A common fraternal life is part of any sacra praedicatio, part of our preaching. Brothers are to dwell together in unity, and be united in Christ with mind and one heart in God (LCO 2 §I). We see this in the apostolic brotherhood gathered around Jesus, and in the first Christian communities. Preachers are sent to bring to other places the shared life of prayer and charity they have experienced. Each community is ecclesial, a school of Christian life. Each convent is a fraternal community which extends to include, the province and the whole Order.
As followers of Rule of St. Augustine, “the chief motivation of your sharing life together is to live harmoniously in the house and to have one heart and one soul seeking God.” The common life is ultimately rooted in the unity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: our communion is founded, established, and strengthened in the same Spirit in whom we receive the Word from God the Father with one faith, contemplate with one heart, and praise with one voice; in whom we who share one bread are made one body, in whom we hold all things in common and are committed to the same work of evangelization.