THE LAY CARMELITES
BLESSED TRINITY LAY CARMELITE COMMUNITY
(#5815 - Thornhill, ON)
Celebrating 10 years
Ontario and NW New York Region | Blessed Trinity LCC
Monthly Meeting time:
2nd Saturday, 10 AM
Meeting place:
No face-to-face meetings during the pandemic. Optional Zoom gatherings.
St Luke’s Catholic Church
39 Green Lane
Thornhill, ON L3T 6K5
We are a community of Catholic laity and belong to the Lay Carmelite Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Our mission is to follow Christ in love, to seek the kingdom of God, to sanctify and to transform the secular world through the participation of Carmelite charism of contemplative prayer, community and ministry.
Our community was formed on November 30, 2010. Lourdes and Daniel are our founding members. To date, our community has grown to sixteen members.
We meet on the second Saturday of the month at St. Luke's Parish, 39 Green Lane, Thornhill, for prayers and ongoing formation.
If you feel you may have a vocation in Carmel, please browse this site, read our information pamphlet, and contact us.
Blessings,
Eva
Community Director
The Annunciation (cropped), by Leonardo da Vinci. License.
CALL TO CARMEL
"Then Mary said, 'Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.' "
- Luke 1.38, NRSV
"I wanted Carmel as soon as I knew about it. I find all the aspirations of my soul are fulfilled in this Order."
- St. Therese of Lisieux, Story of a Soul, Manuscript A, 54v
Many and varied are the ways (Rule, 2) in which God calls people to follow Jesus Christ. Read about the Carmelite journey of some of our members.
Read about the Carmelite journey
St Albert Presents Rule, (cropped) by Pietro Lorenzetti. License.
THE CARMELITES
"Now therefore have all Israel assemble for me at Mount Carmel."
- 1 Kings 18.19, NRSV
"All must be friends, all must loved, all must be held dear, all must be helped."
- St Teresa of Avila, The Way of Perfection (ICS) 4.7
The Carmelites are an 800-year old religious family whose members include revered doctors and saints of the Church, such as St Teresa of Avila, St John of the Cross, Bl Titus Brandsma, and others. In North America, the Third Order Secular branch of the Order is commonly known as the Lay Carmelites.
Learn more about the Lay Carmelites
For Members...
MEETING SCHEDULE
LAY CARMELITE OFFICE, Darien, IL - Community meetings are postponed during the pandemic. New Candidates are not to be accepted during this time. If meetings are held online, they are optional.
Our community is holding meetings online via Zoom. We welcome Lay Carmelites from other communities to join us (use the Contact Us form above).
Monthly: 2nd Sat, 10 AM
Inquiry: postponed until after pandemic
Phase I: 2nd Mon, 7 PM (may vary)
Phase II: 2nd Thu, 7 PM (may vary)
Saturday prayer: every Sat, 10 AM
Contacts
Computer donations: Lourdes
Zoom gatherings: Bernardine
QUICK LINKS
2021 Community Directory (PDF)
Christian Prayer and Lectio Divina:
Regional Ordo and Events (Google calendar)
Rubric for Morning Prayer (PDF)
Rubric for Evening Prayer (PDF)
Rubric for Lectio Divina (PDF)
Saturday Prayer:
Structure for Online Community Meetings (PDF)
Morning Prayer for Certain Saturdays (PDF)
10th Anniversary:
UPCOMING EVENTS
[Opt] Saturdays
Morning Prayer and Lectio Divina
10 AM
Online via Zoom
Morning Prayer has been added to our Saturday prayer. Join us for Morning Prayer followed by lectio divina. These gatherings are open to other Lay Carmelites, to support members who have not been meeting during the pandemic.
[Opt] Sundays
Lectio Divina with Cardinal Collins
Verspers 7:00 PM, Lectio Divina 7:30 PM
Livestream
The Archdiocese of Toronto has supported Lay Carmelites in the Greater Toronto Area, and Cardinal Collins' lectio YouTube videos are featured on the ocarm.org website. Support our local lectio advocate for Evening Prayer and lectio divina on Sunday evenings at 7 PM.
Cost: free
For a schedule and more information: visit archtoronto.org/lectio
Sat, Mar 20, 2021
Annual Regional Lenten Day of Recollection
TBD
Join Lay Carmelites from around the region for Lenten reflection. More details will be available closer to the date.
Cost: free
For more information: TBA
JANUARY 2021 UPDATES
1. Anniversaries
Happy Birthday to:
Teresa
Eva
This year (exact day and month not known):
Helen, Rec (1967) ... 54 years
Pam, F Prof (1988) ... 33 years
2. New: Morning Prayer on Saturdays
Morning Prayer has been added to our Saturday gatherings. Join us at 10 AM for Morning Prayer and lectio divina.
3. Visitors at Monthly Meeting
We are expecting more visitors at our Saturday gatherings. Morning Prayer will be in a large group, while Ongoing Formation and parts of lectio divina will be in Breakout Rooms by community. This is to help communities become familiar with the technology, and to support members who have not been meeting during the pandemic.
4. Communion During the Pandemic
Update, Jan 12: Due to the the stricter lockdown measures announced for Ontario, and stricter measures announced for Woodbridge, please inquire about the latest status on this service. Two local parishes offer Communion on Sundays. Policies vary, but in general, watch the Mass at home, then come to receive Communion.
St. André Bessette Parish, distributing Communion at:
St. Cecilia Catholic Elementary School
300 Peter Rupert Ave, Maple, ON L6A 4P3
Sun, 11 AM - 12 PM
No registration. Drive up communion. Masks mandatory. Go to back parking lot, follow ushers' instructions.
St. Mary Immaculate Roman Catholic Church
10295 Yonge St, Richmond Hill, ON L4C 3B9
Sun, 8-9 AM, 4-5 PM
No registration. Masks mandatory. Line up at door, nine people allowed in at a time, 5 min sessions to receive communion.
For more information: contact the parish.
5. Community Directory Update
The 2021 Community Directory will be delivered soon.
Cost: PDF files are free. Hard copies are $7.
For more information: contact Lourdes
6. (from Dec) Computer Equipment Needed!
Members of our community, and other Lay Carmelites in the region, need computer equipment (laptops, webcams, ...) to participate in online meetings. If you are upgrading, and your old equipment is still in good condition, consider donating it.
For more information: contact Lourdes