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The three parts of our shield portray the
history, the spirit and the meaning of
our Order: the Province's sphere of activity and
its origin.
The left hand portion represents the entire
Carmelite Order. The shape of
its lower half suggests the Mount of Carmel in
Palestine where the Order began.
The lower star represents the Virgin Mother,
the Star of the Sea. The upper stars represent
our leaders, Elias and Eliseus, the prophets.
The upper part of the right hand portion, with
its American eagle imposed upon a fiery wheel
signifies that our Province is an American
Province dedicated to Elias the Prophet, who
ascended to heaven in a fiery chariot.
The lower part of the right hand portion, with
Brian Boru's harp, the official emblem of the
Republic of Ireland, and a sunburst behind it,
vividly portrays the foundation of our Province
by the Province of Ireland after the period of
persecution, when the sunburst became the symbol
of the resurrected freedom in Irish heraldry.
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