Praying communities, among the people.

We belong to the Order of Discalced Carmelites. A group of Christians who arrived to Mount Carmel in Israel 800 years ago in search of a more profound way of life are the source of the Carmelites.

St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross founded new Carmelite communities in Spain in the 1560s, with the goal of returning to the simplicity and passion of their ancestors on Mount Carmel. They became known as Discalced (barefoot) Carmelites as they wore sandals to symbolise their radical commitment to Jesus.

The Discalced Carmelites are known for their contemplative and mystical spirituality and have produced many saints and spiritual writers, including Saint Teresa of Avila, Saint John of the Cross, and Saint Thérèse of Lisieux.

Not long after St. Teresa’s death, the first Discalced Carmelites arrived in Ireland and set up residence in Dublin I625. Ireland now has four houses of friars: two in Dublin, one each in Derry and Loughrea, County Galway.

The friars bought the property on Bloomfield Avenue in 1875 and opened the new foundation in 1889. It was a House of Studies, but in 1975 it began running courses in Spirituality. The new Avila centre opened in late November 2006.