Priory Initiative

Priory Of The Light, PHOENIX arizona

The Priory Of The Light, Inspired by Legacy, Driven by Service: The Modern Knights Templar is an Ecumenical Christian and Chivalric charitable Order. We honor the rich history of the Knights Templar, but our mission goes beyond lineage. We aim to emulate their core values in a modern context.

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Grand C&I 2025

Join us for the GPUSA 2025 Grand Convent & Investiture June 4-8, 2025. "SHINING HIS LIGHT IN THE DESERT"

Latest Priory News

See the latest news from our priory and its members as well as what is the latest in community and surrounding areas of interest.

Calendar Of Events

See all the priory events and key dates this month. If you see something of interest, be sure and contact us.

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Charitable Activities

Donations support the maintenance of Holy Land sites, hospitals, schools and scholarship programs. This includes the Franciscans in the Holy Land, the Augusta Victory Hospital, operated by the Lutheran Diocese of Jerusalem, the Anglican Diocese for the support of St. George Cathedral and School in Jerusalem, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate, the Armenian Patriarchate to maintain many of the Old Quarter sites, and the International Orthodox Christian Charities.

Local Support Focus

Local Engagement: Our local chapter actively participates in community-oriented events, collaborates with non-profit organizations, and fosters fellowship among our members.

Solutions for Change: We are dedicated to making a positive difference in Arizona by partnering with several local charities, organizations and various Veterans Associations.

The priory also provides critical assistance to those in need both locally and nationally as well as internationally. With a particular focus on supporting Christians facing persecution in the Middle East, we actively partner with various missions. https://smotj.org/jerusalem-mite

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Jerusalem Mite

2025-26 Jerusalem Mite Campaign

The needs of Christians in the region are urgent. American Templars are there to help, working to preserve Christianityʼs presence in the place of its birth. GPUSA/SMOTJ Jerusalem Mite program focuses on risks facing Christians in an effort to restore hope and encourage families to rebuild their lives in the Holy Land and the Middle East.

The Jerusalem Mite, with money raised from American Knights, Dames and friends, directs funds to a dozen known, trusted, church-related charitable organizations, based primarily in the Holy Land. These organizations provide essential programs for healthcare, housing, academic education, and vocational training, and they are making a difference for Christian families. In the wake of extremistsʼ recent campaigns to purge the region of Christians, several of our recipient organizations are also providing food, clothing, shelter, and medical care to tens of thousands of Christian refugees who have fled for their lives, especially in northern Iraq. GPUSA is in regular contact with our charitable recipients and visits them every year.

While the Orderʼs primary mission is to support Christians at risk in the Middle East, we also seek opportunities to build relationships with the regionʼs other two major Abrahamic faiths – Judaism and Islam – and to maintain free access for all faiths to the local holy sites of each.

Templars are changing lives in the Holy Land and beyond. With your support, we can do much more. Our brothers and sisters in the Middle East are counting on us

Annual giving by Knights, Dames and friends is making a difference in the lives of our Christian brothers and sisters in the Middle East through the organizations that we fund.

SMOTJ / GPUSA raises funds nationally for the Christian community in the Middle East from American Knights and Dames largely through our Jerusalem Mite program. The Jerusalem Mite primarily targets local programs to help stabilize the Christian population in the Holy Land and re-build a foundation for its continued survival.

Some of the most critical needs of Christians in the Holy Land are: 

  • Healthcare – especially for the dedicated older Christians, because of the critical shortage of doctors and nurses in Christian enclaves outside Israelʼs barrier wall.

  • Housing – especially in Gaza, where hundreds of Christian family homes have been decimated, most recently during Israelʼs 2014 military incursion into Gaza.

  • Education – the long-term key to a better life for the next generation, as unemployment among young people in Palestine currently stands at 34%.

  • Vocational Training – a necessity for the better-paying jobs for Christian families in the region.

  • Refugee Relief – the food, shelter, clothing and care needed by hundreds of thousands of Christians who now live in refugee camps after fleeing the onslaughts of Islamic State and other extremist groups.

GPUSA (SMOTJ) seeks out trustworthy organizations that have been meeting these needs in the Middle East for many years and assesses their qualifications and transparency. We have found that church leaders of various denominations and church-affiliated programs often are effective in addressing Christian needs, so they receive the majority of our charitable funds at this time.

A few examples of how the Jerusalem Mite is meeting the needs of Christians at risk:

  • Healthcare
    • Hospitals and clinics supported or operated by the Anglican Church, Roman Catholic Church, and Canon Andrew Whiteʼs Foundation for Relief and Reconciliation (FRRME) in Iraq.
    • Burn-treatment facility opened at an Anglican hospital in Gaza
    • Medical aid and supplies provided by the Franciscan Order
  • Housing
    • Restoration of sub-standard homes by the Franciscan Order in Bethlehem
    • Construction of new apartments in Jericho, Nazareth and Bethlehem for Christian families, built and subsidized by the Franciscan Order
  • Education
    • Schools operated by the Anglican Church, the Lutheran Church and the Latin (Roman Catholic) Patriarch
    • Colleges and seminaries operated by the La Salle Brothers, the Anglican Church, the Latin Patriarch, the Armenian Patriarch, and the Coptic Patriarch (Patriarchs are the national heads of their churches).
    • In addition to the Miteʼs funds for schools, Knights and Dames are personally funding scholarships for selected Christian students through our Raymond Davis Foundation, enabling young men and women to complete their high school or college education.
  • Vocational Training
    • The Episcopal Technological and Vocational Training Center (ETVTC) trains high school students in technology and in hotel service and management. 87% of its students have jobs or college acceptances upon graduation.
  • Refugee Relief
    • Clothing, water purification equipment, blankets and food for Syrian Christian refugees in Jordanʼs camps are provided by the Lutherans
    • Funds for construction of, and food and supplies for, Christian refugee camps in Iraq are provided by the FRRME.

Have Questions? Let's Talk

If you would like to be a part of a group that it’s members include some of this countries most notable political, military, civic,  and community leaders. A group that focuses on the needs of others, a group with a rich and meaningful history. If this sounds like a good fit for your future, please contact us today.  We look forward to hearing from you soon.

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