07/16/2026
July 16 - Happy Feast Day Our Lady of Mount Carmel
"Take this scapular. Whosoever dies wearing it shall not suffer eternal fire. It shall be a sign of salvation, a protection in danger and a pledge of peace."
Today the Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, one of Christianity's oldest and most beloved Marian devotions. Its roots reach back to the hermits who lived on Mount Carmel in the Holy Land, seeking to imitate the prophet Elijah in lives of prayer and complete dependence upon God.
By the middle of the thirteenth century, however, the Carmelite Order faced extinction. Driven from Mount Carmel by war and persecution, its members found refuge in Europe, where their future was uncertain and even their continued existence was questioned. In this moment of profound trial, St. Simon Stock, Prior General of the Order, begged the Blessed Virgin for her help.
According to Carmelite tradition, Our Lady appeared to him bearing the Brown Scapular, saying: "Receive, my beloved son, this scapular of thy Order; it shall be a sign of my protection..." From that moment, the scapular became not merely a garment, but a visible sign of Mary's maternal care and an invitation to live ever more faithfully as a disciple of Jesus Christ. Worn with devotion and accompanied by a life of prayer, chastity according to one's state in life, and ongoing conversion, it reminds us that Mary's mission is always to lead souls to her Son.
The accompanying painting, Our Lady of Mount Carmel by Onorio Marinari (1627–1715), painted in the late seventeenth century for San Bartolomeo in Tuscany, Italy, beautifully expresses the heart of this devotion. Rather than depicting Mary alone presenting the Brown Scapular, Marinari has the Christ Child Himself extend it to St. Simon Stock, revealing that every grace entrusted through Mary comes ultimately from Christ. Beside them, St. Francis of Assisi gazes upward in adoration while angels surround the heavenly vision, inviting us to contemplate this sacred mystery.
On this beautiful feast, may we entrust ourselves anew to the loving care of the Blessed Virgin, asking her to clothe us with the virtues of her Son and lead us ever more faithfully along the path to holiness.
The Sabbatine Privilage
Buried within the Church's treasure is a hidden gem of inestimable value. It lies right next to the eternal, golden necklace: the Brown Scapular. This gem, given to the devotees of the Brown Scapular, is known as the Sabbatine Privilege.
What is the Sabbatine Privilege?
On March 3rd, 1322, Pope John XXII issued a papal bull called Sacratissimo Uti Culmine. Here, John describes a vision he had of the Blessed Virgin in which she declares to him:
I, the Mother of Grace, shall descend on the Saturday after their death and whomsoever I shall find in purgatory I shall free so that I may lead them to the holy mountain of life everlasting
The requirements to receive such an amazing gift are minor in comparison with its promise:
One must be enrolled in the Brown Scapular and thus the Confraternity of the Carmelites
One must observe chastity according to one’s state in life.
One must pray daily the Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or if granted by a priest, pray the Rosary daily.
These requirements only help the faithful in their journey to eternal life. They are both offensive and defensive.
On the offensive
One who prays daily to the Blessed Virgin can be assured of her timely assistance. Praying the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin or praying the Daily Rosary is wonderful way to actively enhance one's spiritual life and gain protection.
In today's world, can you think of another virtue more necessary then chastity? Practicing chastity means guarding the body, mind, mouth, and eyes from all that is impure. "Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God."
The defense
One of the most amazing things about the Brown Scapular is that all you must do is be enrolled and wear it daily. It is truly a passive but defensive measure which is more powerful than the strongest barricade or the deepest bunker.
Praying daily, living a life of chastity, being enrolled and wearing the Brown Scapular. As someone said, "well, doing this sounds like you are living a holy life." That is exactly what it means. Our Lady is very wise: she knows what is good for her children.
Shortly after the St. Simon Stock's vision and Pope John XXII's bull was released, a barrage of assaults were laid against the Carmelites, the Brown Scapular, and the Sabbatine Privilege.
Over the centuries, many faithful fell into doubt about Our Lady’s promises and today, very few know of the Brown Scapular and even less know of the Sabbatine Privilege
However, we have numerous popes who have ratified this indulgence and so the faithful need not be weary of its authenticity.
Below are some quotes from popes who have confirmed the Sabbatine Privilege.
Pope Clement VII
Therefore, we, being inclined to such supplications, approve and renew by apostolic authority, by the tenor of these presents, all and singular the letters of our predecessors, John and Alexander, and others, and through the same predecessors, all privileges, immunities, exemptions, including the exemption from paying the fourth part of funerary fees to secular priests, as far as the brothers of the houses in possession of such exemption are concerned, and indulgences, partial indulgences, remissions of sins, and graces granted to the Order and its brothers, nuns, sisters, confreres of both sexes, and persons, houses, monasteries, churches, and places by extension, communication, and otherwise, including those granted by us and the Apostolic See. We wish the contents of all these to be considered sufficiently expressed and inserted in these presents, and we approve and renew them, decreeing that they should obtain perpetual firmness and be inviolably observed." - Pope Clement VII, Ex Clementi, 1530
Pope St. Pius V
Furthermore, all and singular privileges, indulgences, and other graces, including the Sabbatine indulgences, granted to the said ancient church by the pious memory of John XXII, Innocent VIII, and Clement VII, and perhaps other Roman Pontiffs, our predecessors, and approved by whatever letters issued thereupon, we consider sufficiently expressed and included in these presents. By our own motion, not at the instance of the petition of the Prior and Convent or another on their behalf, but by our mere deliberation, we approve by apostolic authority the tenor of these presents, all and singular the privileges, indulgences, and other graces mentioned, as far as they are in use and do not contradict the decrees of the Council of Trent. - Pope Pius V, Superna dispositione, 1566
Pope Pius XI
“We deem it better to exhort those who have joined these confraternities to adhere with persevering zeal to all that is prescribed to gain the granted Indulgences, especially the great ones called Sabbatine.” - 1922
Pope Pius XII
This most kind mother will not be tardy in using her intercession with God to open the gates of heaven as soon as possible for those of her children who are expiating their faults in purgatory, a truth that is based on the promise known as the Sabbatine privilege." - Pius XII, 1950
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, ora pro nobis.
