Sister Karolyn Rose
of Saint Joseph (Ertl), O.C.D.
Mass of Perpetual Profession
Sunday, July 19, 2026 at 10:00 a.m.
St. Joseph Chapel at Santa Teresita
819 Buena Vista Street, Duarte, CA 91010
Reverend Joseph Carola, S.J. (Celebrant)
Reception Following at Madonna Hall
Where did you grow up?
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Where do you currently serve?
St. Philomena School in Carson
Words of Gratitude
Praised be Jesus Christ! My heart is so full of gratitude and awe as I think back over a decade of formation, blessings and relationships centered in Christ as a Carmelite Sister of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles. And the journey of transforming healing and union has only just begun! Jesus is faithful to His promise of “life and life in abundance” (John 10:10)! He will stop at nothing to draw us closer to His Sacred Heart, truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament.
“Go, and fear nothing. I will help you.” The maternal encouragement of Our Lady of Champion to Servant of God Adele Brise in the mid-1800’s in my home diocese of Green Bay has found particular expression within my heart and in my vocation as a Carmelite Sister of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles. I cannot wait to spend forever standing alongside my sisters “in the presence of the living God, and with Mary, making known to the world the love of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”
I am deeply grateful to God for the grace of my baptism, my Carmelite vocation and the gift of faith. I am overwhelmed with appreciation for my family’s support, encouragement and love as I dreamed of the fullness of life Christ was offering me with each new fiat. I cannot put into words my thanksgiving to God for my friends and benefactors who by their ceaseless and loving prayers and support made my ability to say “yes” to my vocation possible. I am in awe of the undeserved honor and joy of being a lifelong member of this beautiful congregation. To my sisters, your beautiful fidelity to Jesus Christ and His Church has shaped, formed and inspired me more than you will ever know this side of the Heavenly veil. You are radiant Brides of Christ. In so many ways, my wholehearted “yes” to Christ forever is because of you! May we never cease to proclaim with our whole lives our love for Him “more and more!”
What first drew you to this Religious family?
I first met our sisters while I was a missionary with Christ in the City in Denver, CO. Then, through the persistent encouragement (and fervent prayers!) of my college friend, Sister Marie Carmen, I came to see our community as the answer to the Lord’s call in adoration to “be my bride.” I was deeply touched by the witness of our sisters’ love for Our Lord and for others. The gaze of love I felt from our Lord through them was palpable. My very first experience in the convent as a “come and see” retreatant was the warmest greeting I have ever received before or since. Immediately after I arrived, I was shown to the chapel to make a visit to Love Himself. At another crucial point in discernment, I experienced the sisters making a simple visit to Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament with such purity, love and fidelity. It was breathtaking to me. Though I felt unworthy, I knew my heart was made for Carmel. I had found the path to magnanimity my soul had always dreamed of!
What have your learned during your years in Carmel?
We are only as faithful, joyful and free, to the extent that we have the grace to respond, accept and reverence our own heart’s journey of redemption, maturation and healing through, with and in Christ’s paschal mystery. Christ longs to build His Father’s kingdom here and now with, in and through us! God values and respects our freedom. He esteems our truest identity and deepest dignity more than even we do! Our freedom, peace and joy rest in God’s fidelity and Mary’s maternal presence.
As you think of your final profession, what comes to mind?
“Hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit” (Romans 5:5). God is so faithful. To be a Bride of Christ forever is a gift beyond any dream I could have ever imagined for my life. But St. Thérèse attests, “God does not inspire what cannot be done.” On July 16th, 2026, I will fulfill what had long ago been placed on my heart, “I gave myself to Him, keeping nothing back; there I promised to be his bride” (St. John of the Cross).
Which vow speaks to you the most and why?
“Be not afraid” has echoed in my soul for as long as I can remember. I see now how our Blessed Mother and my holy patrons, Saint John Paul II and Saint Joseph, have been accompanying me, providing for me and gently leading me to ever greater union with Christ in Carmel my whole life. As proclaimed in Gaudium et Spes and so profoundly lived by my spiritual father, “man cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself.” The vows in union with Christ have transformed, restored and renewed my whole person from the inside out. I am more myself than I have ever been before. “If we let Christ into our lives, we lose nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing of what makes life free, beautiful and great…. He takes nothing away, and he gives you everything. When we give ourselves to him, we receive a hundredfold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ – and you will find true life” (Pope Benedict XVI).
Chastity speaks to me of the unselfish gift of pure love poured out that can only come from a fullness of heart. To live and love with, through and as Jesus and Mary did while they walked the face of the earth is to have found the “pearl of great price.” Only God can give the grace and restoration needed for this lifelong interior expansion of heart.
Obedience is to live life forever united to my Beloved. I want to be where He is. His will is my greatest good.
Poverty is to rest in the trustworthy provision and protection of the Heavenly Father who sees, knows and loves every movement of my heart and desires to respond to every need in the way He knows best.
What specific aspects about Carmel speak to your heart?
I am drawn by our understanding of the dignity of the human person. God has chosen to dwell among men. He is the king of every heart and desires to be found there. By our response of loving friendship through prayer, we return His gaze of love in contemplation. Through silence, simplicity, and recollection, we can learn the inner movements of His heart and thus our own. This healing and transformation of our whole person is meant to bring us into integration within ourselves and union with God and others.
As a Carmelite Sister, what are your insights on Joy?
Friendship and conversation with God bear fruit in joy, gratitude and lightness of heart!
On Authenticity?
To be fully alive in mind, body and soul for the glory of God is a journey so worth taking again and again and again. When we let ourselves be seen, known and loved, life takes on a whole new meaningful adventure! It is so worth it!
On being Totally Given?
When all has been given as gift from the Heavenly Father, the only lifegiving response to God’s merciful gaze of love is to leave nothing left ungiven in return.
On Family Spirit?
God gave us His presence not only through His Sacraments but also through His Holy Church. Words cannot express all that I have learned and received through community life. To strive for the perfection of charity in giving and receiving love united together as a family of consecrated religious is a priceless treasure!