BUS560M: Lasallian Business Leadership, Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

The Lasallian Patron: In a Nutshell

Reflection on the Life of St. John Baptist de La Salle

A week ago, my classes in the Master of

Business Administration (MBA) at De La
Salle University (DLSU) commenced.
Aside from the fact that DLSU is my
dream university, I chose to take up my
MBA here mainly because it is one of the
top universities in the country known for
its expertise in business studies. And
with all honesty, I am not familiar with the university’s mission, vision, core values, and all
the more its patron saint – St. John Baptist de La Salle knew as Fr. La Salle.

Watching the film, “Who Are My Own?” gave me a better

understanding of the life of Fr. La Salle and somehow
unleashed the story behind DLSU’s core values – Faith. Zeal.
Communion in Mission – things we discussed at the first
meeting of BUS560M (Lasallian Business Leader, Ethics, and
Corporate Social Responsibility).

It can be derived from the film that Fr. La Salle was

characterized as:
RISK TAKER
Having been born in a wealthy family, Fr. La Salle
was blessed to live with a silver spoon in his mouth
and easy access to food, shelter, and education –
some basic needs which most of the people in
France lacked. But who would ever think that
someone like him would be willing to give up all the
privileges, wealthy possessions, and comfortable
life? And for what reason? To fulfill his mission of
educating the poor for the greater good.

__________________________________
“Real Wealth is the ability to think and feel, not
being possessed by possessions, to give, to
receive, to reason, to share.”
- St. John Baptist de La Salle
________________________________________

Jasmine Joyce S. Bacurin 1

 BUS560M: Lasallian Business Leadership, Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

INNOVATOR
In a community with a complacent educational system that
only caters the privileged sector, Fr. La Salle had become a
lead reformer which revolutionized the educational system in
France. This initiative soon reached many countries across
the globe. He introduced new practices providing free
education to the poor and needy, adapting a classroom-type
of teaching instead of one-on-one tutoring, pioneering training
for school teachers, and establishing more schools for the
expansion of new education engagement.
________________________________________________

“You can do more with the grace of God than you think.”
- St. John Baptist de La Salle
________________________________________________

SERVANT LEADER
When Fr. La Salle led his ‘Brothers’ in their
vision of creating a society with an educational
opportunity for the poor, he showed selfless
leadership taking into account their vision
without compromising the sentiments of
his ‘Brothers’. He simply led by example when
he renounced his canonry; when he risked all
his wealthy possessions to start-up a school;
when he showed empathy and understood the
outcry of his ‘Brothers’ as he continues to serve
the poor even to the point that there’s already
nothing being left for them; and when he
instilled in the Brotherhood the commitment to
serve ‘together and by association’ with
obedience and the grace of the Lord.
____________________________________
“Inspire and lead others by encouraging
them.” - St. John Baptist de La Salle
____________________________________

Jasmine Joyce S. Bacurin 2

 BUS560M: Lasallian Business Leadership, Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

MENTOR
With his vision to educate the poor, Fr. La Salle initiated
a ripple effect of mentorship. He transformed a group of
men who were first deemed not fit into a group of fined
educators and spiritual men. This first step soon created
ripples and as a result, they were able to establish
schools and reach hundreds of children. He opened the
eyes and minds of both the teachers and the students as
he taught the value of education and its correlation with
the salvation of the needy through learning.
____________________________________________
“Preach by example and practice before the eyes of the
young what you wish them to accept." - St. John Baptist
de La Salle
____________________________________________

MY TAKEAWAYS:
Risk Taker. Innovator. Servant Leader. Mentor.
These are the four traits associated with the life of St. John Baptist de La Salle but I think
these all rooted from his core belief, the one he held so dearly from beginning to the end,
his FAITH in God.

It struck me when Fr. La Salle told Andrei:

“I can rely on someone who never fails me”.

These were the times he lacked resources

and his Brothers are starting to lose hope in
him. I was suddenly reminded of the verse
Deuteronomy 31:6 which says “Be strong
and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified
because of them, for the Lord your God goes
with you; He will never leave you nor forsake
you.”

