MONG the great traditions of the Carmelite Monastery of St. Joseph and St. Anne in Philadelphia is an annual, public novena leading up to the feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. This year marks the 117th iteration of this annual devotion.
The novena begins today, July 8th, and concludes on the feast, itself, July 16th. The rosary and litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary will be prayed at 6:30 PM daily, during which time confessions will also be available. Mass celebrated in the Extraordinary Form will be offered each evening at 7 PM.
Mass for the feast day will be a Solemn High Mass. This year’s preacher will be Fr. Joseph Lee, F.S.S.P. The novena is open to the public, and clergy & seminarians are welcome to attend in choir.
The historic Philadelphia Carmel was founded in 1902. In addition to its rich legacy of prayer for the local Church of Philadelphia, this Carmel is also noteworthy for its pivotal role in cultivating devotion to St. Therese of Lisieux in the United States (see more on this history).
If you are not able to participate in the novena in Philadelphia, another fitting way to prepare for the feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel would be to pray the beautiful sequence, Flos Carmeli from July 8th through July 16th. The text, in Latin and English, is available here.
