It was the great desire of pope Clement VIII, to found a mission in Persia with the help of the Discalced Camelites. Accordingly Discalced Carmelites advented to our country in the beginning of the seventeenth century, and founded their first residence at Tattan in Sind (Pakistan) and second in Goa in 1620.
The missionary activities of the Carmelites extended to the Southern most part of Tamil Nadu from the 18th century onwards.

Around 1780, Fr. Fray Paolino, a Carmelite, who was staying at a chapel near Padmanabhapuram, persuaded the minister of Maharaja to stop the persecution of the people who had been arrested to be hung upon trees, cruelly beaten and terribly tortured.

Msgr. Aloysius Maria Benziger OCD, a Swiss-born Carmelite of the Flemish Province, the first Coadjutor (1900-1905) and later Bishop of Quilon (1905-1931) was the one who envisaged the restoration of regular Carmelite life in India. At his time (1930) only the present Diocese of Kottar was created as a new Diocese.

At his request the Province of Flanders in Belgium sent a group of three religious on 10th March, 1901 to India. On 7th November, 1913 they started a canonically erected Carmelite House at Thuckalay, which was the Mission residence of them till they handed it over to the Indian foundation on 3rd December, 1929. Msgr.Benziger was instrumental in purchasing the site for the mission of Manalikarai, which was entrusted to the Carmelites in 1950.

CARMELITE PROVINCE OF TAMIL NADU

Fr. Dionysius of Panjampatty is the first Tamil priest who joined the Malabar province. Similarly Fr. Stanislaus from Thanjavur joined the Manjummel Province. These were the pioneers from Tamil Nadu to join the Carmelite Order. In both the provinces Tamil vocations increased gradually. The fourth Death Centenary year of our Holy Mother St. Teresa of Jesus, marked very important events in the history of our order in India. When Very Rev. Fr. Philip Sainz de Baranda, the Superior General made his Pastoral visitation to the Order in India, in 1981 the Discalced Carmelite family in India was rearranged into different circumscriptions.

The two full-fledged provinces of Malabar and Manjummel gave birth to three new units: Karnataka-Goa Province, Tamil Nadu General Delegation and Varapuzha Unit, on the basis of language and rite. Thus on 29 June, 1981 Tamil Nadu General Delegation, comprising four houses from Malabar province and two from Manjummel Province, was established in order to prepare the way for an autonomy. Rev. Fr. Patrick Mootheril, OCD., was appointed as the first Delegate General by Very Rev. Fr. General. He was succeeded by Rev. Frs. Dominic Swamination, OCD., Anastase, OCD. and Arulraj, OCD.

As the Tamil Nadu General Delegation reached a new era of growth, it was raised to the status of a Commissariate on 17 September, 1990. On 19 March, 1993, Tamil Nadu Carmelite Commissariate was declared a full-fledged province under the patronage of St. Joseph. Fr. Peter Soosai Raj, OCD., was elected as the first provincial.He was succeeded by Fr. Arulraj, OCD.In the provincial chapter held in April, 1999 Fr. Perianayagam, OCD., was elected as the provincial.He was succeeded by Fr.Peter soosairaj in the following triennium. Fr. A. Maria David, OCD., was elected as the new Provincial.

MEMBERS AND HOUSES OF THE PROVINCE

Today our province ,having 18 Houses and Mission stations is spread over in 13 –dioceses in TamilNadu with 106 solemnly professed ,38-simple professes and 28-Candidates by the blessings of god and by the protection of St.Joseph ,the patron of our province is enthusiastically marching towards a better future with great dreams of realization of Kingdom of God here on earth .Our Theology students ,residing at our Thelogical College .Pudur,Trichy attended their theological courses in St Paul’s Regional Seminary Thiruchirappalli. With basivc theology ,our theology students are provided ample opportunities for theologizing in the context through exposure camps and filed experiences .Combined with university graduate studies ,our philosophy students at pushparam ,our philosophy college are given religious and priestly formation.They attend Arul Anander College in Karumathur for their university studies.

