Co-Foundress – The Congregation of the Carmelite Religious

Co-Founders

MOTHER MARY ELIAS OF JESUS

Nothing is holier, nothing more exemplary than a beautiful strong tree. When a tree is cut down and reveals its naked death wound to the sun, one can read its whole history in the luminous, inscribed disk of its trunk; in the rings of its years, its scars, all the struggle, all the suffering, all the sickness, all the happiness and prosperity stand truly written, the narrow years and the luxurious years, the attacks withstood, the storms endured. And every young farm boy knows that the hardest and noblest wood has the narrowest rings, that high on the mountains and in continuing danger the most indestructible, the strongest, the ideal trees grow.

- Herman Hesse

The life of Mother Elias breathes sanctity and grace. Her greatness like massive roots grew deep where the waters were sparse and the winds were strong. The songs of her life emerged from a broken heart. Just as a strong and beautiful tree, she stood tall among her contemporaries, breathing life into the world through her selfless service in the vineyard of the Lord. The inner ecology of her consecrated life, her spirituality, her practical wisdom, her surrender to the will of God, her faith and unfailing trust – all these are beautiful lessons passed on to us over the years. The fruits, the leaves, the flowers, the shade provided by this magnificent tree form the rich legacy of her contribution to the CCR and we are indeed privileged to have within our ranks such an enlightened woman of God.

Rev. Mother Mary Elias, the Co-Foundress of the Congregation of the Carmelite Religious lived a God ordained life-holy, powerful and victorious. Ever in consonance with the will of God, she served Him in holiness and righteousness. Born, Teresa Devine, she was of Irish descent, very virtuous and capable as a young postulant who entered the novitiate of the Apostolic Carmel at Bayonne. Rev. Mother Veronica’s favourite daughter and her beloved Irish Lily, she was the pre-eminent choice among the sisters to be sent to India from Bayonne to work in the missions. Having made her profession in the hands of Rev. Fr. Gratien and having imbibed the true Carmelite spirit and charism, she set foot on Indian soil in 1870 in Calicut. The Irish Lily bloomed on the shores of India, educating children, taking care of orphans, managing schools, empowering women and interacting with the locals. A zealous missionary, she lived a life of intimate fellowship with both God and Man.

Exceptionally talented, cultured and educated, she was an asset to the community and the congregation, with her dignified, determined and resolute ways, her moral purity and strength of will. Sufferings, change of climate, the Indian people, hard work, tireless striving, nothing stopped her. She braved all odds and was God’s answer to a people longing for empowerment, education and enrichment. The Protestant influence in the field of education in Kerala was gaining currency but Mother Elias was able to gain the gratitude and affection of the poor Indians by providing a true Catholic education. The Order of Tertiaries to which she belonged worked with the Carmelite Priests and occupied themselves in instructing young girls, educating them and also involving themselves in works of charity. Her strong roots enabled her to face the storms, the hurricanes of life and she preached silently through her actions. The serene beauty have of her holy life had a powerful influence on the people of the world around her and she gained much appreciation from the At Mangalore and later at Canannore, she worked har as Head Mistress and Superior of the school and convent Ever loyal to her Foundress, she was grateful for her instruction, and followed them to the letter.

Humility, obedience, faith an trust were her hallmarks and she was a beacon of light to one and all. God operates in us to make us holy and in the life of Mother Elias we see the hand of God touching her, enabling her strengthening and fortifying her in times of need. She trusted that her labour was holy and out of this trust was born implicit obedience and true surrender. The circumstances of her life at Mangalore and Canannore were filled with misgivings, problems and misunderstandings. Yet she bore them all for the love of God and when the mission passed into the hands of the Jesuits, she chose to come down South to Travancore. At Canannore for 10 years, she used her talents to make the school prosper and trained several excellent subjects who later joined religious life. Mother Elias moved from the missions of Verapoly and Quilon to South India, where with the approbation of the Bishop of Quilon, Rt. Rev. Dr. Ildephonse Borgna, she founded Holy Angels’ Convent, a Convent of the Third Order in Trivandrum on November 10, 1880. Begun on a humble scale, beset with difficulties, overcoming tribulations, even physical and spiritual deprivation, Mother Elias took the Institution under her wings and eventually she won the affection of the children, the confidence of the parents and the veneration of all the locals. The school was full to the brim with boarders, day scholars, orphans, Catholics, Protestants and heathen and she and her sisters imparted culture, academic skills and erudition. Her life affected others positively and she radiated God’s grace and His goodness in a world crying out for His Love. In spite of all the hardships and travails, her life exuded peace, joy, activity and vitality.

