Fr. Dominic Monti, OFM, Franciscan scholar, teacher and mentor, dies at 83

ALLEGANY, N.Y. — Fr. Dominic Monti, OFM, a respected educator, scholar and former provincial leader whose teaching and writing helped generations of friars, religious sisters and laypeople deepen their understanding of the Franciscan tradition, peacefully passed away on Sept. 16, 2026, while in hospice care. He was 83 years old, a Franciscan friar for 61 years, a priest for 55 years and a member of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Fr. Dominic dedicated his life to studying, teaching and sharing the history and spirituality of the Franciscan movement. Regarded as an authority on Franciscan history and theology, he taught in seminaries and theological institutions for more than 30 years. He wrote, translated, and edited several scholarly works that continue to shape Franciscan studies today.

“Fr. Dominic had the ability to embrace the challenges and difficulties of daily life, contemplate their deeper meaning, and allow them to shape a wise vision of the world—to see the world and the people around him as gifts from the Creator and instruments of grace,” said Minister Provincial Br. Michael Perry, OFM, of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe. “A brilliant mind, Fr. Dominic possessed the humility of St. Anthony of Lisbon (Padua). A caring heart, Fr. Dominic invited all to approach the banquet of the Lord, with no one excluded, and no one left behind. A visionary scholar, Fr. Dominic masterfully bridged history and theology, finding God’s evolving invitation within every epochal change and affirming it as a call toward broader horizons.”

Born Brian Thomas Monti in Bradford, Pennsylvania, on July 11, 1943, he entered the Order of Friars Minor in 1964, professed his first vows in 1965 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1971.

His love of learning shaped a lifetime of ministry. Fr. Dominic earned degrees from St. Bonaventure University, The Catholic University of America, Union Theological Seminary and ultimately a doctorate with distinction from the University of Chicago Divinity School. He devoted himself to teaching and formation, serving on the faculties of Christ the King Seminary in East Aurora, New York, and Washington Theological Union, where he taught Church history from 1979 to 2002. He also taught and lectured at many schools in the Washington, D.C., area while serving as director of the Franciscan Center of Theology and Spirituality.

He began as a full-time instructor of theology at St. Bonaventure University in 2002 and became the school's interim president in 2003. Though he was asked to continue serving in the university’s highest office after helping guide it through a difficult chapter in its history, Fr. Dominic chose to return to what colleagues said was his first love: teaching.

“The one word that I use to describe Fr. Dominic is ‘teacher’,” Sr. Margaret Carney, OSF, Franciscan scholar and President Emerita of St. Bonaventure University, who succeeded Fr. Dominic. “He loved teaching and was a teacher steeped not only in knowledge of Church and Franciscan history, but one who lived in that tradition with fidelity and joy. He wanted his students not only to become knowledgeable, but to become enchanted with the inspirations that fueled the Franciscan experience through history.”

Known throughout the Franciscan world for his deep knowledge of Franciscan spirituality, Fr. Dominic served as a resource and consultant at several General Chapters of the global Order of Friars Minor in Assisi, Italy. His scholarship was matched by his Franciscan brothers’ trust in him. He served on the Provincial Council of the legacy Holy Name Province and later as Vicar Provincial and Secretary of Formation and Studies, helping to guide the province’s formation and leadership for more than a decade.

His best-known books include two volumes in the Works of St. Bonaventure series and Francis and His Brothers: A Popular History of the Franciscan Friars, published in 2009 to commemorate the Order's 800th anniversary.

Br. John O’Connor, OFM, former Minister Provincial of the legacy Holy Name Province, called Fr. Dominic a trusted colleague whom he could rely on for counsel through both difficult and ordinary moments in Franciscan life.

“I could always count on his personal support, his wisdom and his insights,” Fr. O’Connor said. “Friars trusted him because, as the saying goes, ‘what you see is what you get.’ He was transparent, no pretending, no phoniness.”

Yet those who knew Fr. Dominic often spoke first not of his scholarship, but of his humility, warmth and friendship.

“Dominic was a brother to all,” Sr. Carney said. "His fraternal identity rose above all honors and titles and was the charm and warmth that he exuded in every situation.”

Fr. Dominic is survived by his sister, Susan M. Pfeiffer, nieces and nephews, and great nieces and nephews, as well as his brother friars of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

For media inquiries, please contact media@friars.us.

Fr. Dominic's passion for sharing Franciscan history and scholarship shines through in this presentation ("St. Francis: Myth or Reality?") that he gave to the Secular Institute of Missionaries of the Kingship of Christ in 1993. He served as their spiritual assistant for more than a decade.