The feast of St John Baptist de La Salle is a special day for Lasallians worldwide. Over 1,000 educational institutions are run by the Brothers of the Christian Schools in some 80 countries globally.

Locally, the Lasallian Brothers (Frères) and their lay associates run three schools – De La Salle College, in Vittoriosa, Stella Maris College, in Gżira and St Benild’s School, in Sliema.

The De La Salle College is the largest of the three. It was the first De La Salle school to open in Malta, originally at Strada Buongiorno, Cospicua, in 1903. As the years went by, a more spacious location was found in Vittoriosa on a plot of land owned by Carmelo Pace in the area known as Tal-Ħawli.

The entrance to De La Salle College.

Thanks to a generous benefactor, Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici, the De La Salle College we know today welcomed its first 370 students in January 1939. The following 83 years, and up to the present day, have seen constant additions and improvements to the De La Salle precincts.

St De La Salle, a French priest and educational reformer, founded his first schools for poor boys in France over 300 years ago.

He was born in Reims, France, on April 30, 1651 and died on April 7 (a Good Friday), 1719, in Rouen shortly before his 68th birthday. He was declared a saint of the Catholic Church in 1900,and,50 years later, patron saint of all persons working in the field of education.

The global Lasallian Family consists of the Brothers themselves (about 4,000), their lay partners, including teachers and other staff (90,000), students (over a million) and parents. This community comme­mo­rates the holy founder every year on May 15, an occasion commonly known as Founder’s Day.

Archbishop Charles Scicluna kissing a portrait of St John Baptist De La Salle as Bro. Martin Borg (centre) and Bro. David Mizzi, former directors of De La Salle College and Stella Maris College respectively, look on after the tercentenary Mass on May 15, 2019.

The feast can be celebrated a day before or after if May 15 falls on a weekend. A thanksgiving Mass is normally celebrated for Lasallians worldwide at the same time. The COVID pandemic has, unfortunately, scaled festivities down, although St De La Salle is most definitely not being forgotten.

Luckily, the novel coronavirus was still unheard of on the occasion of the tercentenary year of the saint’s death in April 2019. A year of varied activities and celebrations could take place without hindrance.

The 300th anniversary logo carried the words ‘One Heart-One Commitment-One Life’ . Indeed, the founder’s principle was to educate body and soul for life.

The college's gymnasium, which was built in the 1970s.

A special celebratory mass for more than 2,000 local Lasallians was held in the De La Salle College gymnasium and was led by Archbishop Charles Scicluna, assisted by some 15 priests, all former Lasallian students.

On this year’s anniversary, it’s fitting to highlight a short prayer closely associated with the founder and which is still recited regularly after 300 years: “I will continue, O my God, to do all my actions for the love of you. St John Baptist De La Salle, pray for us. Live Jesus in our hearts… Forever.”

Leander Thomas is a photographer and school librarian at De La Salle College.