LIFE AND WORKS OF ST.

JOHN BAPTIST DE LA SALLE

SIR HARY DALISAY | MODULE 5

THE LASALLIAN SAINTS

Saints
● In 1841 he was appointed Director of a school
● The saints were persons sensitive to the realities that was opening in Saugues, an isolated village
around them. (they were conscious, they identify on a barren plateau in southern France.
what the problems are) ● For the next twenty years he worked quietly and
● Touched by these realities, they responded with effectively as teacher and principal to educate
reason, but above all with overwhelming faith, the boys in the village and some from the
love, and hope. (provided the soultions) neighboring farms, many of whom were in their
● They responded personally and in association teens and had never been to school before.
with others for the sake of the mission they had ● Small as he was, he was known as a strict but
discerned. (they did the solutions themselves) fair disciplinarian.
● They responded consistently and creatively; until ● In time the little school became the center of the
death. social and intellectual life of the village, with
evening classes for the adults and tutoring for
THUS, the less gifted students.
● They are conscious or sensitive. ● Brother Benilde’s extraordinary religious sense
● They respond with reasons, personally, was evident to everyone: at Mass with the
consistently. students in the parish church, teaching
catechism, preparing boys for first communion,
Saint Benildus Romancon, FSC (1805- 1862) visiting and praying with the sick, and rumors of
near-miraculous cures.
● He was especially effective in attracting religious
vocations.
● At his death more than 200 Brothers and an
impressive number of priests had been his
students at Saugues.
● At his beatification, Pope Pius XII stressed that
his sanctification was attained by enduring “the
terrible daily grind” and by “doing common
things in an uncommon way.”
Feast Day: August 13
● Born at Thuret, France June 14, 1805
● Pierre Romançon was born in the village of ● Entered the novitiate February 10, 1820
Thuret in south-central France. ● Died August 13,1862
● He was so far ahead of his classmates in ● Beatified April 4, 1948
elementary school that when he was only ● Canonized October 29, 1967
fourteen years old the Brothers engaged him as
a substitute teacher.
● Despite the objection of his parents, who wanted
to keep him at home, and the reluctance of the
superiors, who thought he was too short of
stature, he was finally admitted to the novitiate.
● From 1821 to 1841 he taught successfully in the
network of elementary schools conducted by the
Brothers out of the administrative center at
Clermont-Ferrand.

