Tuesday, March 15, 2011

"Through the Rosary and the Scapular, I Will Save the World"

Our Lady of Mt Carmel, Haifa, Israel

Our Lady spoke those words to St. Dominic and this seems as good a time as any to remind folks of her promises.  The following information is taken directly from Our Lady's Garment. The Brown Scapular: A Sign of Salvation and Protection published by The Fatima Center.

When the community of hermits transferred their community from Palestine to Aylesford, England in 1241, St. Simon Stock was the Superior General of the Carmelite Order for men.  It was to him that Our Lady appeared, wearing the Carmelite habit.  She held out a Brown Scapular to him in 1251 "in response to his prayers on behalf of the men of the community, who, despite continuous prayer, rigorous fasts and other penances, lived in fear of going to hell for an eternity."

Handing him the Scapular, The Blessed Virgin Mary said to him: " to give you assurance that your priests and brothers will go to Heaven, I bring you a vestment, a Scapular, which shall be the privilege for you and all Carmelites, that anyone dying in this habit shall not suffer eternal fire."

She promised St. Simon Stock that the Brown Scapular "shall be a sign of salvation, a protection in danger, and a pledge of peace.  Whosoever dies wearing this Scapular shall not suffer eternal fire."  At Fatima, Our Lady held out the Scapular to the children, wanting all to wear it and to encourage others to wear it.

Venerable Francis Ypes wore the Scapular.  One day, it fell off and as he replaced it, he heard the Evil One howl "Take off the habit which snatches so many souls from us!"  The Deceiver then admitted the things which scare the demons most: The Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, The Holy Scapular of Carmel and The Rosary.

In order to receive the promises of Our Lady to all who faithfully wear her Brown Scapular, the following conditions must occur:

1. To be enrolled in the Scapular Confraternity once, and to wear the Scapular at all times.
2. To be pure, observing the 6th and 9th Commandments
3. To pray each day The Little Office in honor the Blessed Virgin. (An authorized priest may change that requirement to praying 5 decades of the Rosary daily.

Enrollment is for life.  The first Brown Scapular must be blessed at the time you are enrolled.  When the Scapular is worn and in need of replacement, it must be burned or buried.  Subsequent Scapulars need not be blessed, though there is no contraindication for seeking to do so.  It is recommended that we wear the Scapular at all times and that if in the hospital for any reason, we should urge the medical personnel not to remove it.  When we was shot in 1981, Pope John Paul II was wearing the Brown Scapular and he told the doctors who operated on him not to remove it.

For more information on the Brown Scapular, visit www.fatima.org.

1 comment:

  1. Darn Joyce~this is the post I meant to send you:
    http://carmelitemom.blogspot.com/2009/05/scapular.html

    I sent the wrong one originally.

    Have a blessed day!

    ReplyDelete

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