Symbolism of the Shield

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The brown mountain symbolizes, firstly, the mountain in

the Holy Land where our Order began, Mt. Carmel.  It also

symbolizes the charism of the Order, i.e. aspiring to union

with God (climbing the mountain) through prayer and

contemplation.  The mountain can also simultaneously represent

Jesus, and that most likely was in the mind of our holy father

St. John of the Cross, when he added the cross to the summit 

of the mountain to symbolize the Discalced Carmelite Order.

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There are three stars on the shield.  The lowest is silver, and

represents the Blessed Virgin, the Star of the Sea.  She is also found

above the shield, in the five-flowered crown surrounded by twelve stars,

since Carmel is Mary’s Order.

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The two other stars are gold, and represent Elijah and Eliseus

(Elisha), the two prophets.  Over the crown is an arm brandishing a flaming sword, signifying the fiery spirit of Elijah, burning with zeal for the Lord God.  A scroll overarching all contains the words of Elijah, which are the motto for the Order:  “With zeal have I been zealous for the Lord God of Hosts” (usually appears in Latin).

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If you are not familiar with the story of Elijah, please read it.  It begins in I Kings 17: 1; our shield refers to I Kings 18: 16-46.  (The “cloud as small as a man’s hand” in vs. 44 is often seen as a type or symbol of our blessed Mother.) I Kings 19 shows us a very human side of Elijah, which should be an encouragement to us all, and ends with the call of Elisha.  The story of Elijah continues, with some detours, in I Kings 20 and 22, through to II Kings 2: 18; in the last section, Elijah is taken up into heaven in a fiery chariot, and Elisha succeeds him as head of the prophets of Mt. Carmel.