The Hermits of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel is a branch of the religious Carmelite Order of the Ancient Observance, who originated as

hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Ch ...

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s and have been mendicant

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the ol ...

s since the 13th century. The male Carmelites of this branch of the order are not considered monastics as the cloistered Carmelite nuns are. However, Carmelite Hermits are new and separate communities of men and women living an

enclosed Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or "common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...

life, inspired by the ancient Carmelite monastic life, under the authority of the Prior General of Carmelite Order (O.Carm.).

Our Lady of Mount Carmel Our Lady of Mount Carmel, or Virgin of Carmel, is the title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in her role as patroness of the Carmelite Order, particularly within the Catholic Church. The first Carmelites were Christian hermits living on Mount Ca ...

is the principal

patroness Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

of this type of Carmelite communities.

Hermit Communities under the Prior General (O.Carm.) authority

Male Communities

* Hermits of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel – Christoval, Texas (U.S.A.) * Hermits of Our Lady of Mount Carmel –

Fairfield, Pennsylvania Fairfield is a borough in Adams County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 526 at the 2020 census. History During the Gettysburg Campaign in the American Civil War, the Battle of Fairfield played an important role in securing the ...

(U.S.A.) * Carmelite Hermits of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Lake Elmo,

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

(U.S.A.)

Female Communities

* Hermits of Our Lady of Mount Carmel – Chester,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

(U.S.A.) * Carmelite Hermits of Monteluro – Monteluro (Italy) * Carmelite Hermits of Villefranche-de-Rouergue –

Villefranche-de-Rouergue Villefranche-de-Rouergue (; oc, Vilafranca de Roergue ) is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France. Villefranche-de-Rouergue station has rail connections to Toulouse, Figeac and Aurillac. History At the end of the Albigens ...

Aveyron Aveyron (; oc, Avairon; ) is a department in the region of Occitania, Southern France. It was named after the river Aveyron. Its inhabitants are known as ''Aveyronnais'' (masculine) or ''Aveyronnaises'' (feminine) in French. The inhabitants ...

(France)

References

{{reflist Carmelite Order Carmelite spirituality

Hermit Communities under the Prior General (O.Carm.) authority

Male Communities

Female Communities

See also

References