About Carmel of the Immaculate Heart of Mary · Salt Lake City, Utah
The Carmel of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is a cloistered Discalced Carmelite (O.C.D.) monastery located on eight acres in Holladay, an enclave within the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. Founded in 1952 by five sisters sent from the Carmel of Saint Teresa in Alhambra, California, the community lives a contemplative life of prayer, enclosure, and manual labor, sustaining itself through altar-bread baking, candy and jam-making, and an annual public fair. Eleven to twelve nuns, ranging in age from their 30s to their 90s, pray more than six hours a day in seven liturgical hours for the Church, for priests, for Utah's predominantly non-Catholic population, and for the whole world. The monastery is part of the Diocese of Salt Lake City and operates under the Carmelite motto that 'God gives Himself wholly to the soul which gives itself wholly to Him' (St. Teresa of Jesus).
- Established
- 1952
- Patron
- Immaculate Heart of Mary (Carmelite saints: St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Therese of Lisieux)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salt Lake City
Why belong here
Although cloistered, the Carmel of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is deeply missionary — the sisters dedicate over six hours of daily liturgical prayer to interceding for the Church, for priests, for the Diocese of Salt Lake City, and for all souls. Laypeople can share in their vocation by joining one of two spiritual associations run from the monastery — the Association of the Little Flower (in the spirit of St. Therese of Lisieux) and the Association of the Child Jesus — both of which allow members to share in the spiritual fruits of the nuns' contemplative life. The community also welcomes the public to daily 7:30 a.m. Mass in the chapel (sung behind a screen), to the annual Carmelite Fair each September, and to the Run for the Nuns — Race for Grace 5K, all of which support the self-sustaining monastery.
Mass times at Carmel of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
Weekly Mass schedule
History & Founding
The Carmel of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was founded on December 8, 1952 — the Feast of the Immaculate Conception — when five Discalced Carmelite sisters left the Carmel of Saint Teresa in Alhambra, California, at the invitation of the Bishop of Salt Lake City, to establish a Carmelite presence in Utah. The community first lived in Salt Lake City and moved to its present eight-acre property at 5714 Holladay Boulevard in the suburb of Holladay in 1956. The community marked its Golden Jubilee in 2002 and its 70th anniversary on October 1, 2022 with a Mass of Thanksgiving. By the 70th anniversary two of the original five foundresses — Mother Maureen Goodwin (Sister Maureen of the Trinity) and Sister Margaret Mary of the Sacred Heart, both in their 90s — were still living and praying at the monastery.
- Founded: December 8, 1952
- Founding community: Carmel of Saint Teresa, Alhambra, California
- Original founding sisters: 5
- Moved to Holladay site: 1956
- Golden Jubilee: 2002
- 70th Anniversary Mass: October 1, 2022
The Carmelite Vocation & Life in Carmel
The Carmelites are a contemplative order founded on Mount Carmel in 1222 and reformed by St. Teresa of Avila in 16th-century Spain; their first female monastery in Spain dates to 1562. The Salt Lake City community lives a strictly cloistered life of papal enclosure: the nuns never leave the monastery, the public never sees them, and they worship behind a grille in the chapel. Each day begins at 5:15 a.m.; the bell rings seven times for the Liturgy of the Hours, with more than six hours given to prayer, alongside manual work such as sewing, cooking, baking, and tending the garden. The community lives with limited electricity and heat, no air conditioning, and modest food as a deliberate detachment from modern life.
- Discalced Carmelite Order (O.C.D.)
- Founded on Mount Carmel, 1222
- Reformed by St. Teresa of Avila, 1562
- Daily rising: 5:15 a.m.
- Seven liturgical prayer hours per day
- Papal enclosure (cloistered)
- Manual work: altar breads, candy, sewing, gardening
The Community & Prioress
The Carmel of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is home to 11–12 cloistered nuns, ranging in age from their 30s to their 90s. Mother Therese (Therese Bui, O.C.D.) currently serves as Prioress (Mother Superior) and as Vocation Director. In October 2014 the community elected Mother Margaret Marie Miller — one of the five original 1952 foundresses — as Prioress, an unusual honor that highlighted the monastery's direct continuity with its founding. Mother Maureen Goodwin and Sister Margaret Mary of the Sacred Heart, both founders, remained in the community into their mid-90s as of 2022. Mother Therese describes the community's vocation as 'missionary through prayer' — praying for priests, for the diocese, for Utah, and for the whole world.
- Current Prioress: Mother Therese (Bui, O.C.D.)
- Vocation Director: Sr. Therese Bui, O.C.D.
- Prioress 2014: Mother Margaret Marie Miller (founding sister)
- Living foundresses (2022): Mother Maureen Goodwin, Sister Margaret Mary of the Sacred Heart
- Number of sisters: 11–12
Mass & Liturgical Life
Daily Mass is celebrated in the monastery chapel every day at 7:30 a.m. and is open to all. Because the nuns are cloistered, Mass is sung behind a screen so visitors can hear but not see the sisters. The seven-times-daily Liturgy of the Hours is at the heart of the community's prayer life, with the bell summoning the sisters from their work to prayer throughout the day. Although no public schedule of confession or adoration is published (the monastery is primarily contemplative, not a parish), the daily Mass itself is a major point of contact with the lay faithful.
