Franciscans at Work

The Franciscans have carried on the vision of Francis ever since his day, bringing his message of peace and joy to new places and times. The Franciscan movement has spread throughout the world and today Francis' followers number over a million. Millions of others have been affected by his message.

The Friars Minor are priests and brothers within the Roman Catholic Church. They are not given to any particular work but are committed to spreading the Gospel message using whatever God given talents they have. The Friars have been known for their particular outreach to the Poor. This is part of their legacy, recalling St Francis' encounter with the leper.

In the past...

Since arriving in Australia and later in New Zealand, the Friars have undertaken a great variety of works according to the needs of the time. The Pioneering Friars were mostly engaged in parish work with the Irish settlers in the slums of Eastern Suburbs of Sydney.

Firstly in Melbourne, then in Auckland and finally in Sydney, they opened Retreat Houses and conducted spiritual renewal programmes for Catholic adults and teenagers. In Mornington, south of Melbourne, they were engaged for many years in the care of juvenile offenders at Morning Star Boys Home.

A group of Friars formed an itinerant "band" in the 1960's and moved around parishes offering "parish missions" which were then popular amongst Catholics.

In the early 1970's, the Yarra Theological Union was established under the auspices of the Friars. This has become a key theological centre of learning in Melbourne; forming candidates for the priesthood from various Religious Orders and Institutes.

In more recent years, many lay people have come here to study theology and obtain their degrees.

For many years from around the 1960's, Friars were chaplains to a leper colony based on Palm Island off the Queensland coast near Townsville.

In more recent years, the Friars have undertaken the care of many parishes around Australia and in New Zealand.

In the present......

The Friars continue to work in some of the areas mentioned above, particularly in parishes. Though their numbers have decreased and their average age is increasing, they still continue to work in various ministries.

• They continue to care for people in parishes in Townsville, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Launceston and in Auckland, New Zealand.
• Padua College is a well known primary and secondary school for boys in the Brisbane suburb of Kedron established by the Friars in 1957. This College caters for about 1,000 boys
• In the Sydney suburb of Minto, three Friars are living and working in a NSW Government Housing Estate amongst some of the neediest people in the Sydney metropolitan area. They live and work amongst the people, cooperating with various Community based agencies to better the lot of the public tenants in the Estate.
• In Melbourne a number of Friars are teachers at the Yarra Theological Union. This is a tertiary institution connected with the Melbourne College of Divinity. Seminarians from various Catholic Orders and Congregations study theology here as do lay people.
• In Melbourne, Friars have been running a printing press for fifty years. The profits from this small business are used to support the various works of the Franciscans throughout Australia.
• In Perth, Friars are involved in various Catholic secondary schools as both chaplains and teachers.
  
• There are migrant chaplain Friars who work in many cities throughout Australia, serving their respective migrant communities as pastors. In Australia, there are Friars from China, Croatia, Malta, Hungary, Spain, Poland and Slovenia.
• In Auckland, the Friars have been running a Retreat and Conference Centre for over 60 years which provides a venue for people to come there for retreats and conferences.

  
  

  
  Individual Friars also are engaged in specific works, to mention some here:

• Some Friars are qualified canon lawyers and work within Diocesan marriage tribunals dealing with annulments and marriage cases
• One of our Friars is a well known and respected psychologist and counsellor
• A number of Friars work as hospital chaplains
• One Friar is chaplain to two Juvenile Justice Detention Centres in NSW
• A Friar is chaplain of the Hearing Impaired and Disabled in the Wollongong area as well as chaplain to Spanish speaking people in the diocese
• A Friar is chaplain to a Surf Life Saving Club in the Sydney area

Who will continue the work?

You will find that the Friars Minor attract men from every walk of life. Nowadays, not a few candidates are older when they seek to join.

The Friars continue to invite men to come and join them who, like Francis, seek to give all they have to living a Gospel lifestyle in brotherhood with everyone. We seek people of joy and peace and who want to share that with all around them, especially those who live on the margins of our society. The Friars welcome men who feel inspired by God to add their story to that of Francis and become what he called the "Joyous Heralds of the Most High."