It’s one thing to dispassionately watch a movie. It’s another thing to relive and experience your community’s frightful past while watching it.

On August 1, 1926, Mexico stopped all religious practices. No marriages, no ordinations, no masses. Priests were killed, the most famous being the martyr, Bl. Miguel Pro. Religious freedom gone. The Carmelites of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, an IRL Affiliate Community founded by Ven. Mother Luisita, were forced to conduct their work in secret. Some were put in jail. Many sisters were hidden by families willing to risk their lives for the Faith. Mother Luisita came to California in 1927, kissing the ground of a country that protected religious freedom. May we not take it for granted!

Mother’s work became established in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. In 1929 she returned to Mexico and continued the work she had begun there, as well as guiding, visiting and directing the sisters in California. She spent the remainder of her life in hiding, ill and living in extreme poverty. The specific charism of Mother Luisita blends contemplation and apostolic works in loving service of the Church and lives on today.

At the invitation of Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles, 75 Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart attended the premiere of For Greater Glory which recounts the struggle of the Cristeros, courageous defenders of Jesus Christ,  who fought for religious freedom in Mexico during this time.

The sisters said, “It all became real for us. The Blood. The torture. The injustice of it all. Above all, the faith of the people. What faith!”

Vivo Cristo Rey!