The government of the Carmel of Port Tobacco depends on several factors. They embody the charism, or the “flavor,” of the Discalced Carmelites, making them different from other Orders in the Church.

• The Rule of Saint Albert

• The Constitutions of the Discalced Carmelite Nuns approved by the Holy See in 1991

• Canon Law

• The Magisterium of the Church

• The Association of Saint Teresa

• The internal government of our monastery

The Rule of Saint Albert

Drawn up by Saint Albert, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, to give some hermits living on Mount Carmel in the 12th Century a more structured life, our Rule has twelve main points.

• Obedience – to the will of God expressed by the Prioress and our duties

• Chastity – keeping our love pure for God

• Poverty – all things held in common, reliance on God's providence

• Recollection – remembering God at all times

• Mental Prayer – personal conversation with God

• Mass and Liturgy of the Hours daily

• Chapter – formal meeting every week

• Abstinence in matters of food

• Manual Labor – quietly earning our bread

• Silence – maintaining a prayerful environment

• Humility – attitude of service

• Supererogation – doing more than is required

The Constitutions

Saint Teresa wrote the first Constitutions to give more details on living the Rule. For example, the Rule stipulates that a superior be elected while the Constitutions spell out how the vote is to be taken. As the Church’s own legislation changed, so did the Constitutions. Our present Constitutions were promulgated by the Holy See in 1991.

Canon Law

The Roman Catholic Church has its own legislation called Canon Law. It evolves over time. Our proper law (Rule and Constitutions) is subject to it.

The Magisterium

The teachings of the Church given by the Pope and Bishops in union with him make up the Magisterium. We conform ourselves always to this teaching authority as expressed by our Archbishop, the Superior General of the Carmelite Order, and the Holy Father Pope Francis.

The Association of Saint Teresa

In obedience to Holy Mother Church, we belong to an association of twelve Carmelite monasteries. The Association of Saint Teresa was approved by the Holy See in 1975. Designed to provide sisterly support, it meets every three years in plenary session. The Association provided personnel and funding in 1982 which kept our monastery from closing, and has continued to be committed to this first Carmel in the United States. The member monasteries are:

• Carmel, California

• Hialeah, Florida

• Lafayette, Louisiana

• Lowell, Vermont

• Mobile, Alabama

• Port Tobacco, Maryland

• Salt Lake City, Utah

• Spruce Grove, Alberta, Canada

• Saint Agatha, Ontario, Canada

• Saint Louis, Missouri

Our Internal Government

Carmelite life reflects the community of Jesus and his apostles. In fact, Saint Teresa at first limited the number of nuns to twelve under a superior who represented Christ. Every three years we elect our Superior and three Sisters to form her Council. The electors are nuns who have been solemnly professed and who make up the Chapter of the monastery. Decisions are made by the Superior, the Council, and the Chapter according to their competence as laid out in the Constitutions.