. His
grandfather settled at Rheims, of which he became an honoured citizen,
but was apparently in no way himself remarkable. His second son, Louis,
was the father of a child, who received the name of Jean Baptiste on the
same day as that upon which he was born.

This child, whose career we purpose briefly to follow as that of the
founder of the Christian Brothers, exhibited early signs of a devotional
spirit; he learned to recite the Breviary from his grandfather, and
continued to do so even before being bound to the practice by his
ordination vows; and he soon made it clear to himself and to others that
his vocation was that of the priestly office. His conduct as a student
in the University of Rheims, which he entered at eight years old, was
marked by diligence in study and gentle docility.

Before he had reached the age of sixteen he was made a canon of the
cathedral; such were the strange ecclesiastical possibilities of those
times. An aged relative resigned in his favour, and died the following
year. The preferment, however, did not spoil him; he looked upon it as a
call to duty. He was diligent in attendance upon the offices of the
Church, diligent in private prayer, diligent in study--in every way a
remarkable boy-canon!

In October 1670 he entered the seminary of St. Sulpice in Paris, where,
amongst other fellow-students, was Fenelon, subsequently the great
Archbishop of Cambrai. Little is recorded of his seminary life, except
that it was gentle, modest, blameless. In 1672 he lost his father, and
in the same year returned to Rheims to take charge of his younger
brothers and sisters. The responsible position in which he was thus
placed seems to have shaken for a time his persuasion that he had a true
vocation for the priesthood; but after consultation with a friend who
knew him well, his doubts vanished, and on the eve of Trinity Sunday in
this same year he was admitted to the subdiaconate.

Then follow six years of quiet home work and retirement. During this
time he attended the theological course of the University, provided for
the education of his brothers and sisters, and gave himself very
earnestly to prayer and good works. In the year 1678, on Easter Eve, he
was ordained Priest.

During all this time De la Salle's attention does not seem to have been
turned to that which ultimately became the great work of his life. As
not unfrequently happens, the real bent was given to his energies by
what might be