NOVENA TO OUR LADY OF MOUNT CARMEL
FEAST DAY: 16-JULY. HONOR THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY AND PRAY FOR SALVATION AND PROTECTION.
About This Prayer
This nine-day devotion honors the Blessed Virgin Mary as Our Lady of Mount Carmel, patroness of the Carmelite Order. The feast day is July 16. The devotion is closely tied to the Brown Scapular, which Our Lady gave to Saint Simon Stock in A.D. 1251 as a sign of her protection.
Feast Day: 16-July
Pray Daily for Nine Days from July 7 – July 15
FIRST DAY: JULY 7
O Beautiful Flower of Carmel, most fruitful vine, splendor of heaven, holy and singular, who brought forth the Son of God, still ever remaining a pure virgin, assist us in our necessity! O Star of the Sea, help and protect us! Show us that you are our Mother!
(mention your request).
Say:
Pater Noster – Our Father.
Áve María – Hail Mary.
Glória Pátri – Glory be to the Father.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
SECOND DAY: JULY 8
Most Holy Mary, Our Mother, in your great love for us you gave us the Holy Scapular of Mount Carmel, having heard the prayers of your chosen son Saint Simon Stock. Help us now to wear it faithfully and with devotion. May it be a sign to us of our desire to grow in holiness.
(mention your request).
Say:
Pater Noster – Our Father.
Áve María – Hail Mary.
Glória Pátri – Glory be to the Father.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
THIRD DAY: JULY 9
O Queen of Heaven, you gave us the Scapular as an outward sign by which we might be known as your faithful children. May we always wear it with honor by avoiding sin and imitating your virtues. Help us to be faithful to this desire of ours.
(mention your request).
Say:
Pater Noster – Our Father.
Áve María – Hail Mary.
Glória Pátri – Glory be to the Father.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
FOURTH DAY: JULY 10
When you gave us, Gracious Lady, the Scapular as our Habit, you called us to be not only servants, but also your own children. We ask you to gain for us from your Son the grace to live as your children in joy, peace and love.
(mention your request).
Say:
Pater Noster – Our Father.
Áve María – Hail Mary.
Glória Pátri – Glory be to the Father.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
FIFTH DAY: JULY 11
O Mother of Fair Love, through your goodness, as your children, we are called to live in the spirit of Carmel. Help us to live in charity with one another, prayerful as Elijah of old, and mindful of our call to minister to God's people.
(mention your request).
Say:
Pater Noster – Our Father.
Áve María – Hail Mary.
Glória Pátri – Glory be to the Father.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
SIXTH DAY: JULY 12
With loving provident care, O Mother Most Amiable, you covered us with your Scapular as a shield of defense against the Evil One. Through your assistance, may we bravely struggle against the powers of evil, always open to your Son Jesus Christ.
(mention your request).
Say:
Pater Noster – Our Father.
Áve María – Hail Mary.
Glória Pátri – Glory be to the Father.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
SEVENTH DAY: JULY 13
O Mary, Help of Christians, you assured us that wearing your Scapular worthily would keep us safe from harm. Protect us in both body and soul with your continual aid. May all that we do be pleasing to your Son and to you.
(mention your request).
Say:
Pater Noster – Our Father.
Áve María – Hail Mary.
Glória Pátri – Glory be to the Father.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
EIGHTH DAY: JULY 14
You give us hope, O Mother of Mercy, that through your Scapular promise we might quickly pass through the fires of purgatory to the Kingdom of your Son. Be our comfort and our hope. Grant that our hope may not be in vain but that, ever faithful to your Son and to you, we may speedily enjoy after death the blessed company of Jesus and the saints.
(mention your request).
Say:
Pater Noster – Our Father.
Áve María – Hail Mary.
Glória Pátri – Glory be to the Father.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
NINTH DAY: JULY 15
O Most Holy Mother of Mount Carmel, when asked by a saint to grant privileges to the family of Carmel, you gave assurance of your Motherly love and help to those faithful to you and to your Son. Behold us, your children.
(mention your request).
Say:
Pater Noster – Our Father.
Áve María – Hail Mary.
Glória Pátri – Glory be to the Father.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
Related Prayers
Common Questions
When is the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, and when should I pray this novena?
The feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is celebrated on July 16, the traditional anniversary of the gift of the Brown Scapular to Saint Simon Stock in A.D. 1251. The novena is traditionally prayed from July 7 through July 15, ending on the eve of the feast. It may also be prayed at any time when seeking Our Lady's protection through the Carmelite tradition.
Who is Our Lady of Mount Carmel?
Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the title under which the Blessed Virgin Mary is venerated as patroness of the Carmelite Order. The order traces its origins to hermits living on Mount Carmel in the Holy Land, the same mountain where the prophet Elijah defended the worship of the one true God against the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18). Devotion to Our Lady under this title spread widely after the Carmelites came to Europe in the 13th century.
What is the Brown Scapular, and how is it connected to this novena?
The Brown Scapular is a sacramental consisting of two small pieces of brown wool joined by cords, worn over the shoulders. According to tradition, Our Lady appeared to Saint Simon Stock, head of the Carmelite Order, on July 16, A.D. 1251, and entrusted the scapular to him as a sign of her motherly protection. Wearing it is an outward expression of consecration to Mary and a commitment to live the spirit of the Carmelite charism: prayer, humility, and trust in God.
Who can wear the Brown Scapular?
Any baptized Catholic in good standing may be invested with the Brown Scapular by a priest through the Rite for the Blessing and Investiture of the Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. According to Carmelite tradition, when Our Lady gave the scapular to Saint Simon Stock in A.D. 1251, she instructed that the faithful should wear it as a sign of her protection, and she promised that those who die wearing it with devotion to her, and thus with faith in her divine Son Jesus, would not suffer eternal fire. The rite also admits the wearer into the Confraternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, joining them spiritually to the Carmelite family and its tradition of prayer. Enrollment in the Confraternity is not required but is encouraged to share more fully in the graces of Carmel. Valid enrollment must be made with the Brown Scapular itself; only afterwards may a person substitute a scapular made from another cloth or color, or the Scapular Medal, which Pope Saint Pius X introduced in A.D. 1910. Many of the faithful receive it during this novena or on the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel itself.