erciful Heart Hermitage is the home of a consecrated diocesan hermit in the Carmelite tradition. The life of Carmel is one of unceasing communion with the indwelling Blessed Trinity, deepened through intimate relationship with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Mount Carmel. This contemplative life is one of prayer in the silence of solitude, hidden with Jesus in the bosom of the Father (cf. Jn 1:18; Col. 3:5). The eremitic life of prayer and penance is ordered to the “praise of God and the salvation of the world” (cf. can. 603) and in that way is abundantly fruitful.

The vocation of the hermit is an ancient one, going back to the lives of the desert fathers of Egypt in the third century, and is at the origin of religious life in the Church.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church describes this life beautifully:

[Hermits] manifest to everyone the interior aspect of the mystery of the Church, that is, personal intimacy with Christ. Hidden from the eyes of men, the life of the hermit is a silent preaching of the Lord, to whom he has surrendered his life simply because he is everything to him. Here is a particular call to find in the desert, in the thick of spiritual battle, the glory of the Crucified One (CCC nos. 920-921).

Catholic priests who desire to grow in their own relationship with the Lord are invited to immerse themselves in the silence and solitude of Merciful Heart Hermitage in the context of a Desert Solitude Retreat, which are offered at certain designated times throughout the year. Here they will discover that Jesus is drawing them to abide with Him in the Heart of the Father, tasting and receiving His merciful love. As priests are strengthened in their interior lives, they can more effectively lead others to deeper union with Jesus Christ.