✦ COME & SEE WEEKEND • 13–15 JUNE 2025 • YOUNG WOMEN 18–35
Religious Brothers and Priests
Discerning a shared life of prayer, fraternity and mission.
A growing ecclesial family
Ecclesial Families of Consecrated Life such as the Community of the Beatitudes, have existed since the 1960’s but the canons for this form of life only came into place in 2017. They all have three branches, the two main ones being that of vowed brothers and vowed sisters and the third branch being that of associate lay members.
Since our founding we have always envisaged there being brothers and sisters, vowed and lay sharing in the charism of COLW. A good friend said in 2004 that we should be called the ‘Sisters of Our Lady of Walsingham’ and yet the vision was much broader than that. Hence, we retained the name of the Community of Our Lady of Walsingham.
The Franciscan Fraternity of Bethany — an example of an ecclesial family.
Could you be called to this life?
Only now, with the acquisition of our mission house in Walsingham, do we have the possibility of welcoming men aged 18-40 wishing to discern a vocation to vowed life in community. For many years we and our lay members have been praying for our first religious brothers. Please join us in praying that young men, attracted by our charism, may have the courage to start the brothers branch of COLW, and bring to our ecclesial family the male expression of our charism. Some may also be called to the religious priesthood, but the essential of wishing to be brothers living together in community, and working closely with the religious sisters and our lay members, is what will touch their hearts and form part of their discernment.
Explore life in an ecclesial family
Come and meet the community
Discover our life of prayer and community. We would love to hear from you.
Community of Our Lady
of Walsingham