In 1964, the Second Vatican Council's Decree on Ecumenism received an enthusiastic welcome in the Carmel of Nancy; then, with the agreement of the community, the Prioress, Mother Elisabeth, considered founding an Eastern-rite Carmel. Little by little, the details of the project were worked out; it was encouraged by the Superiors of the Order and received Pope Paul VI's blessing. After friendly consultations with several representatives of the Orthodox Church in France, a statute approved by the Bishop allowed the Sisters who were committed to the project to pray the Byzantine-rite Office. In 1971, this "Eastern branch" transferred to the Carmel in Nogent- sur-Marne, close to Paris, enabling the Sisters to become better acquainted with Orthodox Christianity and to be trained in iconography.