MARCELLIN CHAMPAGNAT

EARLY YEARS

• He was born May 20,1789
• He was the youngest of 10
• He only had went to school one day because he saw a boy get hit by a teacher

BECOMING A PRIEST

• A visiting Priest came to Champagnat and told him to become a priest
• He was accepted into a minor seminary in Verrieres, France
• After studying with his brother in law, who thought he wasn't qualified to be a priest, he eventually went to a bigger seminarian in Lyons, France
• He was ordained a priest on July 22,1816

FORMING THE MARIST BROTHERS

• Marcellin had an devotion to Mary and came up with an idea
• He and a few of his friends at the Seminary made up a club with a Devotion to Mary
• They had a pray to her called the Memorare

THE MEMORARE IN THE SNOW

• Marcellin was visiting a young man who was dying
• After his visit he started to head back.
• Then he huge blizzard came out of nowhere and Marcellin and one of his friends were stuck in a blizzard.
• They prayed the Memorare in hopes Mary would save them.
• Then, they saw a light in the distance and it was a farmer checking on his cattle and Champagnat was saved.

THE MONTAGNE EXPERIENCE

• Marcellin was sent on a mission to go to a 16 year old named Jean Baptiste Montange and hear his confessions.
• Jean was dying and he told Marcellin his sins and Marcellin found out he knew a little about the Catholic Faith but it never flourished because he never went to School and learned about.
• This gave Marcellin and idea of opening the first Marist School

DEATH AND CANONIZATION

• Champagnat died on June 6, 1840.
• He died of cancer.
• He was canonized on April 18, 1999 by Pope John Paul II.
• His feast day is on June 6.

Untitled Slide

I cannot see a child without wanting to tell him how much God loves him.

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!