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 Saint Miguel Febres Cordero, FSC (1854-1910) ● His mother was a devout woman who was active
in works of charity.
● His mother took great care of him and educated
him at home until he was nine.
● He then attended the De La Salle Brothers
school in Cuenca where he was quite a
precocious student.
● He was chosen to give the address of welcome
to President Garcia Moreno when he came to
visit the school.
● At fourteen Francisco decided to join the De la
Salle Brothers and though his father at first
made strong objections, he finally consented.
● Miguel, as he was now called, began teaching in
Quito at 15 and distinguished himself as a
teacher of religion and Spanish.
● At 20, he was producing textbooks that were
Feast day: February 9 used countrywide.
● Miguel was chosen by the Brothers to attend the
● Born as Francisco Febres Cordero Muooz beatification of John-Baptist de la Salle in Rome
● Born in the city of Cuenca, Ecuador in 1887.
● Was crippled in both legs from birth (di kalakaw) ● On his return he continued his work as a teacher
● joined the De la Salle Brothers and became a of Spanish language and literature.
great teacher and holy man. ● He became the director of novices from 1896 to
● He is Ecuador's first canonized saint. 1905 and was then appointed principal of
Sagrada Fimilia school but was soon relieved of
Summary of St Miguel Febres Cordero the post as he was not a great administrator.
● a precocious child from the Andes of Ecuador, ● On request from the order’s headquarters at
who became a De La Salle brother. Lembecq-lez-Hal in Belgium, Miguel was
● He was both an accomplished educator and a seconded there to translate French books into
holy man. Spanish.
● After some years working in Europe, he died in ● He was homesick and the climate did not suit
Barcelona, Spain in 1910. him.
● Miguel was a precocious child from the Andes of ● He transferred to Barcelona, but here a general
Ecuador, who became a De La Salle brother. strike broke out and churches were being
● He trained himself to be both an accomplished burned.
educator and a holy man. ● The Brothers evacuated and Miguel managed to
● After some years in Europe, he died in make a pilgrimage to the shrine of Our Lady of
Barcelona, Spain in 1910. In 1937 his body was the Pillar at Zaragoza.
returned to Ecuador. ● The experience at Barcelona took its toll on his
● Pope John Paul II canonised him in the year health; he caught pneumonia and died on 7
1984. February 1910.
● Patrick Duffy tells his story. ● When news of his death reached Ecuador, the
● A crippled but precocious child educated at country felt a great sense of loss and the
home Francisco Febres Cordero Muòoz was conviction grew that he should be recognized as
born in the city of Cuenca, 7,000 ft high in the the country’s first saint.
Andes, in Ecuador. ● In 1937, partly due to the desecrations that were
● His grandfather had been active in Ecuador’s taking place in the Spanish Civil War, his
struggle for independence in 1822. remains were returned from Spain to Quito in
● His father taught English and French in the Ecuador.
seminary in Cuenca. ● In 1977 Pope Paul VI beatified Miguel and in
1984 Pope John Paul II canonized him.
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 ● He is a saint, not because of his precocity or his ● No sooner had he met the Brothers in a nearby
intellectual ability, but because the warmth of his school than he determined to enter the novitiate
prayer life overflowed in generosity and service at Namur.
to others. ● After 2 years, teaching elementary classes,
● For him, “Nothing can bring greater happiness Brother Mutien was assigned to the boarding
than doing God's will with Love”. Happiness, he school at Malonne where he would spend the
knew, is not to be sought, for it can never be next fifty-eight years.
found. It comes as a by-product of a generous ● He had difficulties at first coping with the
life when one’s whole thoughts and energies are demands of both teaching and prefecting.
directed away from oneself and towards the ● He was rescued by the Brother in charge of the
needs of others. courses in music and art, at the time an
important feature of the curriculum.
Saint Mutien-Marie Wiaux, FSC (1841-1917) ● From then on Brother Mutien was not only an
effective teacher of those subjects, a vigilant
prefect in the school yard, and a catechist in the
nearby parish, but a tremendous influence on
the students by his patience and evident piety.
● He was known to spend whatever time he could
before the tabernacle or at the grotto of Our
Lady.
● Among the Brothers, it was said that he had
never been seen violating even the smallest
points in their Rule.
● After his death at Malonne, his fame began to
spread through Belgium, where many miracles
were attributed to him.
● His relics may be venerated in Malonne at the
shrine built in his honor after his canonization.

The Selected Lasallian Martyrs

Feast day: January 30

● The Lasallian Martyrology is not simply a list of

● Born at Mellet, Belgium March 20, 1841
names, but it is rather the living witness of
● Entered the novitiate: April 7, 1856
members of our Institute who have shared the
● Died: January 30, 1917
fate of the disciples of Christ, even to the point
● Beatified: October 30, 1977
of shedding their blood.
● Canonized: December 10, 1989
● This kind of response has occurred repeatedly
● the 3rd of six children
since Christ said to his disciples: “I am sending
● was born in a small village in French-speaking
you out like lambs among wolves “(Lk 10,3).
Belgium where almost everyone was a devout
● The wolves that kill them do not realize that by
practicing Catholic.
leaving a trail of death behind them they
● His father was a blacksmith, while his mother
demonstrate, paradoxically, the extent to which
helped to run a small cafe in part of the family
the example of the self-sacrifice of Christ on the
home, where no rough language was allowed
Cross continues to be powerful and relevant: “By
and where the evening of Belgian beer and card
their sacrifice they prolong and diffuse in the
playing always concluded with the recitation of
world the victory of Christ over sin and death“
the rosary.
(John Paul II, Angelus, 24/3/1996).
● Louis proved neither physically nor emotionally
● Death by martyrdom is not something that is
suited to his father’s trade; he was convinced
improvised. It is prepared for by the daily
that the Lord was calling him to a different kind
martyrdom of an everyday life lived generously
of forge.
in the service of God and of others.

