The Discalced Carmelites or Barefoot Carmelites are a Catholic mendicant order with roots in the eremitic tradition of the Desert Fathers and Mothers. (Discalced is derived from Latin, meaning "without shoes".) The order was established in 1593, pursuant to the reform of the Carmelite Order of the Ancient Observance by two Spanish saints, Saint Teresa of Ávila and Saint John of the Cross. The Discalced Carmelite order is now known by the initials "O.C.D".
Carmelite spirituality is characterised by an intense thirst for an immediate and direct experience of God, reflected in the order's motto "Zelo zelatus sum pro Domino Deo exercituum" (With zeal have I been zealous for the Lord God of hosts). Carmelite spirituality in its most fundamental expression is thus centred on prayer, understood as loving friendship with God, and contemplation as the free gift of God.
For this reason, Carmelite spirituality is focused on attention to one’s relationship with Jesus. This is expressed in various ways in the major sources of Carmelite spirituality, such as the Rule of St. Albert, the writings of the founding saints, and indeed in the writings of all the Carmelite saints.
The Friars of the Order of Discalced Carmelites of Seremban in the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur ask for the prayers of the faithful of the Archdiocese on the occasion of the Sacerdotal Ordination of Rev Deacon Nicholas Hoh Jeng Kin, OCD, that with zeal he may be zealous for the Lord God of hosts.
