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Sunday 10 June 2012

On Retreat

Carmel at Notting Hill
I would like to recommend any woman to wants to make a retreat in the heart of London, that there is a small oasis of beauty under the banner of the Carmel at Notting Hill. http://carmelitesnottinghill.org.uk/  is the link

I am on a mini-retreat and to find the spirit of St. Therese, the Little Flower in the middle of the metropolis is a great joy. The old roses are in bloom, some of the French variety, and I can imagine St. Therese being pleased with the small apartment, self-catering, here for those who need to be silent for even a short while. My rooms are called "Nazareth", and as I was making a pilgrimage in Walsingham last week as part of my finishing, again, St. Louis de Montfort's Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary, I felt there was a bit of synchronicity in the choice, which I did not make. Of course, Walsingham is where Our Lady instructed a shrine to be built in honor of The Annunciation. So, Nazareth surrounds me.

Today, parts of the Mass were sung in Latin Gregorian Chant, which I did not expect, as the hours are in English. Adoration of the Eucharist for the Feast of Corpus Christi took place almost all day.

Sister Patricia is the Guest Mistress and acts as the Extern, as the nuns are Contemplatives. This is my only post today. God bless the Carmelites in St. Charles Square. (One can take the Ladbroke Grove tube and it is an easy walk).

By the way, yesterday, I attended Latin Mass at the historic gem, the Church at Spanish Place, St. James. It is a bit too gloomy for me. The Chapel at the Carmelites is light and airy, full of roses, a statue of St. Therese and The Infant of Prague, as well as the Great St. Teresa, and, of course, St. Joseph.

St. James in Spanish Place


My favorite Church in London, for many reasons, is the Brompton Oratory. And, guess which is my second favorite? This will be my only post today.