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 ● The testimony of those who knew them along ● He soon developed hearing problems and was
with their own writings are an eloquent proof of advised to return home.
this. ● Convinced that God was calling him, he was
● Their acceptance of death through martyrdom overjoyed in 1917 to learn that the Institute of
was the culmination of a long period of the Brothers would accept him in the novitiate at
preparation. Irun, Spain.
● the moment arrived, they went to their death not ● After 16 years in various teaching assignments,
with the resignation of the condemned but with his hearing problems forced him to abandon the
the joy and exultation of the victorious. classroom to work in the garden at the house of
● In our Institute the long row of heroic witnesses formation at San José, in Tarragona.
of faith, even to the point of giving their lives, is ● In July of 1936 he was at Mollerosa on his way
formed by an impressive number of Brothers. to visit his family at Enviny when the civil war
● They number almost 200! The list begins with broke out. Recognized as a Brother, he was
the lives violently cut off during the French arrested and jailed.
Revolution and goes on until the present with ● In December he was transferred to Tarragona
the shots fired at Brother Jaime Gutierrez by and confined in a prison ship with several other
assassins hired by drug dealers on May 21st brothers.
1991. (Rodlfo Cosimo Meoli, FSC) ● On 15 January 1937 he was given a summary
trial.
Saint Jaime Hilario Barbal, FSC, (1898-1937) ● Though he could have been freed by claiming to
be only a gardener, he insisted on his identity as
a religious and thereby sealed his doom.
● He was brought to the cemetery known as the
Mount of Olives on 18 January to face
execution.
● His last words to his assailants were “To die for
Christ, my young friends, is to live.”
● When two volleys failed to meet their mark, the
soldiers dropped their rifles and fled in panic.
The commander, shouting a gross insult, fired
five shots at close range and the victim fell at his
feet.

Saint Martyrs of Turón (1934)

Feast day: October 9

● Born: January 2, 1898

● Entered the novitiate: February 24, 1917
● Martyred: January 18, 1937
● Beatified: April 29, 1990
● Canonized: November 21, 1999
● Manuel Barbal Cosan was born on 2 January
1898 in Enviny, a small town at the foot of the
Pyrenees in northern Spain.
● Known for his serious nature, he was only 12
years old when, with the blessing of his devout
and hardworking parents, he entered the minor
seminary of the diocese of Urgel. Feast day: October 9
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 Saint Victoriano Pío (Claudio Bernabé Cano)
Brother Martyrs of Turon
● Born in San Millan de Lora (Borgos), Spain, July
● In 1934 Turón, a coal-mining town in the 7, 1905
Asturias Province in Northwestern Spain, was ● Entered the novitiate on August 30, 1921
the center of anti-government and anticlerical
hostility in the years prior to the outbreak of the Saint Benjamín Julián (Vicente Alonso Andrés)
Spanish Civil War.
● The Brothers’ school was an irritant to the ● Born in Jamarillo de la Fuente (Burgos), Spain,
radicals in charge of the town because of the October 27, 1908
religious influence it exerted on the young. ● Entered the novitiate on August 29, 1924
● The Brothers were known to defy the ban on
teaching religion and they openly escorted their Saint Augusto Andrés (Román Martín Fernández)
students to Sunday Mass.
● On the First Friday of October, the authorities ● Born in Santander, Spain, May 6, 1910
broke into the Brothers’ house on the pretext ● Entered the novitiate on February 3, 1926
that arms had been hidden there.
● Father Inocencio, a Passionist, who had come Saint Benito de Jesús (Héctor Valdivieso Sáez)
the night before, was preparing to say Mass for
the Brothers. ● Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, October 31,
● They and their chaplain were arrested, detained 1910
over the weekend without trial, and then in the ● Entered the novitiate on August 7, 1926
middle of the night were marched out to the
cemetery where they were summarily shot. Saint Anicet Adolfo (Manuel Seco Gutiérrez)
● Brother Cirilo, the Director, was 46 years old and
Brother Marciano, the cook, was 39. Brother ● Born in Celada Marlantes (Santander), Spain,
Julián was 32 and all the rest were in their October 4, 1912
twenties. ● Entered the novitiate on September 6, 1928
● Aniceto, the youngest at 22, was still in triennial
vows. Saint Inocencio de la Immaculada,CP (Manuel
● They were arrested, detained, and executed as Canoure Arnau)
a community, victims of the hatred and violence
against the Church, witnessed by their death to ● Born in Cecilia del Valle de Oro (Lugo), Spain,
the faith they so courageously professed and so March 10, 1887
effectively communicated to their students. ● Ordained on September 20, 1920
● Martyred in Spain on October 9, 1934
Saint Cirilo Bertrán (José Sanz Tejedor) ● Beatified April 29, 1990
● Canonized November 21, 1999
● Born in Lerma (Burgos), Spain, March 20, 1888
● Entered the novitiate on October 23, 1906 Saint Solomon Le Clercq, FSC (1745-1792)