Holiness speaks when there is silence. It gives strength to the soul. In the silence of prayer and contemplation, before the Lord, Mother Elias renewed her strength. The Blessed Sacrament enriched her body, soul and mind and she derived sustenance for her unending toil and sacrifice. God’s children grow in grace as they seek God with their whole heart. Unhindered fellowship with the Lord, a life that was spent for others, a life filled with light, a servant’s heart, a sensitive conscience-these characterised a life hidden in Christ. “Obedience consoles me in my bad moments,” she said, and in the crucible of crises, her faith was energized.

Her health deteriorated due to unceasing labour and she contracted an organic heart disease which was cured by the fervent prayers of the children under her care and the locals. With renewed courage and vigour she immersed herself in her work at Trivandrum. By the grace of God the tree now branched out as new institutions were begun- the first being the Holy Angels’ th Convent High School, the first girl’s school in South India. The illustrious alumni of this institution include Justice Anna Chandy, the first Indian woman to become a judge not only in India but in the entire British Commonwealth, Dr. Mary Poonen Lukose, the first female Surgeon General worldwide, Mrs. Annie Mascarene, who occupied high offices in free India and Dorothea Henriett Watts, tutor and mentor to the Travancore royal family. The Holy Angels’ Convent College for Women founded in 1896 was the first Catholic institution of Higher Education in Kerala. The Holy Angels’ Convent Normal School, the first Training College in Trivandrum, a Boarding House, St. Joseph’s Orphanage and an Industrial School functioned alongside. Training students and teachers alike, teaching English, French, Music, Mother Elias was over worked and under fed but her spirit was unflagging. Under her direction and astute guidance, the institutions flourished and were a blessing for the people of Trivandrum. In recognition of the service rendered by the institution in the field of education, the then Maharaja granted an aid of 1200/- per annum. To recoup her failing health, she was advised a period of rest in Europe and also to cater to the pressing need for more candidates to serve the missions in India. She was also the first superior of the convent. An educationist at heart, her transparent ways and formidable personality, her striking intelligence and refined manners endeared her to the locals and authoritier alike and brought honour to the institution for the greater glory of God. By the time she left for Europe in 1900 she had established the institutions under her care on a firm footing. In the words of Bishop Ferdinard Ossi she was his “eldest daughter … very obedient, prudent & virtuous… she was the soul of (his) institution”.

Ypres, Belgium became the favoured destination for the founding of yet another house for Tertiaries-The Convent of our Lady of the Missions. The well-lived life is a miracle and here too we see remarkable parallels to the life and vision of her spiritual Mother. Divine Providence brought young and eager minds into the fold of the Third Order. Her charges were full of zeal, esteemed, educated, filled with personal generosity, docile and religious in spirit. Mother Elias trained them in the Carmelite spirit and four of her sisters were sent to work in the Indian missions. Each turned out to be spirit filled and enthusiastic missionaries-messengers of grace and light. Strange and unforeseen circumstances, struggles with ecclesiastical authorities and misunderstandings caused the little Convent at Belgium to be closed down. Despairing yet respectful and urged on by filial devotion, she placed her young novices in different convents and look refuge in a Monastery at Gillarens, in Switzerland. In her own words, “for me I only ask the grace to live and die in the love of our Lord….”. She had done all she could, “worked too much for the neighbour neglecting (her) own sanctification.”

In pursuance of this goal, she gave of herself selflessly, moved to Bunbury, Australia and later worked for twenty long years with Australian waifs. At St. Joseph’s Orphanage, New Norcia, Australia, she enjoyed teaching and caring for the wild bush children of cannibal ancestry who were intelligent but thoughtless.

This solid but beautiful tree was cut down and her whole history is inscribed on the trunk, the visible past of her missionary uld endeavour. At the ripe old age of ninety-five, Rev. Mother Mary Elias passed on to the arms of her Lord and Master. What is truly remarkable is the fact that she was buried in her Carmelite habit – a true Carmelite to the very end. In the dry desolation of her life away from her Carmelite sisters, she endured the storms of life, the sufferings, the loneliness, the sicknesses and today she stands before us a noble and holy woman of God. God’s strongest trees hold firm against the worst storms and in the words of Herman Hesse – “Nothing is holier, nothing more exemplary than a beautiful, strong tree”

Mother Elias’ life was one in which she shared her joy, expended herself and it pointed to a horizon of beauty rarely achieved in a Christian life. St. Bernard of Clairvaux avers that a religious life is one “in which a person lives more purely, falls more rarely, rises more speedily, walks more cautiously, is bedewed with the waters of grace more frequently, rests more securely, dies more confidently, is cleansed more quickly and rewarded more abundantly. “The life of Mother Mary Elias of struss Jesus surely embodies the above said quote and is an expression of the victory of Christ. It also confirms the principle of grace ie grace is obtained not attained.