ANGLO-ORTHODOX FRANCISCAN FRIARS of the FORSAKEN
THE WORKING FRIAR:
Apostolic Labor, Franciscan Poverty, and Service Without Solicitation.
A worthwhile historical and theological study.
“Anglo-Orthodox Friars DO NOT work to become wealthy, we work so that we may serve God’s People without asking anything in return.”
There is a long Christian tradition of supporting religious ministry through one’s own labor, once called tent making ministry, after St. Paul, who worked with his hands rather than always relying on financial support from those he served.
The Anglo-Orthodox Franciscan Friars of the Forsaken do not serve because people donate, we serve because people need us! If someone freely chooses to contribute, we receive that generosity with gratitude, however, we CAN NOT make financial support a condition of God’s ministry.
There is biblical evidence that Apostles besides St. Paul worked with their hands, and there is substantial historical evidence that St. Francis expected his friars to work for their livelihood. In fact, the original Franciscan Rule specifically addresses manual labor, receiving payment for work, and begging only when necessary.
The Apostles returned to practical labor even after being called by Christ.
St. Francis described his own wishes for the brothers as he recalls working with his hands, expressing his desire to continue working, and urging his brothers to undertake honest labor.
St Francis specifically discusses what should happen when the brothers are not compensated for their work. This means Francis did not envision begging as the only legitimate way for the friars to survive. He envisioned labor as an important part of their religious life.
The Franciscan Rule of 1223 — Chapter V
The Rule approved by Pope Honorius III in 1223 contains an entire chapter entitled On the Manner of Working as it instructs the brothers to work faithfully and devotedly, while ensuring that their work DOES NOT extinguish the spirit of prayer and it also explicitly permits them to receive necessities in compensation for their labor.
Our community’s arrangement, in which brothers work and contribute their earnings to the friary, is a modern day application of Franciscan principles.
Did the early Franciscans actually work?
Yes. We have historical scholarship documenting this.
Historian David Knowles, in Religious Orders in England, explains that the early Franciscans practiced both manual trades and preaching. He even refers to an early English friar who continued practicing a craft in accordance with the Rule.
Knowles also explains that, over time, preaching, education, and priestly duties increasingly replaced manual trades as the principal occupations of many friars.
The Order of Friars Minor itself has published a study called Pilgrims and Strangers in This World, which discusses how early Franciscans worked alongside poor people, earning necessities rather than accumulating wealth.
But Aren’t Franciscans a mendicant order?
Yes, and this is where an important distinction emerges.
Mendicant means that an order embraces poverty and traditionally depends, at least in part, upon alms. It does not however, mean that its members are forbidden to work.
Historically, Franciscan life included both work and begging. In fact, Francis’s Testament contemplates seeking alms when payment for work is not forthcoming.
In addition our friary is not supported in any way by any Diocese, we are completely self-supporting, which means if we fail to have sufficient income, our doors close and we would no longer be help the poor in our community.
What this means for our friary
First, the brothers perform ordinary secular work, such as delivery and rideshare driving or other labors, to help maintain the community.
Second, we continue our religious life of prayer, spiritual ministry, visiting the sick, and serving people in need.
Third, we do not require or solicit donations as a condition of carrying out that ministry.
The first two have particularly strong precedents in early Franciscan life. The third represents a deliberate choice in how our friary practices poverty and service today.
There is also a caution worth remembering: The friars working exceptionally long hours in secular work does take a toll on our prayer and spiritual life that Francis instructed the brothers to preserve.
The earliest Franciscan ideal was not simply begging instead of working. It included working faithfully, living without personal wealth, and accepting alms without shame when necessary.
Our brother’s work in the secular world, but the money we earn goes into the common treasury of the friary, not into our individual pockets.
This brings three principles together:
- Personal poverty: The brothers do not retain their earnings for personal enrichment.
- Common support: The fruits of our labor provide for the entire religious community.
- Service without financial expectation: The community carries out its ministry without soliciting payment or donations.
There is an especially interesting biblical parallel in Acts 4:32–35, which describes the early Christian community holding its possessions in common and distributing resources according to need.
Our brothers effectively have two vocations occupying our days: earning the community’s livelihood and fulfilling our obligation of prayer and ministry.
The friary provide everything the brothers need from that common fund—food, clothing, medication, transportation, and other necessities—regardless of which brother earned the money?
The Biblical Foundation
Our lives closely resembles the communal life described in Acts 4:32: “Neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.” And Acts 4:35 describes distribution to each person according to need. There is another important passage in 2 Thessalonians 3:8, where St. Paul describes laboring so as not to become a financial burden upon others.
The Franciscan Connection
Our practice brings together three historical traditions:
- Apostolic communal life: Resources are shared and necessities provided according to need.
- Franciscan poverty: Individual brothers renounce personal wealth and embrace simplicity.
- Franciscan labor: Brothers work honestly while preserving their obligations of prayer and ministry.
The Franciscan Friars of the Forsaken do not reject financial support from others; we simply do not make the generosity of others the foundation of their ministry. Instead, the brothers labor together, share what we earn, and serve without expecting payment. That is a meaningful distinction between voluntary poverty and financial dependency.
The Franciscan Principle
Our community provides for every brother such as Food, clothing, healthcare, transportation and other necessities.
A potentially important historical parallel
In many religious communities, members who work outside the monastery or convent surrender their earnings to the religious institute. Their superior or community then provides for their necessities.
And for another distinction we, “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s” (Matthew 22:21), in short describing a practical system of communal poverty, personal responsibility, and obedience.
RECAP:
Our friary’s financial observance
- The brothers work: earn income through delivery and rideshare services rather than depending upon solicited donations.
- The earnings belong to the community: Income is deposited into the friary’s bank account.
- The brothers do not accumulate personal wealth: Their earnings are used for the common good and for the poor as needed rather than retained as individual savings.
- The Guardian oversees expenditures: Brothers may request necessary items from the Guardian or receive permission to use the community debit card.
- The friary provides for everyone: Food, clothing, medication, medical care, transportation, and other necessities are supplied regardless of an individual brother’s earnings.
- Taxes are paid: our religious commitment does not eliminate our intention to meet applicable civil obligations.
People see something unusual in us compared to other religious groups: religious brothers who work ordinary jobs, share their income, and continue performing religious ministry, such as serving the poor, without asking the people they serve to finance it.
Our earnings do not determine our individual standard of living. We become resources for the whole community, including brothers who may be unable to work.
This is an important expression of fraternity.
“Anglo-Orthodox Friars DO NOT work to become wealthy, we work so that we may serve God’s People without asking anything in return.”