St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle
Feast 04-07 · Canonized 1900
Patron of
About
Jean-Baptiste de La Salle was born in 1651 in Reims, France, into a wealthy family. He was ordained a priest in 1678 and became involved in founding free schools for poor boys.
He gave up his family fortune and gathered a community of teachers, the Brothers of the Christian Schools, dedicated to the education of the poor. He pioneered classroom teaching methods, teacher training, and the use of the vernacular instead of Latin.
He died in 1719 and was canonized in 1900. In 1950 Pope Pius XII declared him the patron saint of all teachers.
Suggested prayer
O God, who gave St. John Baptist de La Salle the generosity to give away his family fortune and open free schools for poor boys, grant through his intercession that teachers and all who educate the young may teach with wisdom, patience, and love. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.