Rachel Konieczny
Staff Writer
The Franciscan Friary will hold a meeting for any St. Bonaventure men interested in learning more about friar life on Nov. 19. All are invited to evening prayer and dinner at the Friary.
Br. Ross Chamberland, O.F.M. will teach interested students the typical day of a friar, beginning with evening prayer at 5:15, followed by a social with snacks in the recreational room and concluding with dinner at 6:15.
“Students will learn about experiencing the fraternity life in the brotherhood,” Chamberland said. “Any guy remotely interested in learning more about friar life, in learning what we do together, should come to experience our daily life.”
Chamberland was inspired to pursue the life of a Franciscan friar after his own experience of visiting the Friary in 2005. He noted the friars’ relatability as one of the main factors that drove him to become a friar.
“The friars were all regular guys—they didn’t pretend to be different from the rest of the world,” Chamberland said. “They are very much a part of the world.”
Senior theology major Troy Hillman will be attending the meeting and credited his interest in the Friary to his experiences in classes and leadership opportunities at Mt. Irenaeus.
“Coming to Bonaventure, I originally wanted to be a pastor,” Hillman said. “After I was invited to speak at the mountain and looked into early Christian writing, I began to see Catholicism in a new way. I started thinking more about the possibility of religious life.”
Hillman was raised as a nondenominational Christian and credits his experiences at Bonaventure as enlightening his understanding of the Franciscan life. He will be entering the Catholic Church through the Right of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) program in April.
“Bonaventure made me more aware of ministry and the different types of ministry in the church,” Hillman said. “I’m hoping that the meeting will help me in deciding between the married life and the religious life, because I know that in religion, there is also family. I’m excited to see what new points the friars raise.”
Chamberland shared his goals for students who attend the meeting.
“It is my hope that students have fun, engage in good conversations, and have an experience of the Friary that shows what we are like together,” Chamberland said. “At the end of the day, I hope they have a good time.”
Chamberland urges students who are interested in the friary to talk to one of the friars, and to not be hesitant in sharing their goals.
Hillman, after talking to several friars after theology classes, was encouraged to look into the Friary.
“If you are a male theology student at a Franciscan university, the friars are bound to encourage you to join the friary,” Hillman said. “I have often heard, ‘Hey, you look good in brown.’”
Students interested in the Nov. 19 meeting should contact Br. Ross Chamberland at rchamber@sbu.edu to RSVP.
