September 30, 2020

Local Discalced Carmelite Secular publishes second book

REGIONAL
Staff report

SPRINGFIELD — Cynthia Montanaro, a Discalced Carmelite Secular (OCDS) and a member of Holy Trinity Parish in Westfield, has published her second book, Diary of a Country Carmelite: A Year in The Garden of Carmel.

A review of the book by Suzie Andres, author of Something New with St. Therese: Her Eucharistic Miracle, notes: “The author explains in the opening pages how she came to discover the vocation of living the life of a Carmelite in the world, and in the rest of the book, we see that vocation unfold in her everyday country life over the course of the liturgical year.”

Andres describes the book as a solution to the “spiritual apathy” that many Catholics may be experiencing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Andres writes: “Finally, what Diary of a Country Carmelite illustrates with a wealth of examples, is that the Discalced Secular Carmelite vocation (as any Carmelite vocation) is a vocation to love and prayer. And since the solution to spiritual apathy is both love and prayer, this book is a Godsend during these dry days of the pandemic.”

Montanaro herself notes, “Inside the cover you will find a little glimpse of what it is like to live in the country, but more importantly, what it is like to pray in the country. You could also learn to get to know many new friends, our Carmelite saints, who have lived in every corner of the world and in every period of history, many with difficult days similar to those we are living in now. Find some hope and peace and security in the pages.”

Among Carmelite saints that may be familiar to readers are St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the cross, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, and St. Edith Stein.

The description of the book on Amazon.com states: “The whole world knows and loves St. Therese of Lisieux, St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross. But what about about the dozens of other Carmelite saints? In this book, Discalced Carmelite Secular Cynthia Montanaro gives us a clear view of the Carmelite life, both contemporary and historical. She shares glimpses of her own country days as a lay person in the Order and as she walks in the footsteps of those whose feasts brighten the Carmelites’ liturgical year, she tells us their stories, one by one. The result is a look into the souls of the saints, and a pathway straight to the heart of God.”

Montanaro’s first book, Diary of a Country Mother: A Year of Remembering Tim, about the loss of her young special needs son, who died in June 2005, was published in 2013. Another son, Legionaries of Christ Father Thomas Montanaro, was ordained to the priesthood in December 2011.

Diary of a Country Carmelite: A Year in The Garden of Carmel can be purchased through the Amazon or Barnes and Noble website.