The East Anglia Region of the Secular Franciscan Order

Paula Pearce outlines the history, development and present-day life of the East Anglia Region of the Secular Franciscan Order, highlighting its enduring Franciscan spirit despite modern challenges.

The Region of East Anglia (EAR) was formed in March 1992, when the first Regional Council held elections at the Church of Our Lady of the Annunciation in Poringland.

Recalling the nine Franciscan houses established in Cambridge, Norwich, Bury St Edmunds, King’s Lynn, Ipswich, Colchester, Yarmouth, Dunwich and Walsingham, it is recorded that these friaries were suppressed in each of these places in 1538.

In 1992, the newly formed EAR consisted of Cambridge, Gorleston, Ipswich, Norwich and Walsingham, indicating a continuing Franciscan spirit in these locations.

A note on Walsingham

From Walsingham: England’s Nazareth by Peter Rollings, we learn that as Walsingham grew into an important pilgrimage centre, King Edward III gave permission for a Franciscan friary to be founded there. This was licensed by Pope Clement VI on 28 September 1347.

The mendicant Orders often faced opposition from established monastic communities, as these communities risked losing revenue if lay people were drawn to the friars. The Augustinian Canons of Walsingham Priory duly objected. However, permission was granted in 1351 to enclose the road at Friday Market, where the Franciscan friary was subsequently built.

In 1937, OFM Capuchin friars were invited to open two hostels for poor pilgrims. The friars left in 1948, as the war had led to a decrease in pilgrim numbers. At times since then, Franciscan friars have been based in Walsingham.

Although Franciscan friars have lived in various parts of East Anglia, this is no longer the case, and the absence of friars or sisters has had an impact on the Secular Franciscans.

The EAR Region today

Regional elections are held every three years at different locations within the region. The Regional Council organises days of recollection and other celebrations.

Regional boundaries were revised in 2007, when the fraternities of Bedford and Clacton joined. Currently, EAR has three active fraternities: Cambridge, Ipswich and Norfolk. Bedford was affiliated with Cambridge in January 2022.

Across the UK and Northwestern Europe, numbers have declined, and each region now has fewer local fraternities. The reasons may include increasing secularisation, a reluctance to make lifelong commitments, and a decline in numbers across the wider Franciscan family.

Where fraternities could once expect a friar or sister to attend meetings and lead celebrations, there are now no friaries in East Anglia and few Franciscan religious. National Spiritual Assistants continue to support the Order, but they require considerable advance notice. As a result, few people beginning their journey towards profession will meet a friar at an OFS gathering unless they are able to attend regional or national events.

Arrangements have already been made for professions to take place in Norwich in April 2027. Encouragingly, there has been a small increase in the number of professed members in the UK this year, and we pray that this will continue.

Local fraternity meetings

St Francis of Assisi is a well-known and much-loved saint who continues to attract people to the Order. Each month, members gather to pray, to learn about St Francis and Franciscan spirituality, to reflect on their role within the Church, and to grow in friendship, mutual support and shared celebration.

Pope Francis has drawn attention to St Francis’s care for all creation, while Pope Leo places particular emphasis on Francis as a man of peace. Most members are actively involved in their parishes or wider communities, and local fraternities often choose to support a charity. Members support one another both in their service and through the challenges of daily life.

Cambridge – “Our Lady of the Poor” fraternity

On 29 April 1934, a Third Order of St Francis fraternity was established by OFM Capuchin friars. It met at Houghton Hall in the parish of Our Lady of the English Martyrs. Cambridge has members drawn from a wide area, and the fraternity previously met in different locations depending on where members lived.

The Cambridge fraternity now meets at St Laurence’s Church on the second Saturday of each month, beginning with participation in the parish Mass and a time of Adoration.

Ipswich – “Blessed John Duns Scotus” fraternity

This fraternity was established in 1947 by OFM friars from the student house at East Bergholt, meeting at St Pancras Church. It attracted members from Felixstowe and Woodbridge, and later from Colchester. By the 1950s, meetings were held in the parlour at East Bergholt.

When the Franciscan Study Centre opened in Canterbury in 1973, four friars remained to serve St Mark’s Parish. Ipswich became part of the London North Region until the establishment of the EAR in 1992. The remaining friars left in the mid-1990s, after which the fraternity moved to the Holy Family Church in Brantham.

The Ipswich fraternity now meets on alternate months at Holy Family Church and St Mary’s Church, Ipswich, at 2.30pm on the third Sunday of the month. The Padre Pio Prayer Group, established by the fraternity, meets on the second Friday of each month.

Norwich – “Pax et Bonum” fraternity

The Third Order initially met at St John’s Cathedral, but the group later ceased. One member remained committed to reviving the fraternity. Allan Simpson, then Regional Minister, worked to reconstitute it, and gradually a small number of people began attending meetings at Holy Apostles Church, West Earlham.

Allan Simpson persevered, travelling with another member from March and Peterborough to attend monthly meetings. The Order of Friars Minor also provided support, and there was a shared desire to nurture the fraternity carefully.

In October 2007, three members were professed at St John’s Cathedral, enabling the Norwich “Pax et Bonum” fraternity to be re-established.

The Norwich fraternity now meets at St George’s Church, Sprowston, at 3.45pm on the first Sunday of each month.

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