*We highlight these Saints to inspire our students and contribute to their growth in Catholic education by fostering understanding and appreciation for Catholic values and teachings. We encourage parents to share the stories of these Saints with their children to deepen their spirituality and motivate them to live their faith with conviction, following the examples of these admired role models.*
St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle, the patron saint of teachers, is well known for the way that he dedicated his life to educating children who usually would not have the means to afford an education. His mission and vision for education have had a lasting impact on the Catholic Church and the world since he died in 1719. The order that he founded called the “Brothers of the Christian Schools” is still actively serving and educating young minds across the globe to this day.
St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle was born in 1651 in Rheims, France, into a family with great wealth and nobility. Before the age of 30, he had been ordained a priest and had received a doctorate in the field of theology. He then felt a calling to change paths toward a life of service in the form of education. Jean-Baptiste realized that there was a need to educate the impoverished young men in his hometown who had no access to education in the society he lived in. In his time in France, very few families could afford to send their children to school to receive an education.
St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle gave up his wealth and expensive home to live and work among the poor. He decided to fully devote his life to his vocation and founded the Brothers of the Christian Schools, who would serve together to fulfill Jean-Baptiste’s vision of educational improvement. The Brothers made sure to provide an education that included both topics about the faith and secular topics that were taught in other schools, similarly to the way Catholic schools are set up in the modern day. However, not everyone was thrilled about these new changes in education that St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle had introduced. Many at the time resented the fact that the Brothers insisted on providing an education to everyone, regardless of financial means.
For the rest of his days, St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle continued to serve the Lord through education. He created a teachers’ college and held Sunday courses once a week for those young men who were too busy with work during the week to receive an education. Through all this, the overarching aim of St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle’s work was to foster the growth of good Christian men. He passed away in the year 1719 and was canonized in 1900. His legacy of passion for education and service for the poor lives on and inspires many Catholics today as they look to him and seek intercession from the patron saint of teachers. Today, there are schools run by the Brothers of the Christian Schools in about 80 countries all across the world.
FAMILY ACTIVITY: St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle is the patron saint of educators. Have your children write a letter to their favorite teacher telling them what they like about them and something they enjoyed learning from them!