"All must be Friends, all must be loved, all must be held dear, all must be helped." St. Teresa of Jesus

St. Teresa Association

Who are we?

• In 1975, in order to strengthen each other in living their contemplative vocation in the Church, a group of American monasteries of Discalced Carmelite Nuns joined together as an Association. The 5 founding Carmels were Danvers (Massachusetts), Pittsford (New York), Lafayette (Louisiana), Fort Worth (Texas), and Terre Haute (Indiana).

Nature of the Association:

• Our monasteries share the same vision of the Teresian ideal. We seek to go ever deeper into the life and doctrine of Our Holy Mother, St. Teresa, the source of our authentic renewal and the true source of our spiritual affinity.
• Our monasteries respect the juridical autonomy of each Carmel.
• Our monasteries are guided by the 1991 Constitutions of the Discalced Carmelite Nuns, the documents and teachings of the Catholic Church on the cloistered contemplative life.

Principal Aims:

• To make Christ present in the world through our contemplative life.
• To strengthen each other and the Order by building in Christ a foundation of mutual trust and openness that will enable us to face the challenges of today with ever increasing fidelity to the spirit of our Teresian contemplative mission in the Church.
• To foster fidelity to our Rule and Constitutions, especially the principal aim of the Primacy of Prayer as our sole apostolate, and the privilege of enclosure, silence and solitude. We seek to retain a simple life-style that includes fast and abstinence, manual labor, with the Carmelite habit as a sign of our consecration. Besides the choral recitation of the Divine Office, we live our vowed life of poverty, chastity and obedience in a Teresian balance between the solitary and communal aspects of our daily life. (cf. Statutes of the St. Teresa Association)

Present Members:

• At the present time, the Association is comprised of 11 Carmels: Carmel (California), Danvers (Massachusetts), Hialeah (Florida), Guam (Tamuning, Guam), Lafayette (Louisiana), Mobile (Alabama), Port Tobacco (Maryland), Salt Lake City (Utah), Spruce Grove (Alberta, Canada), St. Agatha (Ontario, Canada), St. Louis (Missouri).