www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life The Christian East & West The Scapular

Dear Ruel,

Yes, they are beautiful and I will wear them!

If I can ever be of service to you, you know only need ask!

Alex

Exactly. Western sacramentals and devotions do not need a pseudo-history invented for them to make them eastern, since they are what they are. And as I have said before, my primary concern is that they not replace eastern devotions.

Dear Charles,

I see your points and also those of Brother Diak!

Your insight into the connection of the scapular with the Order is something I've been reading more of in Carmelite publications.

Some say the scapular SHOULD be associated with lay membership in an order, such as the Carmelites, the Benedictines etc., a kind of identifying pledge to follow that Order's spirituality.

That makes a great deal of sense to me.

Diak's point that we should not be mixing sacramentals is well taken - I did not mean to suggest that the scapular is identical with existing Eastern monastic traditions.

I once received a letter from the Melkite Archbishop Raya who confirmed that he formerly had both Latin AND Byzantine Carmelite monastics under him when he was in the Holy Land.

Of course, Father Elias here is a Byzantine Carmelite priest.

Your point on the Eastern roots of Mt Carmel is important to consider as well.

Mt Carmel originally had Eastern monastics living on it (and before that, Jewish holy men who followed in the footsteps of the Prophets Elias and Eliseus).

Then Latin hermits supplanted these and St Albert of Jerusalem wrote a Rule of life for them (they later adopted the Augustinian rule).

When St Simon Stock was in England, the Western religious Orders there clearly considered the hermits as "Eastern intruders" as we know from standard Carmelite histories.

The brothers of Our Lady of Mt Carmel were about to be expelled when St Simon had the famous vision of the Mother of God which SEEMS to have been similar to other visions in the East where she holds her Mantle of Protection and extends it as a sign of her intercession over individuals.

In fact, the West DOES have a tradition of veneration of the Mantle of Protection of the Mother of God as does the East - most recently, I saw a beautiful picture of such in a chapel near the fort at San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The scapular was originally a work apron worn by everyone engaged in manual labour. Monks who worked in agriculture from the days of St Benedict and before habitually (no pun intended) wore the scapular that extended over the shoulders front and back to protect the undergarments.

St Benedict ordered the scapular to be worn by his monastics for this reason - ora et labora and all that.

Over time, it received a religious significance, much like the scapulars (whatever you call them) of bishops and others that were signs of public service to the church.

The connection to the mantle of our Lady came with the Carmelites, but also with other orders dedicated to her.

St Benedict's practicality ensured that even laity were not excluded from the benefits of following his Rule in the world and so the scapular became a sign of consecrated life - something extended to Carmelites and others, although the Brown scapular became rather general in the West.

One was obligated to recite the Little Office, but could also obtain permission to substitute the daily rosary instead for the "sabbatine privilege."

But I think it was the Church's way of ensuring the monastic connection to the scapular.

And the UGCC has, for long, had the scapular as a popular devotion among the laity and one can argue whether this is legitimate from an Eastern point of view.

At one time, I discarded the scapular and then slowly came back to it (as happened with the rosary in my life) and I saw that Russian Catholics had a great devotion to Our Lady of Fatima which also included the scapular (at least those Russian Catholics with whom I corresponded some years ago and from whom I purchased scapulars and also icons of Our Lady of Fatima).

I also knew a Russian Catholic monastic of the Carmelite observance (as he called it) who DID relate the analav with the scapular (just saying what he told me, nothing more).

So for me, the scapular has deep meaning as a sign of the Protective Mantle of the Mother of God and a connection to the spirit of monasticism in the world, like the Coptic "Askeem".

I do see in it a lot of Eastern spirituality, even though the practice of allowing laity to wear such is not in the East.

Perhaps it might be a good idea for us Easterners to explore the benefits of connecting laity to monasteries and their spirituality as a way of deeping their life of liturgical prayer and ascetical self-discipline in a materialistic world (?)

For me, the scapular is also a sign of service to the Church as we work under the protective wings of prayer of the Mother of God.

It also represents Grace that falls down to us, very much like the Jewish Tzithtzith - and perhaps that is the scapular's most relevant historical connection.

Alex

Wearing a scapular or a medal as a sign of devotion or personal dedication to Mary or one of the saints is great - but I do get irritated by some of the promotional material accompanying them. ["Of course the Church doesn't REQUIRE you to wear the Brown Scapular, or the Miraculous Medal, or [fill in the devotional item] in order to be saved -- but on the other hand, look at all the hideous things that happened to THIS guy when he decided not to wear it!"]

Dear Dolly,

That's why I refuse to take any chances . . .

Alex

I agree. There's nothing wrong with those devotions once you separate them from the hysterical rants that often accompany them. I have mentioned before the infamous letter of some years ago from Fr. Gruner's organization, saying to wear the scapular in the shower as a guard against accidents. Reading into the letter, it implied that Satan is just waiting for me to get in that shower without a scapular so he can do me in.

