A monastery to counteract the "worldly spirit" of Torremolinos

It has been 71 years since the Monastery of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, home to the Discalced Carmelites, was opened in the Montemar neighborhood of Torremolinos. This religious community's house was inaugurated on May 7, 1964, although the efforts to bring them to what was then still a neighborhood of Málaga's capital began earlier, specifically at the end of 1957, led by one of the most important women in recent Torremolinos history, Carlota Alessandri.

Alessandri, who passed away in 1972 and after whom one of the main avenues in Torremolinos is named, is known for being a fervent Catholic and also for her contribution to tourism; she was one of its pioneers, having built a small establishment on a plot she purchased in Montemar.

1957 is not just any year; it is remembered for the season spent by the French actress Brigitte Bardot, one of the erotic icons of world cinema, in the Malaga region, during the filming of 'The Night Heaven Fell,' shot in locations in Torremolinos and Churriana.

In this film, directed by the beautiful French actress's ex-husband, Roger Vadim, Bardot plays Úrsula, a young woman who leaves the convent where she was educated to start a new life in the south of Spain. For this film, the lead actress had to undress, and, additionally, to the scandal and surprise of the time, she also sunbathed topless during some breaks on the beaches of Torremolinos.

In this way, Bardot far surpassed the previously most disruptive behavior related to tourists in Torremolinos, the famous topless sunbathing by Gala, the partner of Salvador Dalí. Gala, during a stay at the Castillo del Inglés, was photographed sunbathing topless, a pioneering act of sunbathing that is immortalized in a sculpture.

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In that context, Alessandri contacted Mother Maravillas, considered one of the great mystics of the 20th century, with whom she was friends, to establish a cloistered house in Torremolinos.

As the official chronicler of the city, Carlos Blanco, recounts, she aimed to "repair the worldly spirit that had been introduced into the town in a short time." The project was not in vain, as it went directly to Rome, to be consulted with the Pope, Pius XII at the time.

The pontiff granted a private audience to Alessandri and her family on March 17, 1958, and blessed the idea.

Blanco believes that this personal interview, in his words, "is probably the only audience granted by a Pope to someone linked to Torremolinos."

The involvement of Mother Maravillas, which was considered "a testimony of faith on the Costa del Sol," as recalled on the 50th anniversary of the convent, led her to travel five times to visit the works, along with Cardinal Herrera Oria and Alessandri herself, who provided the land.