The Lasalle Star

The District Council has chosen to initiate a new award, the Lasalle Star, to be awarded to those who have shown exceptional support to the Brothers and the wider District.

The five-pointed star was chosen as it has always been an important symbol for the Brothers. From our earliest days, it has featured in the Institute insignia, such as the Superior’s seal. It also features in our own District logo, in the badges of our schools, and on our documents.  It symbolises the spirit of our Institute, as identified by our Founder, that is, the ‘Spirit of Faith’ (Med 139). It has its origins in the star of Bethlehem, which led the Magi to step out in faith towards that star and to find the newborn Jesus.

Likewise, each of us is on the journey of life, walking along ‘the path marked out by God’ (to quote De La Salle from his 75th meditation), and like the Magi, we do not journey alone, we journey ‘together and by association’ towards Jesus, who described himself as “the Way the Truth and the Life”. (John 14:6)

For us therefore the star is a sign of faith; the words that appear in Latin above our Institute’s Seal - Signum Fidei.  It represents the faith that has led countless Brothers and members of the Lasallian Family to carry out the work of God in our District and in many parts of the world.  A faith that reminds us that we see the face of Christ in the people to whom He has asked us to serve.

In recent years, the five points of the star have also become a reminder of the five core principles of a Lasallian school. Those core principles being,

1.        Faith in the Presence of God

2.       Concern for the Poor and Social Justice

3.       Respect for all persons

4.       Quality Education

5.       Inclusive Community

Therefore, since the Star symbolises so much of our way of life, it is a fitting symbol to present to those who have been a great support to us Brothers and to the wider Lasallian Family.

Br Michael Curran

July 2022