IMPORTANT FACTS ABOUT THE ROSARY OF OUR LADY OF MOUNT CARMEL  

1. In the Carmelite tradition, the Brown Scapular is a special symbol of our dedication and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary as well as a sign of her maternal presence in our life. In keeping with Carmel’s love for Our Lady, the Brown Scapular and the Rosary, the Rosary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, has become another special symbol of expressing our love and affection for Our Lady of Mount Carmel, entrusting ourselves to her care, and of enjoying her maternal presence in our life.

2. This Rosary, then, is called the Rosary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Hence, it is for the honour and veneration of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. (We will see more of this when we will be explaining why we pray it). So, those who love the Mother and Queen of Carmel express their love by invoking her with it. 

3. The Rosary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel holds a special place in the Carmelite Marian spirituality. It is the Rosary that the Carmelite Friars and Nuns wear on their Carmelite habit. Apart from wearing it, they also pray it. The Secular Carmelites, the members of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and those who practice the Carmelite Marian devotion pray it also while meditating on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus through the eyes of Mary. Indeed, the Rosary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is not only prayed by the Carmelite Religious and lay people invested with the Brown Scapular but by all Christ’s faithful in need of the maternal care and protection of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The contemplative nature of the Rosary aligns with the Carmelite emphasis on prayer and reflection.

4. It is also called the Carmelite Rosary to show that it belongs to the whole Carmelite Family, that is, all those who are part and parcel of the Carmelite Family. And a person is affiliated to the Carmelite Family during the Brown Scapular Investiture. It is, therefore, wrong to say that the Rosary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel belongs only to the Carmelite Friars, or to the Carmelite Nuns, or to the Secular Carmelites, or to the Scapular Confraternity. It is a tool in the hands of all the children of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.   

5. It is the Rosary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel that the Carmelite Religious, that is, the Carmelite Friars and the Carmelite Nuns, wear on the Carmelite habit as their Side Bead Rosary or Habit Rosary. This is also called Religious Rosary to distinguish it from a layperson’s handheld Rosary. 

6. The Rosary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the second of two most used external objects of devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The most used external object of the devotion, of course, is the Brown Scapular. And we know that the Brown Scapular and the Rosary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel go together. The third most used most used external object of devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the Miraculous Image of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the Songs composed in honour of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

7. All those invested with the Brown Scapular which include the Carmelite Friars, the Carmelite Nuns, the Secular Carmelites, the members of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the members of the Marian societies that use and promote the Brown Scapular (the Brown Scapular Marian Societies); those invested with the Brown Scapular without belonging to any society; and, indeed, all those who are devoted to Our Lady of Mount Carmel whether they use the Brown Scapular or other external symbols of devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel (like the Rosary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the Miraculous Image of Our Lady of Mount Carmel etc) are to use (pray, hang in their vehicles) this special Rosary of the Mother and Queen of Carmel in their devotion to her.