Drink of the Stream

Venezuela continues to be on the headlines. Tragedy surmounts the minds and frustration of residents who continue to implore the government to assist with machinery, rescue teams, anything to assuage the deadly toll from the earthquakes on June 24th. While the Venezuelan government ruminates on the unattainable and the survival windows narrows down, incredible survival stories continue to surface via social media, undeniably defying the odds, affirming we serve a God of the impossible[1]. In recent news, a mother and her three children were rescued 11 days after the tragic earthquakes. Sources[2] say that the mother breastfed her children and kept them alive.  As I reflected on the power of breastmilk, I reminisced how often I have told mothers from my NICU unit how breastmilk is more than nutrition. Bringing a newborn to the breast has incredible benefits worth mentioning.  Breastmilk offers immune protection[3], acts as medicine[4], it is a living communication system[5], it fosters a nourishing microbiome[6], offers comfort and emotional bonding[7], among others. These five roles show that breastmilk is not simply a source of calories, but an intricate and complex system that bring a little soul closer to his/her mother. And, just as a mother draws her children close to her bosom to protect them, our Heavenly Mother draws us closer to her Son through the Church and the Church’s nurturing Sacraments instituted by Christ.

As we approach the Feast Day of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on July 16th, I noticed striking similarities as to how God through our Blessed Mother has consistently nurtured us in our faith. When put together, these Biblical words are simply a letter of love from God, a sustaining milk for the soul:

Thus says the Lord: ‘I have purified this water. Never again shall death or miscarriage spring from it.’[8] ‘Go and drink of the stream.’[9]

As to which our souls reply:

O Lord, my God, will you afflict even the widow with whom I am staying by killing her son?[10] O Lord, my God, let the life breath return to the body of this child.[11]

The Church has long contemplated Mary, the Mother of Jesus nursing the infant Jesus. Mary is not only Our Lady of Mount Carmel; she is also the one who nourished the Incarnate Word at her own breast. Through Mary’s spiritual bosom, many saints (i.e. St. Simon Stock, St. Teresa of Ávila, St. John of the Cross, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, among others) have been nurtured at Mt. Carmel. It is as if God Himself nurses the novice soul with spiritual milk, then lovingly weans the soul. Followed by the soul’s ascent to Mt. Carmel and while there, instead of milk, the soul drinks directly from the hidden fountain of God. This imagery reminds Christians that the One (Jesus Christ) who created all things chose to receive human nourishment from His mother. By looking toward Mount Carmel and a mother’s breast, one can ascertain that both are sources of life that do not exist for themselves-they exist to nourish others. Carmelite spirituality often speaks of drinking deeply from God how a nursing infant drinks from her mother. The parallel depiction of Mt. Carmel and a mother’s breast can be explained in several layers.

First, Mount Carmel and the mother’s breast are both mountains of nourishment. A woman’s breast is the mountain from which an infant first receives life, while Mount Carmel is the spiritual mountain from which countless souls have received nourishment in prayer, contemplation, and union with God. One gives milk. The other gives grace. Both invites us to ‘drink of the stream’.[12] Similarly, the Carmelite tradition teaches that before we can bear fruit, we must first receive. And, just as a newborn cannot begin with solid food; it first receives milk. Thus, Mount Carmel and a mother’s breast serve to nourish life before rendering strength. Holy Writ in 1 Peter 2:2 reverberates: “Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk.”
Second, Mt. Carmel and a mother’s breast hide mysteries within. Since milk cannot be seen until it is given, one would concur that the hidden springs of Carmel are discovered only by those who ascend in faith and prayer. The breast conceals nourishment while the mountain conceals contemplation. Both reveal their treasures only to those who come with trust, anchored in hope. Yet, an infant cannot feed itself and neither can the soul produce grace for itself. Both teach and require a dependence, confided on an ulterior presence (God Himself) which cultivates and conditions a soul to remain innocent. Drink from the stream. Receive what God freely gives. Then rise, strengthened, to love Him and serve the world.

