By Adrianna Chan
KUCHING — On 14 July 2024, 31 students from St Teresa’s Secondary School and nine young ladies gathered at the Carmelite Monastery of the Immaculate Heart of Mary at the visitor’s parlour for the “Meet the Carmelite Sisters” from 3.30 to 6.00 pm. The meet was in celebration of the Solemnity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel which fell on 16 July.
During the meet, Sr Dominica of the Blessed Trinity, and Sr Evelyn of the Mother of Sorrow shared the origin of the Carmelites, Carmel’s purpose, their vocations and their lives in the monastery.
Sr Karen Emmanuel of Jesus on the Cross shared her call to be a Carmelite Sister. She is happy to give up everything else to answer God’s call to become a Carmelite nun. According to Sr Karen, the Carmelite Sisters try to cultivate a deep awareness of God’s loving presence throughout the day, the faith that God is always accompanying them in all their moments. From this comes the desire to do everything with the intention to love God and love others. They offer all these up to God for the good of the Church and the world.
Carmel is all about prayer. Not just formal times of prayer, but unceasing prayer, meaning to habitually keep themselves in the presence of God. St Teresa of Avila said, “I do not call it prayer when your lips are moving but your mind is on worldly affairs,” as our intention is not for God. Sr Karen shared she met God in prayer and it was a beautiful encounter.
Following this, Aspirants Sr Caroline Lai and Sr Jocelyn Lai shared how they responded to the call of God to be Carmelite Sisters. According to them, life is filled with too many distractions from social media until we do not hear God. They advised all to seek Mother Mary for her guidance to follow and to listen to Jesus.
To reflect on the sharings, the students wrote reflections based on two questions: “Who are you in God’s eyes? What are your takeaways today from the session?” The meet ended with beautiful Vesper prayers with the Carmelite Sisters at the Carmelite Chapel.
On behalf of St Teresa’s Secondary School, I would like to thank the Carmelite Sisters for giving us the opportunity to visit them and to listen to their vocation stories which were truly inspiring. Their sharings and experiences gave us a spiritual revival on the need to have a deep relationship with God and to listen to God in our hearts in order to be close to Him.
We pray that more young ladies would hear God’s calling and respond to their vocation to become Carmelite Sisters. We will always keep you all in our prayers as you always pray for us. Thank you and God bless all the Carmelite Sisters abundantly. Praise the Lord! AMEN!! 🙏 🙏
Sharings from the students and young ladies
Today, from what I’ve learnt from the Carmelite Sisters, I understand that by praying every day, we can build a stronger and more genuine relationship with God. In a world full of distractions, it’s easy to lose focus on our faith. Work, social media, and daily business can make us forget to pray, pulling us away from God. However, by setting aside time for prayer and reflection, we can centre our minds and hearts on His presence. By doing acts of kindness and participating in a youth camp also helps us stay connected. It takes a lot of effort to prioritise our spiritual well-being, but the reward is a fulfilling and enriching relationship with God. – Alysyia Samantha
I truly appreciate the opportunity to meet the Carmelite Sisters, and I’m sure the others do too. As a young Christian who is constantly seeking spiritual growth and guidance, this encounter was very enriching for me. I admired the Sisters’ faith and dedication to prayer. Getting to know them and listening to their testimonies truly showed all of us God’s profound love. Most of all, this experience has inspired me to do the same in serving others. – Irene Alma Anak Irwin
This is another year that I have joined this meet. Their warm welcome has never changed and I’m pretty sure they have always been excited about this programme every year! Today, I have learnt a lot starting from more information about their daily lives and how they decided to become a nun, to how important it is to be faithful always. I find peace from being with them and I would love to visit them again in the future. I will forever cherish this moment. – Cornelia Ameline
As I met the Carmelite Sisters, I got to know how it is to give up the things of this world for Christ—it’s definitely not easy, but they kindly reassured me that the satisfaction after is much greater and worth it. It was very inspiring to listen to their stories before and after entering into the monastery. It surprised me how they were pretty similar to us ‘normal’ Christians before, and how they have the call to serve God for the rest of their lives. Listening to them, I thought that God’s plans for us can be really unexpected, but they’re the best. The sisters also advised that He’s all-knowing indeed, no matter our circumstances. It was honestly sad to hear that there are only nine of them left, but that opens more chances for us young people to become like them, as they hope as well. They were all very sweet and smiley too, so it was overall a spiritually reviving experience. – Allana Myra Anak Donny
First of all, I am so grateful that I could be with everyone to meet the Carmelite Sisters. It was a wonderful experience to hear their sharings and it was truly heartfelt. It gave motivation to me to continue building a stronger relationship with God. Today’s session also helped me to see a way of light and hope to live for God’s will and to serve Him. I’ve learnt why many people seek out the ugliest things in the world for worldly desires even though a beautiful person, God who is a father figure for us as His children, is always there for us. I had also learnt from the Sisters’ sharings that praying is the greatest of all weapons. It strengthens our faith in Jesus and also connect us to Him, to talk to Him. Moreover, answers to prayers don’t come right away. God makes us wait and be patient, for an answer to our prayers will come in His time and not our own time; thus, we should trust in His plan and timing, for the pain that we go through can’t compare to the joy that is to come. – Griselda Phila Anak Wilfred
I found my encounter with the Carmeline Sisters to be very memorable. As I listened to their thoughts, beliefs, and way of life, I was truly in awe. I realised the deep meaning behind their desire to become Sisters and fully dedicate their lives to holiness and God. I had the opportunity to immerse myself in their daily schedule, and witnessed firsthand the orderliness and purposefulness in everything they do. Also, their beautiful singing and prayer, alongside the beautiful hymns they sung, was truly an awe-inspiring experience that I will never forget. – Grace Flavia Anak Edmund
Despite dedicating their lives to love and serve God full-time, the Carmelite Sisters have shown and proven to me how possible it is to choose our own path and follow our dreams without letting go of our past ones. ❤️ – Esmeralda Chanda Anak Leo Steven
The acquaintance with the Sisters has opened my heart and mind to a new love—true and pure love. “It is love alone that gives worth to all things” – St Teresa of Avila; a passion for silence and prayer. Truthfully, I came to the monastery in search of what had been calling to my heart for quite some time. I came, despite my fear and hesitation of coming here. Therefore, with what I’ve been experiencing with the Sisters, I feel like this was the best day of my life and I will probably miss it later on. All praise and glory to God for compelling me to come here through love. Spending time with the Sisters and hearing their reflections on life at the abbey was an eye-opener. So, if anyone ever doubts themselves, I would like to say “have courage” and let your heart evolve gradually by the joy and deep faith of our Sisters here in Carmel. Evolving as a person is not just going through the phases of life, but rather changing for the better. – Valerie Grace
