While Our Lady of Mt. Carmel is the patron saint of the Carmelite Order, the basis for the universal Church honoring Mary under this title dates to her appearance to an English Carmelite St. Simon Stock in the 13th century. She gave him the Brown Scapular, a garment worn by religious over the neck and shoulders as an apron, to be worn by Carmelites “as a sign of her protection.” It is a Marian devotional practice which, over the centuries, has spread to Catholics around the world.
We celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on July 16