There Is No Saint Carmel.

That is unique among the major Religious Orders. For the Franciscans, there is Saint Francis of Assisi… For the Benedictines, there is Saint Benedict… For the Augustinians, there is Saint Augustine… For the Dominicans, there is their patron, Saint Dominic… And for the Jesuits, there is Saint Ignatius.

As for the Carmelites, there is no Saint Carmel—no Saint Carmel whose life stands as a model for how the Carmelites live out their faith.

What the Carmelites do have is a collection of men and women who chose a way of life that models faith and love of the Lord through prayer, community, and ministry, beginning with Elijah. Elijah stands as the example upon which the first friars who came to Mount Carmel modeled their lives and their faith.

From there, each of the Carmelite saints took aspects of Elijah’s life of faith and lived those aspects to the fullest, providing all of us with one of the most expansive explorations of the life of a saint. So many perspectives, from such varied backgrounds and life experiences—so many examples and lessons lived—so much open debate and self-reflection… and so much of it so well documented by the saints themselves. This collection of lives and writings has given us the Pillars of Carmel, upon which our Carmelite faith stands as a shining example of how to live the Word of God well into the 21st century.

From Thérèse of Lisieux’s unceasing ability to see God in the daily tasks of life and in all that exists around us—the heart of prayer through service to and with our communities, in harmony with the world, seeing that everything is indeed grace…

To Teresa of Ávila’s desire to seek God by looking beyond the outside world and exploring the interior world—her desire for prayer through self-reflection and exploring the Word of God within ourselves—realizing that prayer is an experience of love through conversation with God…

To John of the Cross, who teaches us to preserve peace in our hearts and let no event of this world disturb it—that the endurance of darkness is preparation for great light. Elijah, filled with jealous zeal for God and unrelenting commitment through acceptance of God’s love, remains faithful to God’s word…

To Titus Brandsma’s silent strength—unabashedly living the Word of God with patience, gentleness, and love for all those around him, regardless of environment or circumstance—expressing that divine love even in the darkest moments…

And so many more.

With such an expansive well to draw from, we have begun a series of brief introductory videos—15 to 20 minutes each—to help you begin your journey to learn more about and from each of the Carmelite saints. And where better to start than with our Carmelite “Father and Leader,” Saint Elijah?

This first video [below] explores the life and lessons of faith given to us by both Elijah and Elisha, whose teachings are so intertwined that together they stand as a lasting example for generations of Carmelites—even to this day.

We hope you enjoy this first installment in the Why Is There No Saint Carmel? video series. We invite you to return for future videos, and we pray these reflections inspire you to go deeper and learn more from our amazing family of Carmelite saints.

UPDATE: View the new videos in this ongoing series by visiting our YouTube channel.