350th Anniversary of La Salle’s Birth

April 30th marks the birth date that started a Lasallian chain reaction:
The birth of a spiritual leader who
Gave birth to the De La Salle Christian Brothers whose
Lifestyle proclaims the Lasallian spirituality which
Gives birth to the spiritual life of their students

“LET US REMEMBER THAT WE ARE IN THE HOLY PRESENCE OF GOD...”

De La Salle was conscious of the presence of God at all times, in all places, and in each person he met. Upon entering a room, he would recall the presence of God; this presence was especially felt in the persons of the poor, in his brothers, and in the many children he would come to serve. Above all else, the saint was conscious of God’s presence in the depths of his own being. This very preoccupation with the presence of God gave birth to the spirituality which he passed on to his followers.

No great surprise, then, that the presence of God was invoked at the beginning of each class. Students were led to the recognition of God’s presence, to the awareness of His knowledge of their very thoughts, intentions, and actions. This remembrance of the presence of God is a tradition that has come down to our own day. It is one of the charisms of the Brothers in the Church to make the loving and saving presence of Jesus Christ a visible and effective reality in the world of education, in the world of the young. Designated prayer before each class is a way of doing that. As is the informed instruction and the gentle understanding that knows how to be there for the young — how to listen to them, to waste time creatively with them, to become compatriots on the journey with them.

Prayer is essentially a matter of being with God in a loving relationship. Being with God implies attention. Such attention to God’s presence is part of a Lasallian’s life; it enjoys a central and pivotal position in Lasallian spirituality. When young people recognize God’s presence in their classrooms through the brief invocation, “Let us remember that we are in the holy presence of God,” yet another birthing of John Baptist de La Salle’s spirituality is in process.