Saint Marciano José (Filomeno López y López)

● Born in El Pedregal (Guadalajara), Spain,

November 15, 1900
● Entered the novitiate on September 20, 1916

Saint Julián Alfredo (Vilfrido Fernández Zapico)

● Born in Cifuentes de Rueda (León), Spain,

December 24, 1903
● Entered the novitiate on February 4, 1926 Feast day: September 2
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● Washington, DC, October 16, 2016 – The ● On September 2, 1792, each of the 166
Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools prisoners was put to death by the sword.
(De La Salle Christian Brothers) is celebrating ● Brother Solomon and his companions were
the canonization of Brother Solomon Le Clercq, beatified on October 17, 1926.
FSC. ● On his path to sainthood, Brother Solomon is
● Saint Solomon was canonized in a ceremony credited with a miracle that took place in 2007.
October 16, 2016, in St. Peter’s Square in ● A five-year-old Venezuelan girl was cured of
Vatican City. Brother Solomon, a martyr of the complications from a venomous snakebite
French Revolution, was the first Brother of the through the prayers offered by religious Sisters,
Christian Schools to be martyred, and the first to children and parishioners before their church’s
be beatified. statue of Brother Solomon, who was venerated
● “Brother Solomon’s story invites us to reflect on in the area. Against all odds, the girl survived for
what we hold dear in our faith and conviction two days after the bite with no medical
about the dignity of the human person,” said intervention. When she was taken to the hospital
Brother Timothy Coldwell, FSC, General to have her leg amputated in order to save her
Councilor, Lasallian Region of North America life, she regained her health and the use of her
(U.S and Canada). leg suddenly and without explanation as if
● “It motivates us to celebrate holy people who, nothing had happened.
even at the expense of losing their life, maintain ● The miracle was confirmed in 2016 by the
their faith in God and in the goodness of all diocese of Caracas at the end of a five-year
creation. process, and Pope Francis proclaimed the
● It compels us to care enough to intercede for decree of canonization on May 10, 2016.
individuals and families who in our day and time ● Saint Solomon was canonized with six others:
suffer violence due to armed conflicts, riots, or José Luis Sánchez del Río, young martyr of the
lawlessness.” Mexican Cristeros War; Manuel González
● Born Nicolas Le Clercq in Boulogne, France, in García, a Bishop of Palencia, Spain; Lodovico
1745 to a devout family, he attended the Pavoni, an Italian priest; Alfonso Maria Fusco,
Brothers’ school there and entered the novitiate priest and founder of the Sisters of Saint John
in Rouen at age 21. the Baptist; José Gabriel del Rosario Brochero,
● Before being named in 1782 as secretary to the an Argentinian priest; and Elizabeth of the
Superior General, Brother Agathon, he had been Trinity, a French Carmelite nun.
a teacher, director, finance manager, and
director of novices.
● He was a man of deep spirituality who was
quiet, gentle, and somewhat shy, but also
engaged and firm.
● Brother Solomon lived during the tumultuous
time of the French Revolution.
● When the Catholic Church became a target, all
church belongings were confiscated.
● Clergy were required to swear the oath of “The
Civil Constitution of the Clergy” denying their
loyalty to the church.
● Brother Solomon refused to take the oath and
lived in secrecy in Paris.
● Following his arrest on August 15, 1792, he was
subject to a formal interrogation that ended with
the question: “Have you taken the oath?” The
answer was: “No.” He was then sent to the
improvised prison of the Carmelite Convent with
others.