Men's branch
From the beginning of Religious Life in the Western Church there have been men and women living the same charism. Within the monastic tradition, we can look to the example of St. Benedict and St. Scholastica. With the development of the mendicant form of religious life under St. Francis and St. Dominic in the 1200's, the Church saw the continuation of the tradition of men and women sharing the same charism while living in parallel communities.
Our community is in the initial stages of developing parallel branches of Franciscan of the Eucharist of Chicago Friars and Franciscan of the Eucharist of Chicago Sisters. Our intent is that as we grow, the friars and sisters will continue to work together to spread the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ while serving our brothers and sisters in need.
Although our women's branch has grown at a faster pace, the men's branch has has a steady presence since the very beginning. Bishop Bob Lombardo serves as our founding member and guardian, and although he has now been asked by the Church to assume the responsibilities of the episcopacy, he fulfills this in a way that still allows for his daily presence in our community, and he remains very active and present as the current our guardian (superior) and the director of our main mission center - the Mission of Our Lady of the Angels.
In addition to Bishop Bob, we have had young men in various stages of initial formation throughout the vast majority of our community history. Although the men's branch has been slower to develop, the intention to form parallel branches and bear witness to the complementarity of men and women within the Church remains an essential component of our founding charism, and we have great hope that the Lord will continue to inspire and call young men to join our community.
Bishop Bob serves as the primary vocation director for men discerning our community. The rectory at Our Lady of the Angels serves as the formation house for men, and Bishop Bob is the primary formator. Young men in formation receive in-house classes alongside sisters in formation, one-on-one formation meetings with Bishop Bob, and will study at Mundelein Seminary while in temporary vow. A friar who feels called to ordination to the priesthood would study alongside seminarians at Mundelein Seminary and receive the additional formation opportunities that come with that particular track. All members of community receive a masters degree in theology from Mundelein Seminary, and so a different course of study would be provided for those who do not discern a priestly vocation.
Because our community is not founded to do parish work, ordained friars would primarily exercise their priestly ministry offering the sacraments for our community and events with neighbors and benefactors/volunteers, retreats, Nights of mercy, and itinerant preaching.
Friars who will be serving in the teaching apostolate and who do not already have a teaching license will go on for further studies in education as well.
Every community has a founding story, and although our women's branch has grown at a more steady pace, we trust that the Lord is calling young men to the Franciscans of the Eucharist of Chicago, both as priests and lay brothers, so that the poor can be cared for and the Gospel can be more fully taught and preached with zeal. To get in touch with the community and learn more about our developing men's branch, please reach out to our vocation directors at vocations@fechicago.org or fill out the form below:
A note for male discerners
While the sisters who assist with vocations work will likely be involved in helping to coordinate the logistical details your potential discernment visit or to answer questions, Bishop Bob remains the official vocation director and primary formator for our men's branch. As you move forward with discernment, you will be able to speak directly with Bishop Bob about life as a friar in our community.
