P. Fr. Miguel Márquez Calle O.C.D., General Preposit
Fr. Miguel of Mary Márquez Calle, O.C.D. was born in 1965 in Plasencia (Cáceres), Spain. He entered the Discalced Carmelite Order in 1983 and made his religious profession in 1985. He was ordained a priest in Medina del Campo in 1990. He has a degree in Dogmatic Theology from the Comillas Pontifical University in Madrid, with a thesis on the image of God in the Magnificat.
Has held numerous positions of responsibility in the life of the Discalced Carmelite Provinces of Castilla and Ibérica. In the Province of Castilla, Father Miguel served as a Provincial Councilor from 1999–2002, then as Vicar Provincial from 2002–2005, a position to which he was elected once again at the Provincial Chapter of 2008; next, he served as the Provincial Superior of the Castilian province. He also has served as a formator in that province, directing the students for six years in the community of Salamanca. In February 2015, Father Márquez was the first provincial superior elected to serve the new Iberian Province of St. Teresa of Jesus, which was created from the union of all the smaller Discalced Carmelite provinces in Spain and the Balearic Islands during the extraordinary provincial chapter that was convened for this specific purpose. He was re-elected to serve once again in the first ordinary provincial chapter in April 2017 for a term from 2017–2020.
Father Márquez is author of numerous publications on theology and spirituality. He also has written many articles as a regular contributor to magazines and journals. Father Márquez also has served as a professor of mysticism and Mariology in the CITeS University of Mysticism in Avila, as a professor of Mariology in the Carmelite renewal program at Stella Maris Monastery on Mount Carmel, and he also has served as a professor of pastoral ministry in the Institute of Spirituality of Santo Domingo.
Father Miguel has directed many retreats and days of recollection, and has provided assistance to numerous prayer groups. He also has dedicated much time and effort to the spiritual direction and accompaniment of many people, including priests, religious, nuns, and laity.
Lecture: "Identity of the Secular Carmelite".
July 23rd, 2026, 13:00 h.
TEODOLINDA (LINDA ) LEVI O.C.D.S.
Teodolinda (Linda) Levi, lives in Rovigo, a city in the Veneto region of northern Italy. She is a retired teacher who taught Philosophy and Human Sciences in a high school in the city where she lives. Her studies at the Catholic University of Milan and her membership in an Association of Catholic teachers laid the foundations of her youthful formation, not only cultural, but also - and above all - religious. For many years I was a catechist in my parish and currently I am a Communion minister and lead a weekly adoration time. She entered the Secular Carmelite Order in 1999 and made her definitive Promise in 2008. In 2014 she was elected Provincial President and served for two triennia until 2021 (one more year because of the pandemic, which delayed voting). In 2021 she was elected President of the Interprovincial Coordinating Committee of Italy and re-elected for a second three-year term ending in November 2026.
Lecture: "Sense of belonging and co-responsibility".
July 23rd, 2026, 16:00 h.
ANGELA VEL O.C.D.S. (Vidya Angela Kulanthevel-Vel)
Angela lives in Hampton, Virginia, USA. She joined the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites after reading the works of St. John of the Cross. She is a definitively professed member of the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites in the Washington Province of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and Director of Formation at St. Joseph's Community in Hampton, Virginia. Angela represents her province on the U.S. task force, developing a unified formation program for all Secular Carmelites in the country. She holds a certificate in Carmelite Studies from the Washington Theological Union. She has over thirty years of experience in the legal profession, specializing in personal injury law. Now semi-retired, she enjoys traveling, painting and gardening.
Lecture: "Initial and continuing education".
July 23, 2026, 17:30 h.
Fray Alzinir Francisco Debastiani OCD
Fray Alzinir Francisco Debastiani ocd, was born in the state of Santa Catarina, southern Brazil. In 1984, after a year of novitiate, he took his first vows in the Province of ‘St Joseph’ in Brazil. He studied philosophy in Belo Horizonte and theology at the Order's International College in Rome. He was ordained priest in 1991.
In his province, he held various positions as parish priest, student trainer, novice master, provincial, and delegate for the Secular Carmelite Order.
From 2012 to 2021, he served as General Delegate for the Secular Order.
He is currently superior of the Teresian Centre for Spirituality in S. Roque, a retreat house and headquarters of the novitiate of his Province. He assists the Discalced Carmelite Nuns and also helps to organise retreats.
Presentation: "Pastoral Care for the OCDS".
24 July 2026, 11:30 a.m.
Manuel Vasquez, OCDS
I am Ecuadorian, from the city of Cuenca, and I am 42 years old. I am married to Jessica Pacheco, also a member of the OCDS. Fifteen years ago we began together a journey of faith and love that we have sought to live in the light of Carmel. God has blessed us with two children: Miranda, 14 years old, who participates in the youth groups of our Carmelite parish, and Jesús, 10 years old, who is preparing for his First Communion and joyfully serves as an altar server. Together with Jessica, in 2013 we founded the Santos Esposos Martín Guérin community in Cuenca, inspired by the lives of Saints Louis and Zélie Martin. In our home, we strive to live prayer, fraternity, and service as the pillars of our family life. My religious name, Manuel de San José, expresses my desire to follow the example of the Holy Patriarch: to be a faithful husband, a responsible father, and a quiet, hardworking man, walking step by step “along the little way to heaven.”
