Reverencing Life In All It’s Stages
On January 21, 2026, the Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm and invited guests gathered at Saint Teresa’s Motherhouse Chapel to commemorate the 42nd anniversary of Venerable Mary Angeline Teresa’s entrance to eternal life.
The principal celebrant and homilist was Rev. James Miara of the Archdiocese of New York, with Very Rev. Mario Esposito, O.Carm. as the Master of Ceremonies. Invited members of the clergy included Rev. James Donlon, Rev. Gregg Durham, O.Carm., and Rev. James Hess, O.Carm. Mr. Matthew Wise, Mr. Anthony Mathison, Mr. Munoz, and Mr. Edmund Holmes, the Carmelite Brothers of the Saint Elias Province, assisted in the liturgy.
Among the invited guests were members of the McCrory family, the Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm, members of the Cause and Charism Commission, the Sisters for Life, and staff members of the Carmelite System. The celebration concluded with a special reception. It was a beautiful day to remember and honor the life and legacy of this woman who gave her life in service to the vulnerable elderly and left us a legacy of respect for life in all its stages.
Excerpts from Fr. Miara’s homily:
“When Mother Angeline founded the Carmelite Sisters almost 100 years ago, she did so because she felt a divinely inspired call to care for the elderly in a new way ….Mother desired the residents in the Carmelite facilities to be treated with dignity, and the whole person served, physically, socially and spiritually, regardless of race, color, or creed.
…. We see over and over again the effects of the inspiration of Mother Angeline in the lives of people through the manner of her charity, her sensitivity, her delicacy and her graciousness in the work of caring for the elderly and ill, and in promoting the value and sanctity of life as it comes under attack in so many subtle and lethal ways in today’s “throwaway culture” as decried by Pope Francis. Every individual person whether young or old, healthy or infirm has a God-given dignity and right to life. The vulnerable are not burdens, the suffering are not disposable, the end of life is not to be hastened but held sacred, as there is value in human suffering when united to the Cross of Christ and His Passion. Life is to be protected at every stage offering care, not killing, showing compassion, not letting those who are served fall into despair.
… Mother Angeline is a wonderful patroness for the cause of life, and her values and virtues indispensable in maintaining the attitude of charity and respect for the vulnerable that should mark the lives of all Christian people and human society. So, together with Our Lady, the Queen and splendor of Mt. Carmel, and Venerable Mother Angeline her faithful daughter, go forth in haste to glorify God by reverencing life in all its stages.”