- Daily Mass: 7:30 a.m. (Sunday through Saturday)
- Language: English (with parts of the Mass sung in Latin)
- Nuns attend Mass from behind a screen/grille
- Liturgy of the Hours: 7 times daily
The Works of Our Hands: Altar Breads, Candy & Crafts
Because the monastery is self-sustaining, the nuns support themselves through the work of their hands. Their best-known apostolate is baking altar breads (communion hosts) for the Diocese of Salt Lake City and for some local Lutheran and Episcopal churches — these hosts are later consecrated at Mass as the Eucharist. They also make homemade Carmelite candies (caramels, peanut brittle, fudge, toffee), jams and preserves from their garden produce, hand-sewn Carmelite nun dolls, holy cards and bookmarks. Some of the sisters produce fine embroidered and hand-crafted artwork, which has been offered at the live auction during the Carmelite Fair.
- Altar breads (hosts) — supplied to the Diocese of Salt Lake City and other denominations
- Carmelite candy: caramels, peanut brittle, fudge, toffee
- Jam and preserves (peach, strawberry-rhubarb, plum, etc.)
- Carmelite Nun Dolls (hand-sewn)
- Holy Cards and Bookmarks
- Embroidery and other artwork (for fair auctions)
- Gardening and produce preservation
Spiritual Associations
The monastery hosts two lay spiritual associations through which Catholics can share in the spiritual fruits of the Carmelite contemplative life. The Association of the Little Flower draws inspiration from St. Therese of Lisieux, whose 'little way' of spiritual childhood is the community's patroness in a particular way. The Association of the Child Jesus is a parallel spiritual sodality. Both associations allow lay faithful to unite their prayers and intentions with the sisters' cloistered prayer.
- Association of the Little Flower (St. Therese of Lisieux)
- Association of the Child Jesus
The Annual Carmelite Fair
Held on the third Sunday of September on the monastery grounds, the Carmelite Fair is the community's main annual fundraiser and one of the largest interfaith gatherings in the Holladay area, drawing thousands of visitors from across the Salt Lake Valley. Festivities include food booths, live entertainment, a silent auction of around 300 donated gift baskets, a live auction, raffles, and children's games, and a grand prize giveaway (in recent years a Kia SUV has been donated by Jerry Seiner Kia). The fair opens with a prayer at 11 a.m. led by the Prioress, followed by the Angelus at noon. A free shuttle bus runs every 30 minutes from 10:30 a.m. from four pickup locations because parking along Holladay Boulevard fills quickly. The fair is supported by a year-long volunteer effort beginning each March, with help from the Knights of Columbus, Latter-day Saint stakes, missionaries, and many other community members of multiple faiths.
- Date: Third Sunday of September
- Hours: 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
- Location: 5714 Holladay Blvd., Holladay, UT
- Free shuttle bus every 30 minutes from 10:30 a.m.
- Recent grand prize: Kia Sportage (donated by Jerry Seiner Kia)
- Live and silent auctions, food booths, children's games
- Interfaith volunteer support (Knights of Columbus, LDS stakes, etc.)
Run for the Nuns — Race for Grace 5K
Each year on the morning of the Carmelite Fair, the community hosts the 'Run for the Nuns — Race for Grace,' a 5K run/walk that starts and finishes at the monastery and draws runners of all backgrounds. The 11th annual race was held in 2022 after a two-year pandemic hiatus. Sign-ups and details are typically available via the Run for the Nuns Facebook page and Race Entry, with proceeds supporting the nuns' daily life.
- Event: Run for the Nuns — Race for Grace 5K Run/Walk
- Start time: 8:00 a.m. on the day of the Carmelite Fair
- Start/finish: Carmelite Monastery, 5714 Holladay Blvd.
- Registration: raceentry.com / RunForTheNuns Facebook
Golf Tournament to Benefit the Nuns
In conjunction with the Carmelite Fair, the community benefits from a benefit golf tournament typically held the week before the fair at a local course (Old Mill Golf Course in Holladay in recent years; Mountain Dell Canyon Golf Course in 2022).
- Benefit golf tournament held in early-to-mid September
- Past venues: Old Mill Golf Course, Mountain Dell Canyon Golf Course
Visiting the Monastery & Contact
The monastery is located at 5714 Holladay Boulevard in Holladay, Utah (a suburb within the Salt Lake City metropolitan area). Although the nuns themselves are cloistered and never visible to the public, anyone is welcome to attend the daily 7:30 a.m. Mass in the chapel. Those interested in the Carmelite vocation or in joining one of the spiritual associations are invited to write or call the monastery. Letters to the sisters can be sent care of the address below, and the monastery's email is [email protected].
- Address: 5714 Holladay Boulevard, Salt Lake City, UT 84121-1599
- Phone: 801-277-6075
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: http://www.carmelslc.org/
- Daily Mass: 7:30 a.m. (open to all)
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Mother Margaret Marie Miller2014–
Elected Prioress in October 2014; one of the five founding sisters who came from Alhambra, CA in 1952.