Mt. Carmel, near the modern port city of Haifa, Israel, is not far from where Christ grew up. It had been a holy mountain long before the birth of Our Lord and by the twelfth century it had become a home to Carmelite monastics with a particular devotion to the Virgin Mary as their patroness. By the end of the thirteenth century assorted political and religious strife had caused the Carmelites to depart from Mt. Carmel and travel to Europe. Some Carmelites established monasteries as far north as England.
For more background, a brief yet thorough explanation of the history of the Brown Scapular has been written by the brilliant Discalced Carmelite writer and translator, Reverend Kieran Kavanaugh. It can be read here.
THOSE SCAPULAR PROMISES YOU’VE HEARD ABOUT
It was in England in the thirteenth century that one Carmelite, St. Simon Stock, is said to have received the Brown Scapular from Our Lady after having written the beautiful Flos Carmeli prayer…..read more….
