The Our Lady of Mount Carmel Novena

The Our Lady of Mount Carmel Novena is a nine-day Catholic prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary under her title Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the Marian patroness of the Carmelite Order and the giver of the Brown Scapular. The novena is prayed in preparation for her feast on July 16, the anniversary of the 1251 apparition to Saint Simon Stock.

Origin and historical development

The Carmelite Order traces its origins to the hermits on Mount Carmel in the Holy Land in the late twelfth century. The hermits dedicated their chapel to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the Order has been known throughout its history as the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel.

On July 16, 1251, at the Carmelite house in Aylesford, England, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to the Prior General of the Order, Saint Simon Stock. She extended to him the Carmelite scapular and made the promise that whoever dies clothed in the scapular shall be saved. This event inaugurated the devotion of the lay Brown Scapular and the modern liturgical commemoration of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

The novena form developed in Carmelite communities and the Confraternity of the Brown Scapular. It is traditionally prayed from July 7 through July 15, ending on the eve of the feast.

Structure of the novena

Each day focuses on one of the Marian titles given to Our Lady of Mount Carmel in the Carmelite spiritual tradition: Mother, Patroness, Flower of Carmel, Star of the Sea, Queen and Beauty of Carmel, Pillar of the Church, Help of Christians, Refuge of Sinners, and Hope of the Dying. Each day includes a brief reflection and a prayer of intercession.

When the novena is prayed

The traditional dates of the novena are July 7 through July 15, ending the day before the feast (July 16). The novena may also be prayed at any time of year for personal intentions, particularly by those enrolled in the Brown Scapular Confraternity.

Theological foundation

The novena rests on the Catholic doctrine of Marian intercession (see Why do Catholics pray to Mary?) and on the spirituality of the Brown Scapular as a sign of consecration to Mary. The Holy Office decree of 1950 clarified the proper Catholic understanding of the scapular promise: a sign of perseverance in grace, conditional on the wearer's faithful Christian life.

Pairing with other prayers

The novena pairs naturally with the Holy Rosary, with Marian prayers such as the Hail Mary, Memorare, and Hail Holy Queen, and with daily wearing of the Brown Scapular. For other Marian novenas, see the Miraculous Medal Novena, the Mary Undoer of Knots Novena, and the Immaculate Conception Novena.

Sources

The Carmelite spiritual tradition is preserved in the Constitutions of the Order of Carmelites and in the devotional literature of the post-Tridentine Carmelite revival, including the writings of Saint Teresa of Avila and Saint John of the Cross. The standard pre-1969 Carmelite breviary preserved the proper office of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.