Carmelite Conversations

By Carmelite ConversationsReligion & Spirituality Christianity

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Carmelite Conversations episodes

December 19, 2019 St Elizabeth of the Trinity and prayer to the Trinity
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 eternal destiny of unimaginable peace, and, most importantly, what would it be like to live in continual peace?

If any or all of these conditions of existence sound intriguing to you, then this specific podcast on the Prayer to the Trinity, of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity is worth a listen. Here in this Carmelite Conversation, Mark and Frances walk you through Elizabeth's prayer to the Trinity, with assistance of a commentary on the prayer written by a Mother Amabel of the Heart of Jesus, a French Carmelite Nun.

There are a number of striking observations from the prayer, and also expanded upon in the commentary. The first is the call to become utterly forgetful of self. This is a message that often sounds strange to the modern generation, but it is a first prerequisite to anyone who desires to embark on the path to holiness and transformation in Christ. By beginning to place Christ first in our life, we will begin to understand how it is that He will be able to eventually take over our life and begin to literally live His life through us.

Another equally important requirement for us to begin to encounter the Trinity, is that we must be at peace in our own hearts and souls. This is not something we can achieve on our own, we must pray, indeed, we must plead with the Lord to give us this peace. For it is nothing other than the peace He promised us when He told His disciples He would give them a peace the world could not give. (John 14:27)

When we come to experience this peace, we need to be prepared to abandon everything in favor of remaining with the Lord, deep in the interior of our souls. We need to be prepared to offer Christ our very souls as His shelter, His place of repose and His dwelling place. He desires this from each of us.

We must also know that though we are powerless to offer ourselves in this way, we can rely on the fire of the Holy Spirit to prepare our souls for this coming, in exactly the same way the Holy Spirit prepared the Blessed Mother to both receive and later give birth to, or Incarnate Christ into the world through us.

Finally, we must learn to surrender ourselves to this complete absorption into the Three Persons of the Trinity, where we will discover infinite Solitude and the beginnings of an eternal Beatitude, which is nothing less than the promise of eternal life.

If you are looking for a guide to this journey to the interior of your soul, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity and her powerful prayer, along with the commentary, are a very good place to look.

48 min
December 10, 2019 The link between contemplative prayer and poetry
Frances Harry, OCDS, interviews poet Tim Bete, OCDS, about the link between contemplative prayer and poetry, including the "secret wisdom" discussed by St. John of the Cross the the concept of "creative intuition" discussed by Jacques Maritain.
Books of poetry by Tim Bete: The Raw Stillness of Heaven, Wanderings of an Ordinary Pilgrim
Primary source material: The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross (includes The Ascent of Mount Carmel, The Dark Night, The Spiritual Canticle, The Living Flame of Love, Letters, and The Minor Works) [Revised Edition]. ICS Publications.
The Range of Reason by Jacques Maritain
https://maritain.nd.edu/jmc/etext/range01.htm

51 min
December 10, 2019 How should we approach the poetry of St. John of the Cross?
Fraces Harry, OCDS, interviews poet Tim Bete, OCDS, about the poetry of St. John of the Cross. Below are resources and links to things mentioned in the podcast.
Books of poetry by Tim Bete: The Raw Stillness of Heaven, Wanderings of an Ordinary Pilgrim
Primary source material: The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross (includes The Ascent of Mount Carmel, The Dark Night, The Spiritual Canticle, The Living Flame of Love, Letters, and The Minor Works) [Revised Edition]. ICS Publications.
The Living Flame of Love by St. John of the Cross
1
O living flame of love
that tenderly wounds my soul
in its deepest center! Since
now you are not oppressive,
now consummate! if it be your will:
tear through the veil of this sweet encounter!
2
O sweet cautery,
O delightful wound!
O gentle hand! O delicate touch
that tastes of eternal life
and pays every debt!
In killing you changed death to life.
3
O lamps of fire!
in whose splendors
the deep caverns of feeling,
once obscure and blind,
now give forth, so rarely, so exquisitely,
both warmth and light to their Beloved.
4
How gently and lovingly
you wake in my heart,
where in secret you dwell alone;
and in your sweet breathing,
filled with good and glory,
how tenderly you swell my heart with love.
Spanish
1
¡Oh llama de amor viva,
que tiernamente hieres
de mi alma en el más profundo centro!
Pues ya no eres esquiva,
acaba ya, si quieres;
¡rompe la tela de este dulce encuentro!
2
¡Oh cauterio suave!
¡Oh regalada llaga!
¡Oh mano blanda! ¡Oh toque delicado,
que a vida eterna sabe,
y toda deuda paga!
Matando, muerte en vida la has trocado.
3
¡Oh lamparas de fuego,
en cuyos resplandores
las profundas cavernas del sentido,
que estaba oscuro y ciego,
con extraños primores
calor y luz dan junto a su Querido!
4
¡Cuán manso y amoroso
recuerdas en mi seno,
donde secretamente solo moras
y en tu aspirar sabroso,
de bien y gloria lleno,
cuán delicadamente me enamoras!

