In 27 September 2022, the last two nuns of the Carmelite Order were sent to Seville. One year later, members of the Order from Spain and two laywomen from the Third Order emptied the convent. Now it is abandoned.
The main gate remains closed with chains and padlocks., inside the image is total degradation. Vandalized gates, herbs everywhere on the front of the building, oliveira, orange trees and land to be cared for, it is the complete abandonment of the Carmel of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In an interview with Lidador NotÃcias, in 29 September 2023, D.João Marcos, the then Bishop of Beja, Known by the nickname “Bishop Painterâ€, regarding the emptying of Carmelo, he stated “he is aware of what is happeningâ€, and that the Order of Carmelites is removing all the contents of Carmel to its headquarters in Spain “because it belongs to them. It is not the heritage of the Dioceseâ€, justifying that this is due to the fact that the Order “does not have people to reopen this monastery. The sisters who were in Carmel are now in Sevilleâ€, concluded.
“All the heritage that is in Carmel belongs to the Order and they want to take it and there is no opposition to make. There are no ulterior motives here, It’s all legitâ€, assured the highest responsible of the Diocese of Beja.
Regarding the future of the institution, the Bishop of Beja justified that “everything is legitimate, there are no ulterior motivesâ€. The sisters of the Hesed Institute/Congregation, of Brazilian origin, who have houses in Elvas and Torrão (Alcacer do Sal), could be the new inhabitants of space. But after a year nothing happened.
The process of closing Carmelo de Beja began in 12 July 2019, when the Holy See signed the decree that made the measure definitive, a decision that was only made public three months later by the bishop of Beja, D. John Mark. The decision of the Holy See was justified by the lack of religious, with the head of the Diocese of Beja justifying that “the monastery is a community and in order for a community to exist according to the norms of the Holy See, there have to be at least seven peopleâ€, explained the bishop.
On 28 April 2019, when Carmel celebrated the 65 years of its Restoration, the Eucharist was presided over by the Vicar of the Diocese Father Rui Carriço, once the D. João Marcos had gone abroad, two months later the decision of the Holy See to close the convent.
On the morning of 22 October 2022, the gates of the Carmel of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in Beja, appeared this Thursday morning full of protest papers against the closure of that religious space.
The Carmel of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was founded in April 1954 hair D. Jose do Patrocinio Dias, native of Covilha, who was Bishop of Beja between 1922 and 1965, having been a key figure in the restoration of the Dioceses of Beja. To refound Carmel, on that date six Carmelites came from Seville, four Portuguese and two Spanish, including Mother Priora.
The Carmel of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which was founded in April 1954 by D. Jose do Patrocinio Dias, native of Covilha, who was Bishop of Beja between 1922 and 1965, having been a pivotal figure in the restoration of the Dioceses of Beja.
To refound Carmel, On that date, six Carmelites came from Seville, four Portuguese and two Spanish, including Mother Prioress. The Monastery was built on land provided by a couple from Beja, Maria and Francisco da Cruz Martins, having at the height of the closure 2022, the heirs of the donors placed the possibility of reversing the same, if it was not intended for the mission for which it was assigned to the Order of Carmelites.
Teixeira Correia
(journalist)
