Thank you and may God Bless You!
PRAISED BE
JESUS CHRIST,
NOW AND FOREVER!
The CARMEL OF JESUS, MARY AND JOSEPH
Discalced Carmelites
Valparaiso, Nebraska
NOTE: These webpages brought to you by the Las Vegas Marian Information Center. With gratitude to the Discalced Carmelites for allowing us to share their photographs on the construction of the Monastery of the Carmel in Valparaiso, Nebraska
PRAISED BE
JESUS CHRIST,
NOW AND FOREVER!
So many vocations, for information regarding the papal enclosed monastery of Discalced Carmelite Sisters, serving the Diocese of Lincoln, in Valparaiso, Nebraska and elsewhere from originator: their daughterhouses/papal enclosure foundations in Elysburg, Pennsylvania, in Diocese of Oakland, California [2012], who have now moved to Kensington, CA - their permanent foundation. Another soon to be Papally enclosed monastic Discalced Carmelite community in Pennsylvania (Fairfield), in Idaho and most recently in the continent of Australia. Praise be Jesus forever! Kindly communicate all inquiries by physical mail only. Thank you.
Prioress, Reverend Mother Teresa of Jesus, OCD, Carmel of Jesus, Mary and Joseph
9300 Agnew Rd., Valparaiso, NE 68065.
No phone calls, please. Thank you.
Please link here to contact us re: MICenter only. Thank you.
Immaculate Virgin and Queen of Carmel
You are the hope of the suffering and the consolation of the afflicted
Look not upon my sins but remember only that I am a poor soul
redeemed by the Precious Blood of your Son
and that my heart is sealed with your holy Scapular
Hear my prayer and if it be for the glory of God your honor
and for the salvation of my soul, grant what I ask in this Triduum . Amen
O' Mary, most holy Mother of Carmel, Virgin of Virgins, Sanctuary of the
Blessed Trinity, Mirror of Angels, assured Refuge of sinners!
Have compassion on me in my sufferings listen to my sighs with clemency
intercede for me with your Son Amen.
Community of Discalced Carmelites ENCLOSED in Elysburg, Pennsylvania. Moving: permanent location in Fairfield Jul 2018.
[Breaking News: Moving to their permanent location in Fairfield, July 2018! Incredibly wonderful, thank you Jesus, Mary and dear St. Joseph! Click here for all updates. >>>
By Jen Reed The Catholic Witness, 2009
ELYSBURG – Exactly 447 years to the day that St. Teresa of Jesus founded the first convent of the Carmelite reform, a solemn Mass and blessing of the enclosure of a new Carmelite community took place at the Carmel of Jesus, Mary and Joseph in Elysburg. The community of 11 Discalced Carmelite nuns arrived from Valparaiso, Neb., in April and came to the Diocese of Harrisburg due to a constant increase of vocations. This new community of Carmelites joins the Danville Carmelites and the Dominican Nuns of the Perpetual Rosary in Lancaster as the third contemplative community of nuns in the 15 counties of the Diocese of Harrisburg. The Solemn High Mass and establishment of enclosure took place on Aug. 24, the Feast of St. Bartholomew. Father Joseph Howard of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, who will serve as chaplain at the monastery, celebrated the Mass. Those present included Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades, Msgr. Timothy Thorburn, Vicar General of the Diocese of Lincoln; Father William Waltersheid, Diocesan Secretary for Clergy and Consecrated Life; and Father Neil Sullivan, Director of the Diocesan Office of Worship.
“We are grateful now to have our enclosure since the last four months have been filled
with preparations and renovations to the monastery,” said Mother Stella Marie, prioress.
“It will be a great gift for us to return to our solitude and to continue our work.”
“We will be praying for all the people of the diocese,” she said. “We look forward
to having the faithful come to our chapel for daily Mass. Please come, because you
are welcome and you are welcome to leave your prayer intentions which we will offer
during our Divine Office and Holy Mass.”
The Discalced Carmelite nuns will live a strictly cloistered life setting themselves apart from the world in order to dedicate themselves to God. By means of their prayers and sacrifices, they participate vitally in the redemption of the world. During the blessing of the monastery, Bishop Rhoades remarked that the nuns “enter the silence of Carmel where, in the words of John Paul, cloistered Carmelite nuns throughout the world continue to bring forth perfumed flowers of holiness, souls in love with Heaven, who with their evangelical heroism have sustained and effectively sustain the mission of the Church.”
“These daughters of Our Lady of Mount Carmel remind all of us who are so often busy with so many activities and concerns that we must give absolute priority to seeking first the kingdom of God, as Jesus taught us,” the bishop said. “Here prayer becomes life and life flourishes with prayer. In our busy world, we need the example of Carmel to remind us of the necessity of prayer, that we all need to make space in our lives for prayer, that we are all called to union with the Lord. These beloved daughters of the Church, immersed in silence and prayer, recall to all of us the absolute primacy of God. This witness is desperately needed in our increasingly secularized world.”
The ceremony ended with Bishop Rhoades locking the door to enclose the nuns in cloister.
The Mass and blessing were attended by a number of faithful from the diocese, including
several Discalced Carmelites from Danville, who lived at the monastery from 1961
until their move to Danville in 2008.
“Today is a great day, a great gift from God,” said Discalced Carmelite Sister Angela Pikus, of the Danville community. “It is his providence that we are in Danville, and it’s providence that the sisters that have come here are now here in the monastery.” Father William Waltershied called the nuns “a marvelous witness to a life of contemplative prayer. Their monastery will be a powerhouse of prayer. They will be praying for our diocese, our priests, all of our people in the diocese. Even though they are enclosed, they will be intimately involved in the lives of the people because they’re praying for us.”
“They witness to the value of consecrated life,” he added. “It’s wonderful to see a sign that consecrated life is still so relevant in the Church today and that it is vibrant and healthy. They really are signposts on the way to heaven because of the way in which they embrace the Gospel.”
To view more and larger images, visit www.ccacarmels.org/ElysburgCarmel.html
For inquiries, kindly communicate by mail:
Reverend Mother Stella Marie of Jesus, Discalced Carmelite Sisters, Elysburg
70 Monastery Road Elysburg PA 17824-9697 U.S.A.
Glorious, Historical overview in Photographs of its construction
(Roll over image for larger view)
Monastery Aerial View
Monastery Chapel of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph
Visit of the Carmelite Monastery in Kensington, California March 2015 - second daughterhouse from Valparaiso, NE
Carmel of Jesus, Mary and Joseph of Kensington, California
Click icons: Brief video of the Carmel Chapel (17 sec)
Brief video of the Carmel Chapel 2 (13 sec)
Brief video of the drive down from Carmel of Jesus, Mary and Joseph (30 sec)
