Throughout the year, we celebrate the wide array of individuals, groups, and cultures at La Salle by calling to mind various holidays, observances, and commemorative days that provide our campus with an opportunity to learn and to become involved as they desire. Below please find links to learn more about the recognitions taking place across the globe and throughout the country:
Observing Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday marks the start of Lent, a 40-day season of prayer, feasting, and almsgiving. Lent commemorates the 40 days Jesus Christ spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan. It is a period of preparation to celebrate Jesus’ Resurrection at Easter. In the Catholic tradition during Lent, Catholics seek the Lord in prayer by reading Sacred Scripture, serving by giving alms, and practicing self-control through fasting. Catholics are called to abstain from certain luxuries during Lent and have a true inner conversation of heart as they seek to follow Christ’s will more faithfully. Lent is practiced by many Christian groups, such as Roman Catholic, Eastern orthodox, Episcopalians, Presbyterians, Methodists, Anglicans, and Lutherans.
Feast of the Blessed Brother James Miller, F.S.C.
In the afternoon of Feb. 13, 1982, Christian Brother James (Santiago) Miller, F.S.C., was shot and killed by three men in Huehuetenango, Guatemala. Brother James was a missionary serving indigenous youth. Attempts to identify the assassins were unsuccessful. On Dec. 7, 2019, Brother Miller became the first De La Salle Christian Brother from the U.S. to be beatified by the Catholic Church. Beatification is the second of three stages in the process of proclaiming a person a saint. For the beatification, a miracle, attributed to the person’s intercession, is necessary. With beatification the candidate receives the titled of Blessed.
Celebrating Lunar New Year
The Lunar New Year is a celebration that marks the beginning of the new lunar cycle. This year the celebration of the Lunar New Year (also known as the Spring Festival) begins on Feb. 10 and lasts several days. 2024 is the year of the Dragon as it is celebrated in China, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam. The festivities include colorful parades, fireworks, family gatherings and the exchanging of red envelopes (with money inside as a symbol of good fortune). For some, the 15th day marks the first full moon of the year in which lanterns are hung as a symbol of letting go of their past selves to bring in a new one.
Honoring the feast day of San Miguel Febres Cordero
On Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, the Lasallian family celebrates the feast day of San Miguel Febres Cordero. Brother Miguel was born in Ecuador on November 7, 1854, and joined the Brothers of the Christian Schools on March 24, 1868. Brother Miguel was a gifted teacher from the start and a diligent student. When he was not quite twenty years old, he published the first of his many books, a Spanish grammar book that soon became a standard text. In time his research and publications in the field of literature and linguistics put him in touch with scholars all over the world and he was granted membership in the National Academies of Ecuador, France, and Spain. Despite high academic honors, teaching remained his first priority, especially his classes in religion and for the young men he prepared for first communion. His students admired his simplicity, his directness, his concern for them, and the intensity of his devotion to the Sacred Heart and the Virgin Mary. Brother Miguel died on February 9, 1910. At La Salle University, the Miguel Townhouses are named after Brother Miguel Febres Cordero.