The life of St. La Salle

St. La Salle was born in France during the 17th Century. At birth, St. La Salle was

• born in poverty

• part of the lower middle class

• part of the upper middle class

• rich and part of the nobility

Answer explanation

• St. La Salle was a minor noble through his mother's line. He was not from royalty, but he lived a comfortable life.

Son of a minor noble and a member of the rising merchant class, St. La Salle was a relative of the founder of which of the following French brands?

• Dior (Christian Dior)

• Moët & Chandon (Claude Moët)

• Louis Vuitton (Louis Vuitton)

• Cartier (Louis-François Cartier)

Answer explanation

• Claude Moet was a relative of Nicolle Moet de Brouillet, mother of St. La Salle. In modern times, Moet & Chandon is the co-owner of Louis Vuitton and Moet Hennessy.

St. La Salle was in Paris when his mother unfortunately passed away. He was 21. What did St. La Salle do when he found out?

• 1. He went home immediately, just in time for the wake of his mother.

• He stayed in Paris for a few months before heading back home, only to find his father sick and dying.

• News got to him late; he was only able to head back home after the wake of his father, who died nine months after his mother passed away.

• None of the choices.

Answer explanation

• This only deepened his grief. This event made him take up the responsibility of taking care of his siblings even he himself is still young.

St. La Salle got his Bachelor's Degree in Theology at age 24. At what age did he get his Doctorate in Theology?

• 29

• 33

• 37

• 45

Answer explanation

• He really strived to finish his studies while at the same time taking up the responsibility to take care of his siblings after both their parents passed away.

St. La Salle's chance encounter with Adrian Nyel is well known as the meeting that changed his life. What did St. La Salle want to be before this encounter?

• Become a teacher

• Become a brother

• Become a winemaker

• Become a priest

Answer explanation

• St. La Salle initially did not have anything to do with the teaching profession. His dream was to be a humble parish priest. Deep inside he was aware of the need to educate the poor kids in his area, so even if he  don’t know anything about running a school or being a teacher, he accepted the invitation to run a school.

St. La Salle had to give up a lot of his privilege to truly be one with the Brothers of the Christian Schools. When he finally dined with them the first time, what did he do?

• He vomited the food and was ill for days

• He refused to eat the food the brothers ate

• He dined blissfully in the company of the brothers

• He ate separately from the brothers

Answer explanation

It was a statement by one of the early brothers that eventually led St. La Salle to give up whatever privilege he had left. If the schools should fail, he would be no worse off, whereas the brothers would be back on the streets.  At first, he was not used to the food of the poor folk, which led to him having an upset stomach.

To this day, the Lasallian brothers (formally known as the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools or Frères des Écoles Chrétiennes) do not have ordained priests in their order, St. La Salle was the only ordained Superior. Why is this the case?

• Because he did not want the Institute to be under the control of the Church

• Because he wanted to avoid the fees levied by the Archdiocese of Lyon

• Because the brothers did not want another priest to be their Superior

• Because a brother died while being groomed to be a priest

Answer explanation

Brother Henri L’Heureux was being groomed as the next Superior of the Institute, but he died a short time after he started his training for ordination. St. La Salle looked for God’s voice in it all and decided that from now on the Brothers would be fully devoted to education as their ministry and there would be no sacramental ministry, no priests.

Throughout his advanced years, St. La Salle had been hounded by rheumatism, especially in the cold winter months, which exacerbated his struggles. What treatment was administered to St. La Salle to ease his (physical) pains?

• Traditional folk medicine

• 1. Grilling on burning hardwood coals

• Intense joint stretching

• No treatment was given to him

Answer explanation

St. La Salle had, aside from his physical pains, compounding hardships. The institute suffered during this time, including being persecuted by the Masters of the Little Schools, Guild of Writing Masters and Church authorities who had other ideas for direction the Institute should be heading towards.

Due to several troubles in Paris (including legal troubles), St. La Salle decided to retreat to the brothers in the South of France (in Mende and Marseille. What happened when he got there?

• The Brothers were no longer there, they had moved without informing St. La Salle

• The Brothers hid St. La Salle while his legal troubles were still fresh in the minds of people

• He was accused by the Brothers of destroying the Institute, refusing to give him shelter

• He got lost and ended up in Parmenie

Answer explanation

The brothers were tempted and corrupted by their material lifestyle, and they did not want St. La Salle to find out so they may continue to enjoy their errant ways. This rejection is well known as St. La Salle's Dark Night of the Soul, and led to his retreat to Parmenie.

St. La Salle stayed in Parmenie, under the care of a respected recluse (a shepherd by trade), Sister Louise. How was he convinced to return back to the Institute?

• Through a letter from the Brothers commanding him to return

• Through the persistence of Brother Timothee

• Through the sermons given to him by Sister Louise about finishing what he started

• Through constabulary (police) intervention

Answer explanation

St. La Salle's first words upon his return was equally as remarkable. He said "Well, here I am. What do you want of me?" Clearly St. La Salle treasured the peace he found in Parmenie, it pained him to leave. But he also knew his calling with the Brothers is not yet done, and he would spend his last years writing letters and rules that to this day is still very relevant and full of wisdom.