That very moment I realized how strong Fr. La

Salle’s faith is. After all the rejections,
persecutions, and betrayals thrown at him by
his own family, by the society and even by
some of his Brothers, Fr. La Salle remains
faithful to his God and his mission.
Jasmine Joyce S. Bacurin 3
 BUS560M: Lasallian Business Leadership, Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

They say, “Faith without action is DEAD” and

truly Fr. La Salle went on an extra-mile to
display his faith with his ZEAL to educate for
the integral salvation of the poor, needy, and
excluded. He then went another mile by
leading an association bounded by
its COMMUNION IN MISSION.

Overall, Fr. La Salle would not have the

courage and strength to be a risk-taker,
innovator, servant leader, and mentor if not
with his FAITH, ZEAL, and COMMUNION IN
MISSION.

How Will I Model My Life Based on St. La Salle’s Examples?

JAS as a Risk Taker

Unlike St. La Salle, who found his
purpose in life through the vision of
educating the poor, I, on the other hand,
a young accountant by profession who
works in a government bank still wonders
on my purpose. Being puzzled by this
notion, I don’t have many material
possessions to risk nor does my nature
of risk appetite as high as those of St. La
Salle. I always seek room for
improvement but I also make sure a certain level of complacency is still being observed.
Maybe the life of St. La Salle is a sign for me to be opened to more risks, allow myself to
make mistakes, and grow. And when the right time comes for me to understand my
purpose, I will be more than ready to embrace it against all odds - like St. La Salle.

Jasmine Joyce S. Bacurin 4

 BUS560M: Lasallian Business Leadership, Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

JAS as an Innovator
Unlike St. La Salle, who revolutionized the entire
education system and of which influence remained
in today’s practice, I, on the other hand, couldn’t do
much as of this time as I’ve only been working for 3
years. But I believe all significant innovations began
from small initiatives. In my current role, I handle
the oversight of our Bank’s subsidiaries. Before
transferring to a government bank, I worked as a
financial analyst in a multinational US-based bank.
With this transition, I was able to apply some of my
technical knowledge I learned in private practice to
my current role for me to perform my functions
efficiently and effectively. Presently, we all know that we live in a technology-dependent
world and it’s very important for each of us to take the first step in improving ourselves
(career or personal-wise) and hope that it would also create impact to others and the
society as well - like St. La Salle.

JAS as a Servant Leader

Unlike St. La Salle, who led an
association of brothers in fulfilling their
common vision of educating the poor,
I, on the other hand, have no one to
lead as I’m not yet in a supervisory role.
But I can firmly conclude that it left me
with something I could look forward to
when an opportunity for me to lead
comes. Right now, I can apply to
myself first the concept of servant
leadership. That being a servant leader
means you acknowledge the fact that everyone shared a common vision; you recognize
that you are merely an instrument to achieve this vision; you take into account every
sentiment of everyone; and you commit to building a stronger relationship and deeper
foundation within each other. In other words, you are supposed to be a selfless leader -
like St. La Salle.

Jasmine Joyce S. Bacurin 5

 BUS560M: Lasallian Business Leadership, Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

JAS as a Mentor
Unlike St. La Salle, who dedicated his life to
teaching the value of education and
salvation to the teachers and the students,
I, on the other hand, only teach myself. I am
the type of person who’s willing to share my
knowledge with others only if an opportunity
to share comes or if someone would
explicitly ask me. Since I’m a young
professional, most of the time I am the one
who needs to be taught on. I realize that I
shouldn’t be passively waiting for me to
create an impact. In my little way, I could affect the lives of those younger than me by
sharing my learnings or experiences. You will never know the extent of what you can do
unless you start and try doing it - like St. La Salle.
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To sum-up, it can be inferred that my present life is way far different from St. La Salle’s
life. I am uncertain of my purpose. I am not as firm nor as confident as him. I have miles
to go before I live the same path he lived.
BUT - I can conclude that after knowing him, he reminded me to keep my FAITH alive
and burning. He inspired me to be better, to be a blessing to others, and to be a channel
of God’s grace for His glory.
We shouldn’t worry about our shortcomings because God does not call the qualified but
He qualifies the called. I declare that He is my great provider, Lord, and personal savior!

This was also posted on my Blog Site:

https://bacurinjjs.wixsite.com/jaswonders/post/who-are-my-own-the-lasallian-patron-in-a-nutshell

Jasmine Joyce S. Bacurin 6