OFS FAQ
What is the Secular Franciscan Order?
The Secular Franciscan Order (OFS/SFO) is a public association of the faithful within the Catholic Church, composed of men and women who wish to live the Gospel following the example of Saint Francis of Assisi. Its members remain fully engaged in their ordinary lives—family, work, and society—while embracing their Franciscan vocation.
Who can join the Secular Franciscan Order?
Any baptized Catholic adult who sincerely desires to discern and live the Franciscan vocation may seek admission to the Order. Entry into the OFS involves a period of accompaniment, discernment, and formation before making a lifelong commitment.
What is a fraternity?
A fraternity is the local community where Secular Franciscans live their vocation. It is the place where members gather regularly to pray, receive formation, share their lives, and support one another in following Christ in the spirit of Saint Francis.
Why live in fraternity?
The Franciscan vocation is not lived alone. Fraternity provides spiritual support, ongoing formation, friendship, and opportunities for service. Together, members encourage one another to live the Gospel and become instruments of peace, justice, and reconciliation in the world.
What does a Secular Franciscan do?
Before asking what a Secular Franciscan does, it is important to understand what a Secular Franciscan is.
Being a Secular Franciscan is first and foremost a vocation and a way of life. Secular Franciscans strive to live the Gospel in their daily circumstances—in their families, workplaces, parishes, and communities. From this identity naturally flow works of charity, service, evangelization, and care for others.
What is the way of life of the Secular Franciscan Order?
The Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order states that its members are called to "observe the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ by following the example of Saint Francis of Assisi."
Secular Franciscans seek to place Christ at the center of their lives, moving continually "from Gospel to life and from life to Gospel." Their way of life is characterized by prayer, fraternity, simplicity, service, peace, concern for the poor, and commitment to the Church and society.
How long does formation take?
Formation is a gradual process that includes discernment, introduction to Franciscan spirituality, and preparation for profession. The exact length of formation varies from fraternity to fraternity and according to the circumstances of each candidate.
The goal of formation is not simply to complete a program, but to discern a lifelong vocation and prepare for a sincere commitment to the Franciscan way of life.
If I join the OFS, do I have to leave my other ministries or apostolates?
Not necessarily. Secular Franciscans may continue serving in other ministries, apostolates, and parish activities. However, they are also called to participate actively in the life of their fraternity and to place their gifts and talents at the service of their brothers and sisters whenever possible.
The Franciscan vocation is not meant to replace other forms of service but to enrich and guide them through the spirit of the Gospel and the example of Saint Francis.
What does profession in the OFS mean?
Profession is the public and lifelong commitment to live the Gospel according to the Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order.
Through profession, a person freely responds to God's call and embraces the Franciscan way of life within the Church. This commitment is received by the Church through the fraternity and becomes a permanent expression of the member's vocation.
Profession is often described as a renewal and deepening of one's baptismal commitment, lived according to the Franciscan charism.
Do I have to belong to a Franciscan parish to join the OFS?
Not necessarily. The vocation is to the Secular Franciscan Order and to a particular fraternity, not to a specific parish. Although many fraternities meet in Franciscan parishes or are connected to the wider Franciscan Family, members may live in different neighborhoods, towns, or dioceses and regularly attend Mass in their local parishes.
What is essential is active participation in fraternity life: attending meetings, taking part in formation, sharing prayer, and living the Franciscan vocation together with other members.
For this reason, it is common for Secular Franciscans to worship in one parish while belonging to a fraternity that meets elsewhere.
Do Secular Franciscans take vows?
No. Members of the Secular Franciscan Order do not take religious vows as friars, monks, sisters, or nuns do. Secular Franciscans remain in their ordinary state of life—as single persons, married persons, widows or widowers, deacons, or diocesan priests—and live their vocation in the midst of the world.
During Profession, a Secular Franciscan makes a public promise to live the Gospel according to the Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order for the rest of his or her life. This promise is received by the Church and represents a true vocational commitment, but it is not a religious vow in the canonical sense.
Profession does not separate a Secular Franciscan from the world. Rather, it sends him or her into the world to live the Gospel more fully—in family life, work, parish life, and society—following the example of Saint Francis of Assisi.
Are Secular Franciscans "friars living in the world"?
No. Secular Franciscans belong to the same Franciscan Family and share the same spiritual heritage as the friars and the Poor Clares, but they have their own distinct vocation within the Church.
They are not religious who happen to live outside a monastery or convent. Rather, they are lay faithful and diocesan clergy called by God to follow Christ in the footsteps of Saint Francis while remaining fully present in the ordinary circumstances of daily life.
Their mission is to bring the Gospel spirit into their families, workplaces, communities, and society, serving as witnesses of peace, fraternity, and hope in the world.
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