"Been There All Along" is Carmelite Tracy O'Sullivan's brave and fiercely honest reflection on his lifelong desire and struggle to be an authentic man of faith. He has been involved in some of the major civil and ecclesiastical movements of the 20th century. He was a part of the rise of the civil rights movement in Chicago and the heady days of the Second Vatican Council with its push for religious to be "in the midst of the people." His own struggles allowed him to discover the great strength in Carmelite spirituality. What gives his life meaning is the openness to an intimate relationship with God who has been there all along.

Although originally written for men preparing for solemn vows in the Carmelite Order, this Thirty-Day Retreat can be used for Carmelite nuns, sisters, and Carmelite laity with little or no adaptation. The individual Carmelite experiences the tremendous spiritual wealth of the Order during such a retreat. One's spiritual life will have the opportunity to grow and increase under the watchful eye of a seasoned Carmelite skilled to lead one on this pilgrimage of thirty days. The director will also experience the spiritual wealth of such a long in this pilgrimage of thirty days. Fortified in the faith and in the Carmelite traditions, these individuals can have an effect in their own Carmelite communities locally and in the ministries in which they are involved.

This work is the history of the Carmelite Order, from its foundation in the 13th century until 1959. A life-long project of its author, Joachim Smet, O. Carm., this work provides the reader with a well researched documentation of the people, places and events which have marked the 800 year history of this religious Order of Catholic Church. Fr. Smet is recognized as one of the Order's premier historians.This book is a digest of The Carmelites, Darien, Ill, 1976-1988, 4 v. in 5. Footnotes have been omitted. The reader interested in sources may refer to the unabridged original.The title recalls a classic work in the historiography of the Carmelite Order: the Speculum carmelitanum (1686).