2026 Little Flower Novena
Dear friends of the Carmelite Order in the Southern Region of the USA,
In our last letter we shared that we were beginning a new triennium, continuing the work of transformation and reorganization initiated in the previous three-year period. With God's grace, we continue our work, building a future that ensures our continued presence and service.
I invite you to join us in prayers of thanksgiving to the Triune God for all the blessings we are experiencing and receiving during this year in which we celebrate various jubilees within the Order and in our local communities. These blessings have been bestowed, not only upon all members of the Order of Discalced Carmelites, but also upon the entire universal Church.
This year the Order celebrates three times. The first are the jubilees of our Holy Father, Saint John of the Cross. 2026 marks two very important anniversaries related to our Holy Father: the third centenary of his canonization and the first centenary of his proclamation as a Doctor of the Church. For this reason, our communities, together with the entire Order, have been celebrating, first giving thanks to God for all the blessings received in the person of our founder. In the words of St. Thérèse,
“Ah! How many lights have I not drawn from the Works of our holy Father, St. John of the Cross!”
(Story of a Soul, chapter VIII)
The third celebration within our order that we cannot overlook is the 775th anniversary of the bestowal of the Holy Scapular upon St. Simon Stock. In this celebration, we join our Discalced Carmelite brothers and all devotees of the scapular.
“I am glad you have been enrolled in the holy Scapular . . . will it not unite you more intimately still with your little sisters of Carmel?”
(St. Thérèse, LT 166)2026 is also the centenary celebration of our Dallas and San Antonio communities. I take this opportunity to thank past generations who, in many ways, accompanied our fathers on their pilgrimage through prayer during the last century. We do not forget the sacrifice that our friars and friends of Carmel have made to reach this wonderful milestone of 100 years of our Carmelite presence in Texas.
In this year of blessings, let us continue our presence, our pilgrimage toward the future, following the example of our Father, St. John of the Cross, as well as the example of our ancestors who were brothers and friends of these communities of Discalced Carmelite friars. In Carmel you will find inexhaustible spiritual riches. A spiritual joy that flows from the Love of the Son of God and His Mother, Saint Mary of Mount Carmel.
Like our Little Flower, nourished by the writings of our Holy Father, let us nurture our souls with her spiritual teachings as we pray with her during this jubilee year. Together, let us sing Psalm 136,
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.”
Very. Rev. Luis Joaquin Castañeda, OCD