Saint Who?
Saints Who Established Schools
Blessed Basil Moreau
Priest and founder († 1873)Feast: January 20
“Since we form with him but one body and draw life from the same Spirit, he urges us to remain united among ourselves in him.” Basil Moreau was born at the close of the French Revolution. Teachers were scarce, but Basil received a good education thanks to the efforts of his pastor, and became a priest of the Society of Saint Sulpice (Sulpicians) when he was twenty-two.
Eager to revivify the faith in France, Moreau was an effective local missionary. He traveled from town to town preaching and offering the sacraments. He established a group of priests to do the same work, and oversaw another community of men dedicated to renewing schools. In 1837, these two groups united to become the Congregation of Holy Cross. It was Father Moreau who dispatched a priest and brothers to Indiana, where they founded Notre Dame University.
Moreau also established a community for women. And it is said he was a pioneer in collaborating with the laity. Writing about education, Father Moreau said, “Education is the art of helping young people to completeness; for the Christian, this means education is helping a young person to be more like Christ, the model of all Christians.” As his congregation grew in influence, others sought control, and Father Moreau was driven out. He lived with relatives and continued to preach missions until his death in 1873.
Loving Father, through the intercession of Blessed Basil Moreau, grant a renewal of Catholic education through the unified efforts of priests, religious, and laity.
