Honoring 186 Years of the Xaverian Brothers' Mission

Today commemorates the 186^th anniversary of the founding of the Xaverian Brothers.  

 

Foundation Day, as it is known to the Brothers and for those who are heirs to their legacy, was that June day in 1839, when a forty-two year old shoemaker, Theodore James Ryken, began his institute of religious brothers.  Having received permission from the bishop of Bruges, Belgium, to start his Brotherhood in that city as “a band of Brothers who mutually help, encourage and edify one another, and who work together,” a very unlikely visionary beat all odds in bringing his dream to life. 

 

On June 15, he went to live in a rented house on Ezelstraat in Bruges, where it was five long days before the would-be founder would greet the arrival of the two companions who had promised to join him in his undertaking: a tailor and a weaver. These three artisans were called to be the foundation stones of an institute of religious educators with worldwide missionary aspirations. 

 

Malden Catholic and our other Xaverian Brothers Sponsored Schools and ministries draw their breath from this humble beginning. Let us praise and thank God for his blessings, and ask him to continue to bless our Brothers, Associates, and Partners in Mission, as well as those who are served by our Xaverian Brothers Sponsored Schools and other ministries.