In 2014 I formally began my journey in the OCDS, in the Santos Esposos Martín Guérin community. It has been a process of interior growth, prayer, and encounter with God through my brothers and sisters. I currently have five years of Definitive Promise, and I continue learning to walk in the presence of God, seeking to serve with humility and faithfulness to our charism. I am currently the National President. My service in Carmel has always been a response of love. What moves me is the desire to build fraternity, accompany formation processes, and encourage communities to live a vibrant Carmel, in communion with the Church. Professionally, I am a Computer Systems Engineer.
Presentation: "Forming together the Teresian Community"
24 July 2026, 13:00 h.
Zinha Voahanginiana, OCDS
She was born in Antananarivo, the capital of the Great Island of Madagascar, where she still resides today.
She completed higher education and obtained her Degree in Economic Sciences at the University of Antananarivo, followed by a diploma from the National School of Administration of Madagascar. She began and developed a professional career and, having been trained in andragogy, her activities include teaching at the National School of Administration of Madagascar and at the Catholic University of Madagascar at undergraduate and master’s levels for ten years.
She was baptized in the Protestant Church (FJKM) of Madagascar at the age of two. At a very young age, she insisted on becoming Catholic. She completed her secondary studies with the Brothers of the Christian Schools at Sainte Famille Mahamasina, where she had the opportunity to prepare for and receive her First Communion, make her Solemn Communion, and later receive the Sacrament of Confirmation.
During the preparation for the Jubilee Year of 1999, the Year of the Father, she encountered the Mother through reading The Way of Perfection, in the section on the Our Father. She was called to the OCDS at the age of 24, in the first OCDS Community in the country, the Holy Family Community in Ampasanimalo, and took the name V. Zinaha of the Holy Mercy of Jesus. She made her definitive promise in the Secular Order of the Teresian Carmel on July 19, 2014, at the Marian Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Ambarilava, Moramanga, belonging to the Carmelites.
She served as Assistant Formator of her Community starting in 2013 and was elected President of that same OCDS Community (2015–2018).
Together with the Council of the Ampasanimalo Community and the spiritual assistant, she initiated missions for the foundation and formation of OCDS Groups in the various localities where the Friars and the Nuns of the Order of Discalced Carmelites are present.
She was elected President of the newly created OCDS Province of Madagascar (2018–2021) at the first Provincial Chapter of the OCDS (May 24–27, 2018), and was re-elected for a second term (2021–2024). During these terms, the foundations of OCDS groups continued with the Provincial Council and the Provincial Delegate to the OCDS.
She currently resides in Antananarivo. Zinaha belongs to the Saint Simon Stock–Itaosy Community, a community erected in January 2024.
Presentation: “Prayer, Fraternity, and Animation”
Date: July 25, 2026, 11:30 a.m.
Meg Ramos Ocds
She was born on February 4, 1958, in the city of Pasay, Philippines, the youngest of seven children in a very close-knit Roman Catholic family.From an early age, she was deeply influenced by the strength of character, faith, and abilities of the women in her family—her mother and her two sisters—which greatly shaped her values and personality.
After completing her studies in Business Administration and Computer Science, she was entrusted with the responsibility of managing the operational affairs of the family architectural-structural design and construction supervision firm.
In 1982, after being persuaded to attend a weekend course, she began a new chapter of purpose and fulfillment in her life.She became involved in a Catholic community, where she devoted time to prayer, service, and social outreach.
After the tireless pursuit of the “Hound of Heaven,” she found herself knocking on the door of Carmel in 1995 and made her Definitive Promise in 2022, committing herself to a life of prayer, community, and mission.Since then, she has served in various leadership roles in her beloved Saint Edith Stein Community in the city of Makati and on the Provincial Council of OCDS Philippines.
Presentation: “Creative Fidelity: the Mission of the OCDS in the Church, the Order, and the World”
Date: July 25, 2026, 13:00 h.
Fr. Ramiro Casale O.C.D., General Delegate of O.C.D.S.
Fr. Ramiro was born in the city of Zacatecas, Mexico, on 28 June 1971. He studied Business Administration in his native city and worked in areas of management and finance. He entered the OCD Order on 15 July 2001 in the California-Arizona Province, U.S.A., making his First Profession on 2 February 2003.
He studied at the Mount Angel Seminary in the State of Oregon and obtained a Licence in Philosophy and Letters and a Master’s Degree in Theology and Divinity. He also studied Theology at the Theological Faculty of the Teresianum in Rome and was awarded a Doctorate in Psychology by the Salesian Pontifical University, Rome.
Fr. Ramiro made his Solemn Profession in Rome, 14 December 2007, and was ordained priest in Alhambra, California, on 20 June 2009. He served as Director of the Carmelite Institute of Spirituality in Stanwood, Washington and was also Master of Postulants, Novices and Students. In October 2021, he was appointed General Delegate for the Discalced Carmelite Secular Order (OCDS).
Presentation: “Walking together towards the future”
Date: July 25, 2026, 16:00 h.
