FEATURES OF LAY MARIST LIFE

Extended Bureau of the Laity Features of lay Marist life
The Marist Brothers, and with them Marcellin
Champagnat, entered my life at nine or
ten years of age when I went to the Saturday
cinema at my cousins’ school: The Immaculate
Conception at Buenos Aires. They captivated my
heart with something so simple and Marist: they
knew who I was and they knew my name, while
the teacher at the public school that I attended
– the best in the city – had to look at the list of
students to name them… and they saw me once
a week! In my childhood mind this was a sign of
love that years later would be transformed into a
true pedagogy: “To teach the children, you must
first love them and all equally”. (Argentina)
What impressed me the most in Marcellin’s
life was his perseverance and his way of
undertaking things! In times of difficulty and religious
repression, he came to realize his dream
of starting his congregation, finding strength in
his trust in Mary, Our Good Mother. Building the
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Hermitage, splitting rocks to build the house is
impressive. He shows strength of will that no
obstacle could break. There’s no better example
to follow. (Brazil)
When a problem seems intractable or the negative
impact of societal and family issues on
school grows ever greater, I recall that Marcellin
faced many obstacles in his time and never lost
hope. A Marist can never despair. (Ireland)
About Marcellin I want to highlight:
• The will to make a dream a reality.
• The fact of being aware of his own limits,
recognising that we are capable of exceeding
them. (Brazil)
As a teacher my aim is to imitate Marcellin´s
deep respect for the pupils and his being
gentle on the children, his optimism towards their
positive development and his faith in the good in
every child. His imitation of Christ and his steady
commitment for the most neglected and poorest
impressed me very much. (Germany)
was enthralled by the example of Marcellin’s
I life and his attitude to problems. I liked the
way he simply rolled up his sleeves and found
practical solutions to problems, since this reflected
an attitude which I shared. Above all I
understood his deep respect and love for youngsters
who were disadvantaged and needed help.
(United Kingdom)
Marcellin also told the Brothers to spend
as much time as possible with the young
people. I spent a lot of time in the school; many
were the chats in the patios, visits to the chapel,
morning prayers, time spent in prayer groups and
Christian life, time spent in accompanying me
in my personal project of life from the tenets of
faith, the coherence of LIFE (thus the capital letters.).
All these experiences penetrated deep into
my heart. (Spain)
For Marcellin, each person is the image of God,
and therefore of great value and destined
to goodness. Besides, he had been profoundly
touched by this young person who was going to
die without knowing God. That was a profound
value of Champagnat that challenged me and that
gave me the desire to nourish it daily. (Canada)