Marcellin Champagnat

John Baptiste Marcellin Champagnat was born the ninth of ten children in 1789 near St. Etienne (Loire), France. He was the founder of the Marist Brothers, a religious order of men in the Catholic Church dedicated to education.

Related Topics:
1789 - St. Etienne - Marist Brothers - Religious order - Catholic Church

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Champagnat was ordained priest in 1816, and was part of a group led by Jean Claude Colin who founded the Society of Mary also called the Marist Fathers and Brothers, a religious order. Champagnat?s first posting was as curate to the parish of Lavalla-en-Gier.

Related Topics:
1816 - Society of Mary - Curate

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The region of Marlhes in which Champagnat lived and worked had been badly affected by the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars and the local community was poor and uneducated. Champagnat was horrified to attend the death of a seventeen year old boy who looked more like a scrawny child of twelve who was totally ignorant of the basic beliefs of the Catholic faith. This episode moved him to encourage two young men ( Jean-Marie Granjon and Jean-Baptiste Audras) to join him in forming the nucleus of the Marist Brothers order. Champagnat and the Marist Brothers established a network of village schools.

Related Topics:
Marlhes - French Revolution - Napoleonic Wars

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Champagnat died on 6 June 1840 aged 51 at Our Lady of the Hermitage in the Gier River valley about 30 kilometres from where he commenced his work. By that time there were 48 schools in France and Oceania (South Pacific), and in 1856 there were 300 houses and more than 1500 Brothers. The Marist Brothers Institute was not formally approved until 1863 by Pope Pius IX

Related Topics:
1840 - 1863

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The educational philosophy of Champagnat was simple: to teach the children one must love them, and secular subjects should be well taught as a means of attracting children to the schools where they would learn the basic elements of their faith - God is at the centre of life and the Virgin Mary is a sure means of attracting people to God.

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Marcellin Champagnat was beatified by Pope Pius XII on 29 May 1955 and canonised by Pope John Paul II on April 18 1999. His feast day is observed in the Roman Cathoilic Church on 6 June. At their most numerous the Marist Brothers numbered about 10,000. In 2005 there were around 5,000 brothers.

Related Topics:
Beatified - Pope Pius XII - Canonised - Pope John Paul II - 6 June

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