St. Simon Stock lived a holy life for 100 years and died in the Carmelite monastery at Bordeaux, France on May 16, 1265.
THE BROWN SCAPULAR
The scapular of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, also known as the Brown Scapular, is one of the most popular and celebrated of Roman Catholic devotions. The sacramental (as the lay faithful commonly use it) is a miniature derivative of the actual brown scapular used by the Carmelites – the sleeveless outer garment falling from the shoulders which is worn as a sign of their vocation and devotion.
Our Lady gave St. Simon a scapular for the Carmelites with the following promise, saying, “Receive, My beloved son, this habit of thy order: this shall be to thee and to all Carmelites a privilege, that whosoever dies clothed in this shall never suffer eternal fire…It shall be a sign of salvation, a protection in danger, and a pledge of peace.”
Attached to the wearing of the Brown Scapular is the Sabbatine Privilege. The name, Sabbatine Privilege, originates from the apocryphal Bull “Sacratissimo uti culmine” of John XXII, March 3, 1322.
According to Pope John XXII, the Blessed Virgin gave him the following message in a vision related to those who wear the Brown Scapular: “I, the Mother of Grace, shall descend on the Saturday (Sabbath) after their death and whomsoever I shall find in Purgatory, I shall free, so that I may lead them to the holy mountain of life everlasting.”
Based on Church tradition, three conditions need to be fulfilled to obtain the benefits of this Privilege and the Scapular:
Wear the Brown Scapular
Observe chastity according to one’s state in life
Pray the Rosary
In order to receive the spiritual blessings associated with the Scapular, it is necessary to be formally enrolled in the Brown Scapular by either a priest or a lay person who has been given this faculty. Once enrolled, no other Scapular need be blessed before wearing. The blessing and imposition are attached to the wearer for life.
FEAST DAY
Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s Feast Day is July 16, the same day she appeared to St. Simon Stock.
Note*
The Brown Scapular | St. Alphonsus Liguori
St. Alphonsus had a very special devotion to
Our Lady of Mount Carmel and while alive
wore his brown scapular faithfully. Many years
after his death his grave was opened; the
body and priestly vestments in which he was
buried had turned to dust! But his scapular
was found PERFECTLY INTACT!
St. Alphonsus Liguori's Brown Scapular is still
miraculously intact and on exhibit in his
Monastery in Rome.
