Florida Catholic | ‘First promise’ Is A New Beginning

‘First promise’ is a new beginning

A Port Charlotte woman makes her ‘first promise’ on a spiritual journey to become a member of the Secular Carmelites.

BOB REDDY | FLORIDA CATHOLIC VENICE BUREAU EDITOR

Published: 05.23.08

NORTH PORT | Nancy Carol Lauer took a giant step in a spiritual journey as she made her “first promise” to becoming a member of the Secular Carmelites – an association of lay women and men and diocesan clergy who embrace the values of the Carmelite religious order but live secular lives.

“I am beginning a whole new life,” the 70-year-old grandmother said after the special service May 4 at San Pedro Parish. “The joy is so strong it just flows out of you.”

Lauer will undergo three years of deep prayer and contemplation before she takes her final, permanent promise as a member of order, formally known as the Third Order Secular of the Discalced Carmelites.

Tears flowed as she recited her promise to follow the example of Sts. Theresa of Avila, John of the Cross and Therese the Little Flower, by embracing the call of a contemplative prayer life and embarking on her journey.

Father Joseph Pray, parochial vicar of San Pedro Parish, put his hands over Lauer’s head as she accepted the Holy Spirit. Diane Murphy, former director locally for the Discalced Carmelites, had her hands on Lauer’s back during the ceremony.

“She was doing OK, then the Holy Spirit came to her like a ‘Thump!’ Then she knew. I could feel it in her. She was transformed,” Murphy said.

The Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites “welcomes those of the faithful who, by special vocation, undertake to live, in the world, an evangelical life of fraternal communion imbued with the spirit of contemplative prayer and apostolic zeal according to the example and teaching of the Carmelite saints,” according the order’s rule.

Prospective members spend one year in introduction, getting to know the community and the charisms it follows. After one year, there is the rite of admission to formation during which the applicant receives a scapular. Next is the two-year formation period. At the end of this, the candidate makes the first, temporary promise which lasts for three years. Finally, the candidate makes the final, permanent promise, or vow.

Lauer – whose chose the two names of Bernadette of the Immaculate Conception and John Paul II – said she wanted to be a nun ever since she was a little girl, even playing dress up. Instead, however, she married Martin and had six children. When the couple moved into the area, she found out about the secular order.

The parishioner of St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Port Charlotte, is experiencing the beauty of Carmelite life on different level. Those who wish to enter the Secular Carmelite community are expected to participate in the Liturgy of the Hours, also known as the Divine Office, go to daily Mass if possible, say a daily rosary, and spend a half hour in contemplative prayer and meditation. Members are also called to “be a light in the workplace where priests cannot go.”

The North Port Community of Secular Carmelites currently has 29 members.

Lauer normally would have had her “first promise” ceremony during an annual Carmelite retreat last November but she was unable to attend the ceremony. Instead, at San Pedro Parish she was able to receive the same ceremony but with her close friends, making for a solemn occasion and personal celebration as two of her daughters and a granddaughter looked on. Her husband was unable to attend.

“Wow, I am happy. Oh, my goodness. I am blessed,” Lauer said.

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