There are a variety of things that form part of the structure of our day as Franciscan Brothers. They are slightly different, depending on the Friary and the specific ministry in which each Brother is involved.

Most Brothers wake up early in the morning and begin their day with individual prayer or reflection time before morning prayer together as a friary. There’s time for breakfast before or after prayer and then it is off to the school or to another ministry.

For most of the day, a brother is involved in his particular ministry. For some, who minister in the same school, we run into one another throughout the day, perhaps stopping to chat, joke around with each other, or accomplish some task together. For Brothers who work in other ministries, we rely on the support and affirmation of the Brothers in our friaries after we spend the day living our Franciscan charism ministering to and with others.

In the evening, we again gather for prayer followed by a time of prayer, some social time, and dinner.  This time is one of the most important community moments of the day. This is when we relax and relate with one another without a set agenda, goal, or task to accomplish other than simply being together as Brothers in a religious community.

After dinner, each Brother usually has his own thing to do— schoolwork, reading, watching the news, meetings, attending school events, or simply heading to their rooms for the evening.

Occasionally on the weekends, some Brothers may decide to go out to dinner or a movie, have a pizza night, or just simply spend fraternal time together taking a walk.