Dear Charles,

Well, the shower is where I draw the line as well . . .

However, the Orthodox tradition is to ALWAYS keep one's neck Cross on one's person, during sleep, showering etc.

That is for God's continual protection.

As a matter of fact, I was reading on the "pravoslavie.ru" (orthodoxy.ru) site that Orthodox steel-workers who work under very hot conditions have developed special neck-crosses that are resistant to heat and won't melt - apparently, there was a problem before . . .

I once met an Ethiopian priest who presented me with his newly baptized infant son.

He beamed proudly as he pointed out the young fellows' leather neck cross.

He said, "And you know, he doesn't even find it uncomfortable when we're giving him his bath . . ."

Alex

I always wear my Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. Well, that's not totally true because I'm not even wearing it right now... when I'm in the habit of wearing it, I wear it everywhere but the shower. Sometimes I take it off at night because it's so uncomfortable to sleep in; it ends up choking me throughout the night.

But I guess there are worse things than knowing the Theotokos has a death-grip around my neck, like any good mother!!

Logos Teen

Dear Teen Logo,

The Scapular is a monastic garment - so it's always hard to break the Habit . . .

My point above was simply that Orthodox Christians can be as fastidious about wearing their neck crosses as others are about their scapulars etc.

Whatever one wears, don't leave home without it!

Alex

Please don't take offense at my question. I really am totally ignorant about this and am just looking for answers.

What exactly *IS* a scapular supposed to do? What is the benefit of wearing one?

Jason

"Just as men take pride in having others wear their livery, so the Most Holy Mary is pleased when Her servants wear Her Scapular as a mark that they have dedicated themselves to Her service, and are members of the Family of the Mother of God."

(St. Alphonsus de Ligouri)

According to tradition, the Blessed Virgin Mary gifted the Brown Scapular in the Brothers of Mount Carmel:

To be open to God, and to his will, shown to us in the events of our lives;
To Listen to the Word of God in the Bible and in life, to believe in it and to put into practice its demands;
To pray at all times, as a way of discovering the presence of God in all that is happening around us;
To be involved with people, being attentive to their needs.
The Scapular finds its roots in the tradition of the Order, which has seen in it a sign of Mary�s motherly protection. It has therefore, a centuries old spiritual meaning approved by Latin Church.

It stands for a commitment to follow Jesus, like Mary, the perfect model of all the disciples of Christ. This commitment finds its origin in baptism by which we become children of God.
It leads us into the community of Carmel, a community of religious men and women, which has existed in the Church for over eight centuries.
It reminds us of the example of the saints of Carmel, with whom we establish a close bond as brothers and sisters to one another.
It is an expression of our belief that we will meet God in eternal life, aided by the intercession and prayers of Mary.

The Scapular is a sign of Mary

One of the signs in the tradition of the Church from many centuries ago is the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. It is a sign approved by the Church and accepted by the Carmelite Order as an external sign of love for Mary, of the trust her children have in her, and of commitment to live like her.

The word scapular indicates a form of clothing which monks wore when they were working.

With the passage of time, people began to give symbolic meaning to it: the cross to be borne every day as disciples and followers of Christ. In some religious orders, such as the Carmelites, the Scapular turned into a sign of their way of life. The Scapular came to symbolize the special dedication of Carmelites to Mary, the Mother of God, and to express trust in her motherly protection as well as the desire to be like her in her commitment to Christ and to others. Thus it became a sign of Mary.

Hope this helps?

In Jesus & Mary,
+Fr. Gregory

Bless, Father Gregory,

All right - that does it!

I'm bowing down before you in front of my computer screen.

You tell me when I can get up . . .

Alex

Further to my earlier post, an example of the anavalon:
[Linked Image]
This happens to be a drawing of Иеросхимонах Иоанн (Крюков), затворник Святогорской пустыни {Hieroschemamonk Ioann (Kriukov) of Sviatogorsk}.

Σώσον, Κύριε, καί διαφύλαξον η�άς από τών Βασιλιάνικων τάξεων!

Dear Andriju,

You mean "Saint" Ioann of Syatohirsk, don't you?

And it looks like he has one of those prayer ropes divided every ten beads . . .

Could it be (?)

As he became more blind, he used the Jesus Prayer exclusively and once wrote:

"When you get up in the morning, get up with Jesus (saying the Prayer)! When you eat breakfast, eat breakfast with Jesus! etc."

I also understand that the Syatohirsky Monastery has been declared a Lavra - the third in Ukraine after Pochaiv and Kyivo-Pechersk.

Alex

Sashko,

1) Sorry, I didn't know. The site where I found this picture did not list him as a saint, and I myself had never heard of him before.

2) Bow before me? Why would one bow before a lowly itinerant minstrel?

Σώσον, Κύριε, καί διαφύλαξον η�άς από τών Βασιλιάνικων τάξεων!