The Order of Friars Minor Conventual (OFM Conv.) is one of the 3 main branches of Franciscan priests and brothers along with the Order of Friars Minor (OFM), and the Order of Friars Minor, Capuchin (OFM, Cap.).  The Franciscan Friars Conventual serve in 75 jurisdictions and the Order includes more than 4,000 friars worldwide. There are four provinces in the United States. Friars serve in parishes, schools, and in various types of homes and shelters, continuing the Conventuals’ tradition of community life and serving their communities. The Conventuals enjoy the privilege of caring for the tomb of St. Francis in Assisi and the Basilica of St. Anthony in Padua, and they are the confessors in the Basilica of St. Peter in Vatican City.

The friars supported by the Companions of St. Anthony are priests and brothers of Our Lady of the Angels Province, one of four Conventual Franciscan provinces in the United States. An offshoot from Poland to originally serve Polish and German speaking immigrants to America, our friars first came to the U.S. (Texas) in 1802, but shortly thereafter were focused on the East Coast, primarily the Baltimore-Philadelphia-New York corridor. The property that includes the Shrine of St. Anthony in Ellicott City, MD was purchased in 1928 as our primary novitiate, made the Provincial headquarters in 1990, and in 2014 absorbed other territorial Provinces and renamed Our Lady of the Angels Province (OLAP).