Carmelite spirituality seldom leaves us with God simply nourishing our hearts. In fact, for our souls to mature and transcend as God wills it, there are integral moments in our lives in which God weans us from our spiritual milk. It is by this weaning process in which we can truly begin to learn the mysteries of life. St. John of the Cross further explains this process:

The soul, after it has been definitely converted to the service of God, is, as a rule, spiritually nurtured and caressed by God, even as is the tender child by its loving mother, who warms it with the heat of her bosom and nurtures it with sweet milk and soft and pleasant food, and carries it and caresses in her arms; but, as the child grows bigger, the mother gradually ceases caressing it…puts bitter aloes upon her sweet breast…and makes it walk upon its feet…The loving mother is like the grace of God.[13]

Every grounded and well-Catechized Catholic must be aware of the crisis going on today within the Church. As the rumors of wars quake and the crumbling, divisive walls tumble, we must drink of the milk that Apostolic Tradition and the Magisterium have left us to be nourished in time of desolation and apostasy. In a way, we must drink of the stream Mt. Carmel has sustained and fostered so many incredible saints through their unconditional love for Holy Mother Church. Consequently, as we wean off the milk that has always fed us, let us reaffirm our conviction by ascending Mt. Carmel and acclaiming our Church as Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic. Upon ascending the splendors of Mt. Carmel, let us be edified by the words of the Prophet Isaiah which affirm: “The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad…the glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the majesty of Carmel.”[14] Let us drink of the stream. Let us ascend Mt. Carmel to be nourished.
 
The Ascent of Mount Carmel [15]
[1] One dark night,
Fired with love’s urgent longings
-Ah, the sheer grace!-
I went out unseen,
My house being now all stilled;
 
[2] In darkness, and secure,
By the secret ladder, disguised,
-Ah, the sheer grace!-
In darkness and concealment,
My house being now all stilled;
 
[3] On that glad night,
In secret, for no one saw me,
Nor did I look at anything.
With no other light or guide
Than the one that burned in my heart;
 
[4] This guided me
More surely than the light of noon
To where He waited for me
-Him I knew so well-
In a place where no one else appeared.
 
[5] O guiding night!
O night more lovely than the dawn!
O night that has united
The Lover with His beloved,
Transforming the beloved in her Lover.
 
[6] Upon my flowering breast
Which I kept wholly for Him alone,
There he lay sleeping,
And I caressing Him
There in a breeze from the fanning cedars.
 
[7] When the breeze blew from the turret
Parting His hair,
He wounded my neck
With His gentle hand,
Suspending all my senses.
 
[8] I abandoned and forgot myself,
Laying my face on my Beloved;
All things ceased; I went out from myself,
Leaving cares
Forgotten among the lilies.
 
-St. John of the Cross

[1] Luke 1:37; Matthew 19:26; Luke 18:14; Genesis 18:14
[2] https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/venezuelan-mother-breastfeeding-earthquake-survival-1807704
[3] Immune Protection: Breast milk is rich in antibodies (especially Immunoglobulin A), immune cells, enzymes, and antimicrobial proteins that help protect babies from infections such as ear infections, diarrhea, and respiratory illnesses.
[4] Medicine: When a baby is sick, breast milk can change its composition, increasing certain immune factors to help fight the illness. It also contains anti-inflammatory compounds and growth factors that support healing. When your baby is sick, put her to the breast. Her body will signal to the mother’s body all the things she needs to get better.
[5] Living Communication System: breastmilk contains hormones, stems cells, mRNAs, and signaling molecules that help regulate a baby’s metabolism, appetite, sleep, stress response, and organ development. Scientists continue to discover new ways how these components influence infant health and development outside of the womb.
[6] A Builder of Microbiome: breastmilk contains beneficial bacteria and specialized sugars called human milk oligosaccharides that feed healthy gut bacteria. These help establish a balanced microbiome, which supports digestion, immunity, and even aspects of brain development. It’s not enough to simply pump and provide breastmilk. The bacteria on the mother’s breasts and the physical contact of a newborn’s mouth assist in colonizing a newborn’s intestinal tract. Don’t just simply bottle feed. Use the power of the microbiome contained within the breastmilk!
[7] Comfort and Emotional bonding: Beyond its biological benefits, breastfeeding provides warmth, security, and closeness. Skin-to-skin contact and nursing help regulate a baby’s heart rate, breathing, temperature, and stress levels while strengthening the emotional bond between mother and child. When a newborn is separated from a mother because of medical needs, the scent of a breastmilk has the power to enhance healing even when the mother is not present. That is the power of breastmilk!
[8] 2 Kings 2: 21
[9] 1 Kings 17: 3-4
[10] 1 Kings 17:20
[11] 1 Kings 17:21
[12] 1 Kings 17: 3-4
[13] St. John of the Cross, Dark Night of the Soul, Book I, Chapter I
[14] Isaiah 35: 1-2
[15] “Drink of the Stream: Prayer of Carmelites” by Penny Hickey, O.C.D.S.; CWJC 68-69

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-St. Ferdinand III of Castile