section_path: Orders, groups, and societies/Augustinian Friars
section_name: Augustinian Friars
paragraph_text: Augustinian Friars
  
  The 2008 Constitutions of the Order of St. Augustine states that the Order of Saint Augustine is composed of the following:
  
  In addition to these three branches, the Augustinian family also includes other groups:a) religious institutes, both male and female, formally aggregated to the order by a decree of the Prior General (this would include the Augustinians of the Assumption, the Sisters of St. Rita, etc.); b) other groups of lay Augustinians; c) lay faithful affiliated to the Order.
  
  The Augustinian, or Austin, friars (OSA), are a mendicant order. As consecrated religious, they pray the Liturgy of the Hours throughout the day. This Latin Church order, while a contemplative Order, differs from traditional monastic orders in three ways. 1) They do not take vows of stability, meaning that they can live in one house (called a friary or sometimes a monastery) typically for several years before being moved into a different community of the order. 2) They are engaged in apostolic activity, such as mission work, education, prison ministries, etc. The order is under the supervision of a Prior General in Rome, and as an international order they are divided into various Provinces throughout the world, with each Province being led by a Prior Provincial. (3) As an order, they have a special commitment to corporate poverty as opposed to simply the poverty professed by the individual friar. While this is not currently legislated as it was in the origins of the order, this is to be a distinguishing mark of their lives as a community.
  
  As consecrated religious, Augustinians profess the evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty, and obedience. They follow the Rule of St. Augustine, written sometime between 397 and 403 for a monastic community Augustine founded in Hippo (in modern day Algeria), and which takes as its inspiration the early Christian community described in the Acts of the Apostles, particularly Acts 4:32: "The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common." (NAB).
  
  By decree of the Holy See, the Augustinian Order was historically granted what was known as exempt status, which made it directly dependent on the Pope, meaning that bishops had no jurisdiction with regards to the internal affairs of the order. This is now expressed by saying that the order is an institute of pontifical right.