MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

1997 Regular Session

To: Rules

By: Representatives Chaney, Cameron, Flaggs, Johnson, Middleton

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE BROTHERS OF THE SACRED HEART FOR THEIR DEDICATED SERVICE AT ST. ALOYSIUS HIGH SCHOOL IN VICKSBURG. 

WHEREAS, the Institute of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, a Catholic order of religious brothers, was founded in Lyons, France, in 1821, by Father Andre' Coindre, a diocesan missionary priest; and

WHEREAS, Father Andre', moved by the plight of abandoned children seen everywhere on the streets of France, established the brothers along with another religious community to provide homes and education for the city children and schools in the rural and village areas of the country; and

WHEREAS, after the untimely death of Father Andre' in 1826, the brotherhood suffered many trials and difficulties as a fledgling religious community on the verge of extinction for approximately fourteen years; and

WHEREAS, beginning in 1841, Brother Xavier, the new leader of the Institute who had been the first recruit of the founder, tirelessly worked to save the order at all costs and ultimately, because of his efforts, Brother Xavier honorably came to be known as "the Savior of the Institute"; and

WHEREAS, in 1847, five of the brothers bravely travelled to Mobile, Alabama, to work at the order's first foreign mission in America; and

WHEREAS, the order flourished in America, and on January 12, 1997, the New Orleans Province of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart celebrated the Sesquicentennial Anniversary of their arrival in the United States; and

WHEREAS, from 1879 to 1968, the brothers faithfully served at St. Aloysius High School in Vicksburg, where their dedication and outstanding example impacted a great number of young men's lives; and

WHEREAS, from its humble beginnings in the small town of Lyons, France, in 1821, to the 34 countries today blessed with the brothers' educational and missionary services, the Brothers of the Sacred Heart have touched the hearts and helped to shape the minds and lives of countless young men and women throughout the world:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE SENATE CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend the Institute of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart for their years of service at St. Aloysius High School in Vicksburg and congratulate the order on its recent celebration of the Sesquicentennial Anniversary of their arrival in the United States.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to the New Orleans Province of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, St. Aloysius High School and the Capitol Press Corps.