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Meet The Student Brothers

Br Daniel Benedict Rowlands O.P.

Born in Berkshire, Br Daniel was raised in the Faith in a Benedictine parish. Before entering the novitiate in 2018, he read Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge where he remained to complete a doctorate in Theoretical Physics. His years of study confirmed a love for the contemplative life, but also theological debate with those of different world views. C. S. Lewis, St Augustine, and Pope Benedict XVI were formative influences as an undergraduate, whilst more recently he has enjoyed exploring Dante, the twelfth-century Cistercians, and Eastern spiritual theology. | daniel.rowlands@english.op.org

Br John Bernard Church O.P.

Br John is a deacon in his final year of studies at Blackfriars Oxford, preparing for priestly ordination. He is the Promotor of the Dominican Youth Movement. He first encountered the Dominicans while studying Classics at Oxford, and entered the noviciate in 2018. An attraction to religious life initially grew out of time spent working with the Missionaries of Charity, which then crystallised into a Dominican vocation through a desire to integrate the contemplative life with preaching and study. | john.church@english.op.org

Br Francis Dominic Nguyen O.P.

Br Francis Dominic was born in Sacramento, California to a family of Vietnamese immigrants. In high school, several Norbertine priests sparked in him an interest for the Catholic intellectual tradition. This search for the harmony of faith and reason was nourished at Thomas Aquinas College, where he received his Bachelor of Arts, and led him to a lifelong pursuit of Truth in the Order of Preachers. He recently made his solemn vows in the Western Dominican Province in the United States and is studying in England for the year. In his free time, he enjoys kayaking, ultimate frisbee, and listening to virtually all types of music. | francisdominicop@gmail.com

Br Giovanni Castellano O.P.

Br Giovanni Castellano was born in Italy in 2000. He joined the Order of Preachers in the Province of St Thomas Aquinas, in southern Italy. He has made solemn profession in 2024 in the Dominican community of Bari and is completing his initial theological formation at Blackfriars, Oxford. | giovannicastellano.00@gmail.com

Br Jerome Johnson O.P.

Br Jerome was born and grew up in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. He moved to England to study Chemical Engineering at the University of Bath. He joined the Order of Preachers in 2020, and made solemn profession in 2024. He enjoys playing the guitar, listening to rock music, and cooking. His favourite books are The Imitation of Christ and Crime and Punishment. | jerome.johnson@english.op.org

Br Reginald Herbert O.P.

Br Reginald is a student brother in simple vows. He was born in London and grew up in Hounslow, before reading physics and UCL and then a PGCE at St. Mary’s, Twickenham. He met the Dominicans as a student in London and joined the Order in 2021 after spending some time teaching abroad. He was particularly influenced by the writings of St. Augustine as a teenager which drew him towards the religious life. His other interests include karate, rugby, comic books and playing the piano. He is particularly inspired by the writings of St. Catherine of Siena and St. Theresa Benedicta of the Cross. | reginald.herbert@english.op.org

Br Augustine Chen O.P.

Br Augustine was born and raised in Kuching, Malaysian Borneo. He came to England to study Law at the University of Oxford, where he was acquainted with and attracted to the Dominican way of life. A desire to proclaim the Gospel and to acquire a wider experience of religious life led him to work with the Salesians among young people in Glasgow before entering the Order. He finds nourishment in the works of St Augustine and the poems of Gerard Manley Hopkins, and is seeking a deeper familiarity with Eastern Christian spirituality and the Metaphysical poets. Among his favourite books are St Augustine’s Confessions and Graham Greene’s The Power and the Glory. He has an interest in the visual arts, and likes drawing and painting. | augustine.chen@english.op.org

Br Alin Octavian Maria Ardei O.P.

Br Alin was born in Bacau, Romania, in 1998. At the age of five, he moved to Turin, Italy, with his family. During secondary school, he felt a calling to the priesthood for the first time. It was in Bologna, whilst completing a degree in philosophy, that he first met the sons of St Dominic. The desire to live according to the words of the Doctor Angelicus, Contemplari et contemplata aliis tradere, led him to join the Order of Preachers in the Province of St Dominic, in northern Italy. He is now doing his degree in Theology in Oxford at Blackfriars Studium. | alinardei@yahoo.com

Br George Dominic Gillow O.P.

Br George Dominic was brought up in Staffordshire, where he first encountered the Order through the Dominican sisters in his hometown, Stone. Before going to university, he worked in the music department at Gloucester Cathedral and then studied in Toulouse, where he came upon sites associated with the early days of Order. Long attracted to the priesthood, it was during his time in France that he began to consider joining the Order of Preachers. His vocation was spurred when he met Dominicans at the University of Cambridge, where he studied Music and was organ scholar at Clare College, and he entered the noviciate after graduating in 2022. He is particularly inspired by St John Henry Newman and Pope Benedict XVI. | george.gillow@english.op.org

Br Dominik Micallef Eynaud O.P.

Br Dominik, a student brother in simple vows, was born and raised in Malta before moving to England to study History at the University of Reading. His journey to the priesthood began in secondary school where he first felt a calling. Having been familiar with the Order of Preachers since childhood, he embraced his vocation with them. He was particularly drawn to the Dominican balance of study, prayer, and preaching, along with living in community. | dominik.eynaud@english.op.org

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