The life of Belén de la Cruz, a young Spanish Carmelite who passed away in 2018 at the age of 33 after a tough battle against cancer, continues to inspire many faithful both inside and outside Spain. Those who knew her highlight her humility, serenity, and deep spiritual life, traits that left a lasting mark on her surroundings and that today fuel her beatification process.
According to her family as told to ACI Prensa, the true reach of her testimony began to be known after her death, when hundreds of letters and numerous testimonies brought to light the depth of a life totally dedicated to God and to others, lived with discretion and silence in the Carmelite cloister.
A vocation born in the midst of a comfortable life
Belén Pery Osborne was born in Cádiz in 1984 into a deeply united family. During her childhood and youth, she lived in various Spanish cities due to her father’s work and studied at the Mater Salvatoris school in Madrid, where her spiritual life began to mature strongly.
A lover of sports and outdoor life, she even became the Andalusian golf champion. However, even with a stable family environment and no material difficulties, she felt clearly the call to consecrated life.
As her uncle recalls, Belén discovered her vocation during a night of partying with friends, when she realized that her place was not in that environment, but in contemplative life.
In 2005, she entered as a postulant in the monastery of Discalced Carmelites of San Calixto, located in the sierra of Hornachuelos (Córdoba), a place close to the family home where she found her true spiritual home.
A hidden life that transformed those who knew her
During the twelve years she lived in the monastery, Belén developed a deep inner life that impacted those who interacted with her.
Her uncle recalls that at first he went to the convent simply to visit her, but over time he discovered that those conversations had become something much deeper.
“At first I went to see a niece, but I ended up going because there was my counselor,” he relates. “She had acquired an impressive spiritual maturity for her age.”
He also highlights the decisive support of her family in the vocational process. Far from pressuring or hindering her, her parents accompanied her with freedom in her decision to consecrate herself to God.
The illness lived with serenity and faith
At 30 years old, Belén was diagnosed with cancer, a trial she faced with a serenity that impressed those around her.
As her family recalls, she never lost her peace or joy, convinced that that cross was part of God’s plan for her life.
Even in the hospital, she continued to live with the same spiritual attitude as in the monastery. Her presence left a deep impression not only on her family, but also on doctors and patients.
Belén passed away in 2018, owning practically nothing. “She died with her habit and her congregant medal,” her uncle recalls, underscoring the radical evangelical poverty that characterized her life.
A testimony that continues to bear fruit
After her death, the family began to compile the writings that Belén had sent to friends, family, and acquaintances. In total, nearly 200 letters were found, which reveal the spiritual depth of her advice and her ability to accompany those going through difficulties.
From that material, her parents published in 2023 the book “Belén, carmelita descalza, nuestra hija” [Belén, Discalced Carmelite, Our Daughter], where they gather testimonies and reflections from the young religious.
For those who knew her, her life can become a reference especially for today’s youth.
“Belén chose the cross as part of her religious name because for her it was a light and a good,” her uncle recalls. “She did not stay in its shadow, but embraced it.”