16th July. Our Lady of Carmel

I have mentioned Cenacolo before, the centre outside Kendal, part of a world wide community set up originally in Italy, who in usual years celebrate their feast day today. The aim of the community is to help people recover from addictions. This feast day is when they gather in Italy from all over the world and many parents and family are invited too. Its a very joyful time, full of music and dancing as well as services and prayer. It can also be a very difficult time too, especially for parents. Their children are often by this time feeling much better about themselves and their lives have taken on a new path as they have managed to resist whatever their addiction was based on. But for parents the affects of their child’s addiction have often been devastating. Sometimes it is in the breakdown of the relationship, but this can also involve huge debts and damage to the home and a whole period of life when they could not trust their child and their love was pushed to its limits. So at the feast day the children (young men and women usually) are often delighted to see their parents, but the parents, glad though they are to see their child well, are not ready yet to forgive. But it can be a great time of reconciliation and this is a wonderful thing to be part of. Our Lady’s role is always to point us to her Son Jesus, and reconciliation is a major part of what she asks us to attempt, to find peace in our lives which often demands forgiveness.