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Saint Marcellin Champagnat icon

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St. Marcellin Champagnat icon
© Cecilia Lawrence
May 21st, 2018
4.5 x 6 inches
Ink, watercolor, gold leaf


“Let there be among you just one heart and one mind.
Let it always be said of the Little Brothers of Mary
as it was of the early Christians: See how they love one another!”

~ St. Marcellin Champagnat

“I cannot see a child without wanting to let him know how much Jesus Christ has loved him and how much he should, in return, love the divine Savior.”
~ St. Marcellin Champagnat

“We aim at something better: we want to educate them, to instruct them in their duty, to teach them to practice it, to give them a Christian spirit and attitudes and to form them to religious habits and the virtues possessed by a good Christian and a good citizen.”
~ St. Marcellin Champagnat

I was commissioned to make an icon of St. Marcellin Champagnat, the founder of the Marist Brothers. I referenced the portrait of him for his face and I have depicted him holding a book (symbolizing his role as a teacher and educator) with the Marist symbol on the front, holding a rosary and an icon of the Virgin Mary with the child Jesus (symbolizing his special devotion to the Blessed Mother).

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:+: A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF THE SAINT :+:

Saint Marcellin Champagnat (May 20th 1789 – June 6th 1840 A.D.), full name: Marcellin Joseph Benedict Champagnat, was born on May 20th 1789 in the small hamlet of Marlhes, a few mile southeast of Saint-Étienne, France. His parents—Jean Baptist and Marie— were farmers and very devout Catholics, and raised their nine children with great diligence and care. His aunt, a religious nun who had been driven from the convent during the French Revolution, also helped to raise the children with great religious devotion and early on instilled in them a great love for the Blessed Virgin Mary. Marcellin’s father gave him an appreciation for hard work and manual labor and taught his son how to use his hands and the boy soon learned the basics of farming, carpentry, masonry, and other useful skills. He was also sent to school when he was old enough, and was impressed by his teacher and his methods for instructing the pupils.

When Marcellin was about fourteen, a passing priest stayed with the Champagnat family and asked Marcellin if he had ever thought of becoming a priest. Marcellin said he hadn’t, and the priest asked him if he wanted to go to the seminary to study for the priesthood. After some thought, the young boy accepted his invitation. He entered the Minor Seminary at Verrières-en-Forez in October of 1805 and began his formal studies. He quickly realized how far behind he was than the other boys, despite the fact that he was older than them. He had little natural aptitude for study, but he was hard-working, persevering and determined to do what he could to catch up with his fellow pupils, even by staying up late at night to review the next day’s lessons. After his first year at school, he was sent back home to take more time to think about pursuing his studies. Some tried to dissuade him from continuing, but with the help of his mother, his parish priest and the superior of the seminary, Marcellin was readmitted and was determined to work harder than ever.

After completing his first level of study, Marcellin was sent to the Major Seminary of St. Irenaeus in Lyons, France. It was during this time studying for the priesthood that Marcellin and some of his seminarian friends discussed the idea of founding a religious Order of priests dedicated to teaching the youth under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Marcellin himself was finally ordained on July 22nd 1816 at the age of twenty-seven. The next day, he and his friends went to the shrine of Notre-Dame de Fourvière in Lyons to dedicate themselves and their project under her protection. Marcellin was first sent to serve the people of La Valla as their parish priest. His sermons were fiery and drew crowds of people to the church. He took special care to catechize the village children as well as the adults. His many duties including helping the village’s poor, visiting the sick, and preaching to the simple in his clear, simple style. One day, Fr. Marcellin was called to the deathbed of a 17-year-old boy who had absolutely no religious instruction. This horrified Fr. Marcellin, and after speaking to the boy about God and Jesus Christ for two hours, the young man finally asked the priest to hear his confession. The boy died soon afterwards. Fr. Marcellin was deeply grieved after this encounter and was more determined than ever to begin forming an order dedicated to teaching the young.

In January of 1817, two young men named Jean-Marie Granjon and Jean-Baptiste Audras joined Fr. Marcellin as the first Brothers of the fledgling congregation. They bought a small cottage near the presbytery, and together they spent their time in prayer, work, and study. The Marist Brothers soon began to grow as other young men were inspired to join them. Fr. Marcellin had a teacher come and instruct them as how to best be teachers and educators themselves. Soon, the Brothers were being sent to other villages where they taught the poor how to read and write as well as taught them the catechism. In 1818, they opened the first Marist school in La Valla, and other schools quickly followed. The numbers of Brohers had grown beyond what the little cottage could handle, so Fr. Marcellin and the other Brothers began the ambitious project of building a large hermitage at St. Charmond that could accommodate 150 men. Many, including the local bishop, called him a crazy madman, but Fr. Marcellin persisted in his project. The building was finally finished in 1825, and Fr. Marcellin named it “Our Lady of the Hermitage” and wrote a Rule for his Brothers. He also endeavored to get civil recognition for his order from the French government in Paris, but was rebuffed twice, when he went in both 1836 and in 1838. In 1836, Fr. Marcellin sent three of his Brothers to Oceania on their first mission. In 1839, Brother Francois was elected as the Marist Brother’s first Superior General, and Fr. Marcellin’s health began to decline.

After a lengthy illness, Marcellin died of cancer at the age of 51, on June 6th 1840, as his fellow brothers were singing the evening hymn to the Virgin Mary, the Salve Regina. The Marist Brothers were finally approved in 1863 by Pope Pius IX. Fr. Marcellin was beatified by Pope Pius XII on May 29th 1955, and canonized on April 18th 1999 by Pope St. John Paul II.

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Did not our hearts burn within us while he opened to us the Scriptures? The burning desire for God in the disciples of Emmaus was vividly felt by Marcellin Champagnat, who was a priest captivated by the love of Jesus and Mary. Because of his unshakeable faith, he remained faithful to Christ despite difficulties, in the midst of a world sometimes lacking the sense of God. We too are called to draw strength from contemplation of the risen Christ by learning at the school of the Virgin Mary.

St Marcellin proclaimed the Gospel with a burning heart. He was sensitive to the spiritual and educational needs of his time, especially to religious ignorance and the situations of neglect experienced in a particular way by the young. His pastoral sense is an example for priests: called to proclaim the Good News, they must also be true teachers for young people who seek to give meaning to their lives, by accompanying each of them on their way and explaining the Scriptures to them. Fr Champagnat was also a model for parents and teachers, helping them to look with hope at young people, to love them with a total love which fosters their true human, moral and spiritual formation.

Marcellin Champagnat also invites us to be missionaries, to make Jesus Christ known and loved as the Marist Brothers did even in Asia and Oceania. With Mary as our guide and Mother, the Christian is a missionary and the servant of human beings. Let us ask the Lord to give us a heart that burns like that of Marcellin Champagnat, to recognize him and to be his witnesses.
- from the Canonization Homily of St. Marcellin Champagnat, by Pope St. John Paul II

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:rose: The Feast Marcellin Champagnat of is celebrated on June 6th. :rose:

St. Marcellin Champagnat is the patron saint of teachers, educators, and the Marist Brothers.

Holy Father,
you have revealed the commandment of the new law
through your Only Begotten Son,
and shown us how to put it into practice
by the inspiring example of Saint Marcellin;
grant us, we pray, the grace to persevere
in loving all our brothers and sisters as he taught,
and to lead our world to the knowledge of the truth of Jesus Christ,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.
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