St Marcellin Champagnat

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St. Marcellin Joseph Benedict Champagnat was born on the 20^th March, 1789. He was born in Rozet in France.

St. Marcellin Champagnat found a dying 15 year old boy called Jean Baptiste Montagne who had never learned about the basics of the Christian faith. This was a major turning point in his life.

In1817, St. Marcellin bought a house and he turned it into a Marist School, which is a school that priests work at.

During St. Marcellin's life between 1817 and 1840, he helped educate children who could not afford to go to school.

Marist priests were the first Catholic missionaries in New Zealand. St. Marcellin wanted children to be educated so that they could understand the faith and experience the unconditional love of God.

We can follow him by living our Gospel Values just like St Marcellin did:

Inclusion – St. Marcellin included everybody and even if they did not have enough money to pay for their schooling. The priest would sell nails and other things to cover their living expenses so that children could go to school for free. We should work hard like St. Marcellin to ensure that no one misses out.
Respect – St. Marcellin respected all people and did not show any favour based on class or how much money people had. We must show the same respect for others.
Courage – St. Marcellin found studying to be come a priest difficult. However, with the support of his mum, much prayer and courage, he eventually passed his exams to become a priest. We should show the same commitment in courage in our school work.

St. Marcellin died on the 6^th June, 1840 in France aged 51.