Our Lady of Mount Carmel

Catholic Life Communities (C.L.C.s) are small communities of faith for young people in parishes which are sponsored by the Youth Apostles Institute. A Guy’s C.L.C. and Girl’s C.L.C. were established at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel parish in February 2000 after a "kickoff" weekend retreat and have been meeting weekly every since. The girls meet on Wednesdays from 7:45 pm to 9:00 pm in the Parish Center. The guys meet on Thursdays in the Parish Center from 7:45 pm to 9:00 pm. Young people are invited to attend the 7:00 pm Mass beforehand in the church.

C.L.C. offers a weekly meeting that is enjoyable for young people, helps them learn more about their faith, gives them strong Christian friendships, offers them opportunities for service projects, social events, spiritual retreats and workshops. In C.L.C., young people develop a deep relationship with Christ and his Church; become actively involved in Mass, Confession and parish activities; learn how to pray, how to lead and serve, and much more.

The C.L.C. program was founded in 1974 by a Catholic layman named Eduardo Azcarate, the founder of Youth Apostles. This type of outreach is unique in that young people are challenged to make specific commitments within the Church to live a strong spiritual and moral life. At the same time, we also try to surround them with a high level of warmth and openness. Another unique feature is that there are two C.L.C.s in each parish, one for guys and one for girls. This allows each group to focus more easily on their relationship with Christ, to develop healthy relationships with one another and to discuss a lot of issues they might not otherwise do. Both groups get together regularly for a Mass, service project or social event.