VISION OF FORMATION.

Based on our local ratio(Document on Formation) our province aims at giving integral formation to our aspiring candidates from the very initial stage of formation .As part of our on going formation our priests are sent to states ,Germany ,England ,Ireland, Austria Spain and Italy (Teresianum Rome) Our province maintains good relationship With other provinces through I.P.C.I., Through inter provincial Formation Programmes. Theology students meet gives opportunities to build up good relationship with theology students of other provinces which paves way for working together in future.

While Keeping in mind, the general spirit of the order, our province tries to respond to the church and to the world with its vision of “Total involvement Towards an Integral Society”. As Smile Tones in this line ,Our Province has been undertaking from 1995 onwards the following mission parishes in the very rural and backward areas: Duraisamiyapuram (Palayamkottai Diocese ,1995) Thummuchinnampatty (Madurai 1998), Narasinganur (Pondichery 1998) ,KurukKuchalai (Toothucorin,1999) ,Thenimalai (Vellore,2004)

APOSTOLIC ACTIVITIES

Responding to the spirit of the order our procince has undertaken various spiritual and direct social work projects in TamilNadu our communities the formation houses as well as parish houses have undertaken various spiritual activities among the clergy ,the Religious and the Laity . As one of its top priorities the province has undertaken to raise the literacy level in all the rural mission parishes. While educating the poor children in our and Diocesan institutions ,the province formal and nonformal education in technical fields which preparing the youth with confidence for future,this gives us an opportunity To form them with the Gospel and Carmelite values. Our province has undertaken publications such as writings on Carmelite spirituality devotional song cassesttes and CDS in tamil.

In the past Years ,steps have been taken to promote OCDS in our province.There are 15 units of OCDS IN Tamilnadu. A special magazine ,carmel vidu tuthu(Message from carmel) was being published to promote the spirituality of OCDS .our province is taking effort to make this magazine to reach out beyond the frontiers of OCDS.

Our province is also running welfare centres such as v.Guard Stabilizer units, Carmel book binding and tailoring centre .To Coordinate and promote the social work projects in the province,DCMSSS (Discalzed Carmelite Multi Purpose Social Service Society) is functioning from 1999.

SPRITUALITY CENTRE

As specific effort to promote our Carmelite spirituality among priests and Religious laity and also among the people of other religions our JJEVA JYOTHI CARMELITE SPRITUALITY CENTRE. Was founded in 2001.From 2005 various courses and retrates are being offered in the institute .Residential diploma courses on spirituality are offered both in tamil and english The uniqueness of our spirituality cemter is the Jeeva Jothi Diyana illam (meditation centre)

MISSION IN RAIPUR DIOCESE

In the silver jubilee year of tamilnadu Carmelite province(2006) two mission stations chhuhipali and jahalap were undertaken by the province in the Arch –Diocese of Raipur At present three fathers and a deacon are serving the mission stations. Our province has undertaken to run non formal.I.T.I school for children and echo friendly plate making unit to empower village women. These mission stations provides a great opportunity for the province to implant our holy order in chhattisgarh state.

OUR SERVICE TO THE ORDER

Responding to the call of the hour ,our province has undertaken various services outside the frontiers of India our oriests have been serving in Kuwait.two of our priests are serving in the province of naples one in Milan two piests in Austria and five priests in England and Ireland at present one of our priests is serving the order as rector of OCD priest – students in Rome.

In our tamilnadu territory there are nine cloistered carmels along which two (shenbaganur and Tiruchirappalli ) are under the jurisdiction of the order and seven (pondicherry,Kumbakonam ,coimbatore yercaud,thanjavur, Chennai sivagangai) are under the jurisdiction of the bishops .our province maintains good relationship with our cloistered Carmelite nuns by rendering spiritual assisstance