The Living Flame of Love in song
In Spanish
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjvx3dx8RNI
Living Flame of Love (Marcus Steer) Malone University Chamber Choir
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqLgA5cX0R0
Love's Living Flame sung by a choir (text by St. John of the Cross)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xx6PP954Dh8
John Michael Talbot (song)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFdI6JMQuqg
O Living Flame of Love (song by Karl Kohlhase)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOaE2U0xljQ

Fr. Bonaventure Sauer's talk about poetry
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxECpvpN_K6BU3U0cXRucDF2WDQ/view

53 min
December 10, 2019 On St. Joseph and his purity and humility, with Tammy Jetton, OCDS
Tammy Jetton, OCDS, gives a talk about St. Joseph during a meeting of the Dayton Secular Community's monthly meeting.
53 min
December 10, 2019 The language of God, with Deacon Rusty Baldwin
This is an episode in the monthly series of talks by Deacon Rusty Baldwin, a Secular Discalced Carmelite who gives a presentation to our Community in Dayton each month. These are recorded live during our Holy Hours. In this program, Deacon Baldwin discusses the language of God.
12 min
October 19, 2019 St. Teresa’s Devotion to St. Joseph presented by Chris Cotter, OCDS
Reflecting on St. Teresa of Avila’s devotion to St. Joseph, we see that it comes from her own personal life experience and intercession with St. Joseph. This reflection is based on an except from St. Teresa’s: “The Book of Her Life.” Join in at the end by praying the Litany to St. Joseph.

14 min
October 19, 2019 Overview of the Life of St. Teresa of Avila presented by Deacon Russell Baldwin, OCDS
Rarely do we get an overview of St. Teresa of Avila’s life, since we most frequently focus on specific teachings from her. This is a refreshing overview with a little bit of trivia.
11 min
October 03, 2019 Making Sense of Suffering presented by Colleen Sollinger, OCDS
Our OCDS community had a special celebration for St. Therese on her feast day, Oct. 1st. We had a guest do a presentation on St. Therese. This podcast is that presentation given at St. Peter’s Church in Dayton, OH. Many people have a stereotypical idea that St. Therese, the Little Flower, had it easy growing up and then living in the Carmelite Convent. This presentation clearly lays out many ways that St. Therese suffering and how she dealt with suffering. One ends feeling hopeful that our own suffering offered to God is worthwhile and will aid in saving souls.
22 min
October 03, 2019 A Conversation with Michael Vanderburgh from St. Vincent de Paul
This conversation is with Michael Vanderburgh, the Executive Director of the St. Vincent de Paul Society in Dayton, Ohio. This may immediately raise the question as to what the Society of St. Vincent de Paul has to do with Carmelite Spirituality. Well, honestly, as the Scripture verse below indicates, we are all called to practice charity to some degree. However, in addition, it turns out that St. Therese of Lisieux's Father, Louis Martin, was a very active member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society. No doubt, young Therese was exposed, at a young age, to her father's commitment to the poor. This likely contributed to her own early desire to become a missionary and travel to foreign lands to both save souls and serve the poor. Again, this affinity to the poor is something we are all called to, whether members of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Carmelites or any baptized Christian.
(Matthew 25:35-40) For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you took care of Me; I was in prison and you visited Me. “Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or without clothes and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and visit You? “And the King will answer them, ‘I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’
It is with this thought in mind that we chose to speak with Michael about the great work being done by one of the many St. Vincent de Paul Society districts. We also wanted to hear Michael's own vision for the building on the success of the spiritual charism that is so central to the St. Vincent de Paul Society, and how it is, in fact, the central theme for the foundation of the Society.
In this conversation you will hear about the more traditional work of the Society, including food pantries and clothing and housing goods that are distributed and sold, at significantly reduced prices, in the societies retail stores. But you will also hear about the significant number of people who are provided both short- and long-term shelter and housing in the City in Dayton. Finally, Mark and Michael discuss the Society's recent and significant and on-going support to survivors of the tornados that devastated the Dayton area over Memorial Day weekend in 2019. Finally, and most importantly, Michael shares his vision for the spiritual growth of the Society in Dayton, which will be built on the foundation of a new chapel within the Administrative Building in Dayton, and the beginning of Eucharistic Adoration. This is a very good program if you are looking for an opportunity to both better understand, and perhaps participate in one of the most prominent charitable ministries in the history of the Church.
53 min
September 18, 2019 After the Offering with St. Therese of Lisieux
St. Therese’s famous prayer, “The Act of Oblation to Merciful Love” is rich with spiritual concepts for us to ponder, especially the recognition of our poverty and weakness, yet pulsating desire to console Jesus in every way. Knowing souls were rejecting His love, St. Therese offers herself as a victim of his merciful love so that the love others souls rejected would come to her. She vehemently desires to be a saint but is not the great eagle that they are…so she implores God Himself to be her sanctity!! She displays her great confidence in God’s transforming fire of love. How may we imitate her? How may we make her prayer our own? This program carefully considers the duties of a victim of love, the obstacles to be overcome, the soul’s attitude toward suffering, and in what a “death of love” involves. Let us remember that St. Therese prayed for a “legion of little victims worthy of His love” to be raised up. Are you willing to be one?
52 min

About Carmelite Conversations

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The Carmelite Conversations podcast discusses Carmelite Spirituality and its application to our busy, modern lives. The podcast provides counsel on how to live the Carmelite call to combine…