Western Orthodox Christian Church
"Never, never, never let anyone tell you that, in order to be Orthodox, you must be Eastern..."
~St. John Maximovitch
Order of St. Francis
The life of the friars is one of hospitality, of prayer, solitude, study and manual labor. The friar recognizes his ongoing need for penance and conversion of life (metanoia) as he tries to conform his life ever more closely to the life of the Divine Master, Our Lord Jesus Christ, as exemplified in the life of St. Francis of Assisi.
There is not a man who lives that does not sin. The process of conversion and healing occurs in acknowledging that one is a sinner in need of repentance and the mercy of God. This is the call of every baptized Christian and integral to the life of the friars.
The friar's life is a deepening if his baptismal calling. Perfection is in Christ our God; the Christian, and particularly the friar, is called to strip away all that separates him from the Divine Master.
The Rule for Hermitages, written by Our holy Father, St. Francis, in 1223, governs the Franciscan way of life of the friars in Western Orthodoxy. The Rule for Hermitages allows friars to live in solitude or in small communities of three or at most four friars. This Rule for Hermitages was written solely for those friars who sought to embrace a more eremitical life of prayer, solitude, and manual labor. Our friars seek to grow in holiness by adhering to a disciplined life that follows a regular horarium inclusive of the Divine Office, Meditative Reading (Lectio Divina), Eucharistic adoration, personal prayer and ministry. Our life is a blend of Martha and Mary (Luke 10: 38-42) as semi-contemplatives in the world.
The friars strive to follow the example Christ, according the charism of St. Francis, our beloved founder. In their ministry and apostolic works, the friars, seek out the lost sheep, those ostracized by the world, the brokenhearted, etc., and shows them that Christ is the Lover of Mankind and the Divine Physician of our souls.
Our prayer life is centered on the Divine Liturgy, the Divine Office, Lectio Divina and other devotions particular to our Franciscan charism.
