A Farewell Letter
The Peace of Christ!
October 2023
To all our faithful and dearly beloved friends,
Praised be Jesus Christ!
It is with both sadness and joy that we announce that, after over a century of blessings here in Buffalo, we have received permission from Rome to relocate to the Diocese of Saint Augustine in north Florida.
We know that this news may come as a surprise to many of you and be a cause of great sorrow and disappointment, but we trust that you will understand that we have prayed very much about this matter and have reached the conclusion that Our Lord is leading us to take this step. When this monastery was built, this was a quiet area on the outskirts of the city. Now, however, we no longer have the silence and solitude which are requisite for a cloistered Community. Friends have offered to assist us in procuring a spacious property in the territory of the Diocese of Saint Augustine which would be an ideal location for our life of contemplative prayer, and we are confident that this is a blessing coming to us from the hand of Divine Providence.
We would like to share with you all this beautiful statement issued by dear Bishop Fisher regarding our relocation:
It was with a heavy heart that I learned of the Carmelite Nuns of the Monastery of the Little Flower of Jesus’ wish to relocate outside of the Diocese to an area that provided the necessary solitude to continue their ministry.
The Carmelite Sisters have been an important part of the religious fabric of the Diocese of Buffalo for more than 100 years, when Mother Mary Elias of the Blessed Sacrament, O.C.D. founded the Discalced Carmelite Monastery in 1920, first on Cottage Street, and then on Carmel Road in North Buffalo.
All in the Diocese of Buffalo wish to impart on Mother Teresa and her Community all the love and gratitude for their century of service to Western New York in God’s love as they relocate to the Diocese of St. Augustine.
Words cannot express the profound gratitude we have in our hearts for all the love and generosity which the people of Buffalo have shown to our Community for these many years! From good Bishop Fisher, to our local clergy, to all the devoted lay people who support us in so many ways, we have been tremendously blessed by the goodness of the people of this Diocese. Though we will no longer be present here physically, we will always hold the faithful here close to our hearts and lift you up in prayer each and every day. We humbly ask that you pray for us as well. May God bless and reward you all!
Gratefully yours in Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
The Carmelite Nuns of the Monastery of the Little Flower of Jesus
P.S. – Any questions may be shared at infoatcarmel@gmail.com. God bless you!
"IN THE HEART OF THE CHURCH, MY MOTHER,
I WILL BE LOVE."
- St. Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face
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The Call to Carmel
The life of a Carmelite Nun is steeped in love of God and prayer for the salvation of souls. Her life is modeled after the hidden life of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph in Nazareth. According to Our Holy Mother Saint Teresa of Jesus, for a soul that truly loves Christ, "its pleasure is in somehow imitating the laborious life Christ lived." For that reason, she lives in silence, prayer, manual labor, separation from the world, poverty, detachment from all created things, and love for her Sisters, with whom she lives in community.
Our Rule and Constitutions represent the authentic charism of our Holy Mother Saint Teresa of Jesus, who desired that her daughters apply themselves zealously to prayer and manual labor for the benefit of the Church and especially for Priests. In order to safeguard the sacredness of the cloister, we observe strict Papal enclosure and wear the full Habit of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. In addition, we cherish many traditional monastic customs such as the use of Latin and Gregorian Chant in the Divine Office, and the daily celebration of the Extraordinary Form of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
Our Ideals are:
Solitude
“Therefore, behold, I will allure her. I will lead her into the desert, and speak to her heart” - Hosea 2:14
Contact Us
We are happy to receive your prayer requests by regular mail, or you may leave them on our answering machine. We promise to pray for your intentions daily.
For vocation inquiries, please also get in touch by regular mail or telephone. When you write to us, please include your phone number and email address.
You may write to us at 75 Carmel Road, Buffalo, NY 14214, USA or telephone us at (716) 837-6499.
God bless you!
“This house is a Heaven, if one can exist on earth. It is a very happy life for anyone who is pleased with pleasing God.”