What I Learned about Advent from Carmelite Nuns in Australia

I had the tremendous opportunity of being on the Australian outback from November 18 to November 28. I was invited to give a retreat to discalced Carmelite nuns in an area called Mathoura in the State of New South Wales. The Carmelite Monastery is located in the Diocese of Wilcannia-Forbes, whose territory is the size of Texas.
 
The prioress (superior) of this Carmel (monastery) is Mother Marian Joseph. I know her very well, as I had welcomed her as a young woman 16 years ago when she entered the Carmel of Jesus, Mary and Joseph that I helped to found in the Diocese of Harrisburg. Seven years ago, Mother Marian Joseph returned to Australia to found the Carmel of Elijah with three other nuns. Now they number 15. Three of them are Americans.
 
I find that when I go anywhere to give a retreat, I always receive a great deal of grace in the process. This was especially what happened in my retreat for these nuns. Because Advent was looming large on the horizon, God arranged that the Carmelites would teach me a great deal about the coming season of preparation for Our Lord’s Birth.
 
First, Simplicity. The nuns of Malhoura are living in poverty as their vows require of them. At this Carmel, however, it is markedly evident. Mother Marian Joseph said to me as I arrived, “Welcome to our Third World Carmel!” And that it is. They do not have a proper monastery at all. As a result, the nuns are living in temporary shelters and tents. As a matter of fact, their chapel and chapter room (where they gather to pray the Divine Office) are under a large tent. They taught me by their living arrangements that in the prologue to St. John’s Gospel when we come to the words “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14) the Greek word for “dwelt” is “to pitch a tent.” Certainly, Our Lord pitched a tent in Mathoura and His brides are dwelling in His Eucharistic Presence there. We talk about Laudato Si’ and respect for God’s creation. They are living it!
 
Second, the Location of Bethlehem. Mother Marian Joseph said to me, “It is hard to imagine that Your Excellency has flown one halfway around the world to come to this place in the middle of the outback.” Actually, the nuns have done the same. They have come to a place that is filled with hardship and sacrifice, not for a visit, but to spend their lives. They have found Bethlehem there, the place where Jesus is born day after day and is presented to the world. What a lesson! Bethlehem is wherever you meet the Savior and adore Him!
 
Third, Prayer and Vigilance. The call to prayer and vigilance permeates the days of Advent. In this Holy Season we are to prepare our hearts for the coming of Christ in Bethlehem and His coming at the end of time. The Carmelites of Mathoura keep prayerful vigil before their Eucharistic Lord throughout the day as they offer themselves in prayer for the Church in their diocese and throughout the world, for bishops, priests and deacons, and for the many intentions of the faithful who ask them for prayer. The Carmelite nuns are the “go-to intercessors” for faithful in their diocese and beyond.  The people in the area call them “the Angels on the Hill.” They live up to their name, for they are battle- tested angels who help form the earthly army of the Most High. Like the angels who came to the shepherds of Bethlehem, they cry out day after day by their prayer, “Glory to God in the highest!”
 
Fourth, the Mother of God. On the third day of the retreat Mother Marian Joseph asked me, “Can you feel it here?” I knew exactly what she meant. I replied, “Of course, Our Lady is strongly present here,” and it was true. When you come to this “Third World Carmel,” you feel enveloped by the consoling and powerful presence of the Woman whom Jesus from the Cross gave to us to be our Mother. Advent is really a pilgrimage of faith and hope with Our Lady from Nazareth to Bethlehem. The nuns of Mathoura are on this pilgrimage every day of their lives. They take us along with them by their prayers and sacrifices—step by step to Bethlehem to the manger bed of the Savior.
 
Dear friends, the “Angels on the Hill” taught me many things during my sojourn with them in Mathoura. I am so grateful to them. So, even though they are half-a-world away, in the Southern Hemisphere where summer is getting into full swing as we brace for arctic blasts in Pennsylvania, my Aussie Carmelites are only a “Hail Mary” away. Thank you, God, for leading me to them and to my other Carmelite daughters. They live their lives in constant prayer and love for Our Holy Father, their bishops, priests and the Church Universal. They are wonderful companions on the road to Bethlehem!
 
Most Reverend William J. Waltersheid
Auxiliary Bishop of Pittsburgh