Merry Christmas to all! We are happy to share with you an excerpt from our Chaplain's homily on this Christmas Day!       ...When God comes to visit this earth, He does not do so with the power of an army or by terrifying the world as men think; He does not bring war and desolation with Him. He does not have the economic or political power of a great man of this world. God comes to visit us, and behold: He is a poor and exiled newborn baby. He has no means of defending hims

Merry Christmas and Holy Year 2024 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Carmel, Dear families and friends, Dear benefactors and volunteers,               We are glad to reach you all, beyond our walls, beyond the city and the country, and even beyond the seas!                According to the custom of end-of-year circulars, we would like to offer you a hindsight of the year 2023. It is not easy to go back before the shock of October 7th, as this date impressed us, with the sudden agg

It began on October 7th, Feast day of Our Lady of the Rosary. During the Office of Lauds and the Eucharist, the alarm sounded almost...

Many people have asked us how we live the tragic events that our country is experiencing these days. We intensify our brotherhood: with all victims, with the bereaved families, with the people of Gaza currently under the bombs, with the Christians of Gaza who sheltered in the parish, praying day and night: their faith and courage are impressive.       Our neighbourhood is sometimes very silent: the people avoid going out, the works are stopped, there are no more feasts, no mu

The Carmel of Jerusalem – the first to be founded in the Holy Land – was founded in 1973 thanks to the encounter, in April 1872, of the Princess Aurelie de la Tour d’Auvergne and Mother Xavier. The foundation was enabled thanks to the will of the Carmel of Carpentras from which came Mother Aloysia, first prioress of our Carmel. 150 years since our Foundation! On October 15th, 2022, we had the grace to celebrate the opening of this Jubilee with our Patriarch Mgr Pierbattista P

Saturday October 14th 2023, Mass was celebrated to pray and give thanks to the Lord for our Sister Ange who was going to receive the habit of the Carmelite nuns in the afternoon.           Sister Ange is Sister of Our Lady of the Apostles since August 14th, 2005. She was happily engaged in her vocation to continue the Apostles’ mission they had received from the Lord: to preach the Good News to those who do not yet know Christ, in Africa.       Our Lord surprised her, inspiri

On this day we honor the Virgin Mary, whose sisters we are at Carmel. The liturgy helps us make the connection between Mount Carmel, where the prophet Elijah announced the Virgin under the sign of the beneficial rain, and Mount Calvary, where Mary stands witness to a new Covenant through the blood shed by Jesus. This is what Father Laurent highlighted in his beautiful homily by inviting us to climb now to the mountain of the Eucharist where we pray for the world in its diffic

On June 7, 1923, Marguerite Marie Guiomar was born in Landernau (Finistère) into a close-knit and happy family.                 On June 7, 2023, at the Carmelite convent in Jerusalem, Sr. Marguerite Marie de Jésus celebrated her 100th birthday surrounded by her sisters in the community and her sister Sr. Marie Guénola, a Benedictine nun from Calvary and neighbor on the Mount of Olives, as well as many friends, priests, nuns, and lay people who came to join in our thanksgiving

Throughout this great week, we have accompanied Christ in the mystery of his Passover. Sent by the Father, the Lord Jesus offered everything and draws us into his offering. "The right hand of the Lord has done marvelous things, his right hand has lifted me up. No, I shall not die, I shall live and proclaim the works of God." (Psalm 117:16-17) Happy and Holy Easter to all!

Holy celebration of the Lord's Supper! "Father, [...] my soul needs to tell you that it is in complete communion with yours, allowing itself to be taken, carried away, and overwhelmed by the One whose charity envelops us [...]. I was thinking of you as I read [...] these words on contemplation: “The contemplative is a being who lives in the radiance of the Face of Christ, who enters into the mystery of God, not under the light that rises from human thought, but under that whi

Sing a song of joy to Christ as He enters into Jerusalem!                  Each one of us is there, present, during our Lord’s Passion in Jerusalem. The Paschal Mystery reflects on us, touches us, sanctifies us. This is ongoing, from our conception in God’s eternal Will, to our today’s life, and will be so until our death and resurrection!                 Indeed, “when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, He yielded up His spirit. […] The earth quaked and the rocks were

Let us talk straight as we enter into Lent: what do we need? Which specific Word of God shall we echo? On Thursday after Ash Wednesday,...

Religious communities of the Mount of Olives On the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Sunday dedicated to the Word of God, the religious...

"You have come into your Temple, you, the sacrificed Lamb, the torch of the new Jerusalem, the true Temple of which we are the living stones... "         It was to the singing of this refrain that we went this morning, February 2, to the Meeting of the Lord presented in the Temple by the Virgin Mary and St. Joseph, and joyfully welcomed by Simeon and Anna, the prophetess.          The procession with lighted candles begins at the enclosure gate and continues through the clois

This year Christmas is celebrated Sunday. We adore He who is born was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and He who was designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his Resurrection from the dead (Rm 1:1-3). The Carmelite nuns of Pater Noster Monastery in Jerusalem wish you a Very holy Christmas and Happy New Year 2023! May the Blessed Child of Mary, the Risen Lord, bring a light of Peace and life to our World. May your hearts be full o

“The earth has yielded its increase. God, even our own God, will bless us.” (Psalm 66:7). The 2022 harvest has been particularly abundant: nearly four tonnes of olives. This harvest was also postponed for several weeks to let the olives reach an optimum grade of ripeness. The harvest was carried out by all healthy Carmelite nuns, our two workers and generous volunteers. It was a nice community work, in silent prayer, good humour, mutual support, and physical effort. Sure, 4 t

“What a magnificent view! On one side, Jerusalem spreads on the Moriah mountainside, and on the other side the Dead Sea, the road to Bethany, Bethsphage. So close on the right, the place of the Ascension.” These are the words Mother Xavier chose to express her delight in her diary, in the evening of her encounter with the Princess of the Tour d’Auvergne, on April 19th, 1872, on the place where the monastery was to be built. 150 years later, this place has changed a lot! Many

The Carmelite Sisters of Carmel in Jerusalem are delighted to invite you to the Eucharist Presided over by Our Patriarch, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa 15 October 2022 at 10 a.m. On the occasion of the "Feast of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Our Mother  and the opening of the 150th anniversary of the Foundation of the Carmelite Convent of Pater Jerusalem"

The summer sun shines on the Holy Land and ripens nice fruits: golden grapes, tasty figs, prickly pears sought-after by the neighbours whose children enter the garden to pick some themselves. It’s a little disappointing as we’ve been giving plenty to all who asked for. Yet let’s rejoice as the whole earth belongs to the Lord and all shall be “to the praise and glory of His name”! We received a very nice session in August to further deepen our liturgy. Fr Olivier Praud be