The Catholic Defender: Saint John Baptist de La Salle

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Saint John Baptist de La Salle (1651–1719) was a French priest and educational reformer who founded the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, revolutionizing education for the poor.

Complete dedication to what he saw as God’s will for him dominated the life of Saint John Baptist de La Salle. In 1950, Pope Pius XII named him patron of schoolteachers for his efforts in upgrading school instruction.

As a young 17th-century Frenchman, John had everything going for him: scholarly bent, good looks, noble family background, money, refined upbringing. At the early age of 11, he received the tonsure and started preparation for the priesthood, to which he was ordained at 27. He seemed assured then of a life of dignified ease and a high position in the Church.

But God had other plans for Saint John Baptist de La Salle, which were gradually revealed to him in the next several years. During a chance meeting with Monsieur Adrien Nyel, he became interested in the creation of schools for poor boys in Rheims, where he was stationed. Though the work was extremely distasteful to him at first, he became more involved in working with the deprived youths.

Once convinced that this was his divinely appointed mission, Saint John Baptist de La Salle threw himself wholeheartedly into the work, left home and family, abandoned his position as canon at Rheims, gave away his fortune, and reduced himself to the level of the poor to whom he devoted his entire life.

Leaving a life of wealth, he dedicated his fortune and life to educating marginalized youth.

He founded an order of religious men who were not ordained priests, allowing them to focus entirely on teaching.

The remainder of his life was closely entwined with the community of religious men he founded, the Brothers of the Christian School (also called Christian Brothers or De La Salle Brothers).

He broke from tradition by grouping students by ability, creating specialized schools for vocational training, and fostering a "community" atmosphere in schools.

He pioneered classroom instruction, where one teacher taught a group of students simultaneously, rather than the then-common practice of teaching pupils one-on-one while others remained idle.

He founded the first "normal schools" (teacher training colleges) to ensure that educators were not only masters of their subjects but also formed in virtue and effective teaching techniques.

This community grew rapidly and was successful in educating boys of poor families, using methods designed by John. It prepared teachers in the first training college for teachers and also set up homes and schools for young delinquents of wealthy families. The motivating element in all these endeavors was the desire to become a good Christian.

Yet even in his success, John did not escape experiencing many trials: heart-rending disappointment and defections among his disciples, bitter opposition from the secular schoolmasters who resented his new and fruitful methods, and persistent opposition from the Jansenists of his time, whose moral rigidity and pessimism about the human condition John resisted vehemently all his life.

Canonized in 1900 and named the Patron Saint of Teachers in 1950, he pioneered modern pedagogy, including classroom structure, teaching in the vernacular, and teacher training

Afflicted with asthma and rheumatism in his last years, he died on Good Friday at age 68, and was canonized in 1900.

 Today, Lasallian schools operate in 80 countries, educating nearly 900,000 students.

He promoted a deep devotion to St. Joseph as a model of obedience and care.

Complete dedication to one’s calling by God, whatever it may be, is a rare quality. Jesus asks us to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30b, emphasis added). Paul gives similar advice: “Whatever you do, do from the heart…” (Colossians 3:23).