St. Joseph is becoming more and more prominent in the eyes of the Church.  It wasn’t long ago that St. Joseph’s name was added to the Eucharistic Prayers in the Masses of the Catholic Church.  Fr. Don Calloway also wrote a wonderful book in 2020 called “...

Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection's book The Practice of the Presence of God is a spiritual classic and provides great insight into the important of our secular work to uniting us with God. In this podcast, Tim Bete, OCDS, summarizes Brother Lawrence'...

Poet Sarah Law talks about her new book Therese: Poems, which is a wonderful way to meditate on the life of St. Therese of Lisieux. Sarah also reads several poems. The book can be purchased at: Paraclete Press: https://paracletepress.com/collections/vend...

Dec. 14th is the Solemnity/Feast of St. John of the Cross, a Discalced Carmelite and Doctor of the Church.  He is often referred to as Doctor Mysticus or Doctor of Love.  He is a great Saint for Advent with his writings centering on mystery, darkness, in...

St. John of the Cross is known as one of the greatest Spanish Poets.  Thankfully, he was asked to expound upon his poems which resulted in the classics we may be familiar with…such as “The Spiritual Canticle,” “The Dark Night,” and “The Living Flame of L...

On this day, Nov. 8, the feast day of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, join me in praying her famous prayer known as “O My God, Trinity whom I Adore.”  It is a prayer that is very deep with much to ponder.  This translation came from the book, “Drink of the...

What are the obligations of a person who becomes a member of the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites?  An easy way to remember them is to abbreviate them and call them the “6 M’s.”  Colleen Sollinger, a professed member of the Secular Order of Discalce...

The famous sun miracle at the Church approved apparition in Fatima, Portugal on Oct. 13, 1917 remains a topic of discussion among many Catholics.  Over a hundred years have passed since it occurred, yet we are still deriving great fruit from it.  In this...

On Oct. 15, 2020, Fr. John MacQuarrie gave this homily at the Feast Day Mass of St. Teresa of Avila. What is piercing your heart?  Is it the anger and confusion of our times in this world, in the church, in politics?  Or is it the flaming arrow of God’s ...

Mountains are a privileged place of prayer.  Jesus often went up the mountain to pray.  In Hebrews 12:22-24 we are invited to come to Mt. Zion, the City of the Living God.  What is this call?  How should we answer this call?  What is our responsibility i...

Deacon Rusty Baldwin. OCDS, gives a talk about the Transfiguration.

Herb Edwards, OCDS, gave a wonderful talk about Our Lady Queen of Peace at our September 2020 OCDS Community meeting. The very beginning of the talk was cut off but the talk was so amazing, we still wanted to share it with you here.

Paul Adams, OCDS, provides insights on St. Pope John Paul II and the Blessed Virgin Mary.

In this talk, Deacon Rusty Baldwin, OCDS, discusses how to maintain our Carmelite identity.

Carmelites are well aware of the spiritual journey climbing Mt. Carmel to grow in union with our Lord.  What may be passing under our radar is the Mystical Union with our Blessed Virgin Mary. This program addresses what that union is, what Marian souls e...

Many of us are homebound right now due to the pandemic of the coronavirus. The whole world is experiencing this scourging. What are we as Secular Discalced Carmelites called to do. Mark highlights some aspects of our Carmelite Charism that are particular...

Since most of us, all over the world, are not able to physically go to Mass and received Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, due to the pandemic coronavirus, we have a unique opportunity to intensify our spiritual practice of spiritual communions. St. Teresa...

Deacon Russell Baldwin, OCDS, gave a homily on The Well-Ordered Life at our March 2020 Community meeting and holy Hour.

Marika Zimmerman, OCDS, gave this presentation at our March 2020 Community meeting. Bibliography Nine Themes in Carmelite Spirituality - 6. Carmel is Marian by Fr. Patrick Thomas McMahon, O.Carm. https://ocarm.org/en/content/ocarm/nine-themes-carme...

Material and spiritual attachments are BIG roadblocks to our growing union with the Lord. This presentation by Deacon Baldwin, himself a Secular Discalced Carmelite, helps one ponder how to live out the Evangelical Counsel of Poverty in one’s own life. I...

For 2020, our OCDS Community in Dayton, Ohio, has the theme of "Mary, Our Mother” for all of our community presentations. This month’s presentation is on “Mary in Scripture.” There are some eye-opening analogies and topologies presented in this talk that...

It’s no surprise to learn of the great devotion St. Therese of Lisieux had for our Mother Mary. She was immersed in Marian devotion from her birth, being born into a family that all loved Mary. The focus of this presentation is on four aspects of Therese...

This is a reflection given on the feast of the Baptism of our Lord that focuses on the sacrament of Baptism itself as well as our own Baptism in light of our vocation to Carmel.

What would it be like to fully experience the Trinity dwelling in you at all times.? What might it be like to live with continual spiritual guidance and direction, to experience rest and consolation, to know that you are confirmed in reality of an eterna...