On the Life of Saint Jean Baptist de la Salle

On the Life of Saint Jean Baptist de la Salle

Saint Jean Baptist de la Salle was an innovator and a risk taker. He exhibited this trait while introducing a new educational approach opening access to education for all children during the time where education was private and individual. He risked by going against the standard practice to provide the youth and children wider access to education. Such high appetite for risk had brought to Jean de la Salle many serious troubles with the patrons of the old system whose influence and place in the society is threatened by the innovation introduced in the sphere of education. De la Salle was falsely accused of wrongdoing and has to leave the city and spare his community of further troubles.

Saint de la Salle was also Servant-Leader. He was motivated by service. He saw the need to give children access to quality education and consequently provide them with many opportunities and wider possibilities in life in the future that are absent in the standard practice. He pursued this life-goal not for any monetary and personal gain but to be of service.

Furthermore, Saint de la Salle was a mentor. He allowed others to find satisfaction and self-fulfillment in what they do. He did not insist on what he know and think is best but engaged, guided, and supported the members of the community he established for the education of the youth.

Above all, and this is what underlies all the rest, he was zealous and truly dedicated to what he found and embraced as his life mission. Spiritual writers and theologians will call it his deep faith, a personal attachment to God. Where will a person get the strength to sustain him during the many struggles and pursuit of his mission to provide education for the youth? Not money, not fame, not power; but simply because of his deep faith in God.

I am a missionary priest working since 2008 in Congo.  I am not alone nor the first in this chosen life-mission. I believe, our lives are not different from Saint Jean de la Salle. We all work not for any material or personal gain, we all work because of our faith in God. Faith drives us to be servant leaders, innovators, risk takers and mentors of others. Here lies the greater challenge: how to mirror our faith in the different roles we assume.

The Church values people and the planet but not as much the profit or say the material resources entrusted to its care as if afraid that doing so will ruin the importance it gives to people and the planet. Oftentimes, the result is a disaster for people whose source of living is taken away. I have seen this happen in Congo and in our country. Failures in management and decision-making in concerned institutions resulted to bankruptcy or stop of operation and eventually loss of job for many. Responsibility and accountability to as many stakeholders are not exclusive obligations of the business sector. Rather, they are the shared responsibility of all, namely, the private sector, the church and the government. Hence, the Church cannot not only call the attention of others to the need for ethical responsibility but must lead in concretizing it in its financial and economic activities.

This is where our role as priest-administrator comes. While strongly advocating the great values of people and the planet, we also maintain a level of efficiency managing the material resources given to our care. In so doing, we continue to pursue giving value to our people and our planet. Like the rest, management for the Church pursues the triple bottom line objectives.