Discerning the Charisms of Kolbe's House Patrons

Kolbe is proud of its vertical pastoral care programme. The school is divided into six Houses. Each House is made up of students from Year 7 to Year 12 and staff. Each House is named after a saint (or one-day-to-be saint). It has always been my dream that each House would contribute something significant to the life of the school that was drawn from the charisms of the House patrons.
What follows are some readings and websites to visit that hopefully will help to identify the charisms of each House patron.

Chisholm

The following link takes you to a short biography of Caroline Chisholm. The writer identifies Caroline Chisholm's charisms. The article is followed by a string of messages from people who have visited the site. Hopefully, you will gain some insights into this amazing woman's gifts and how people benefited from her generosity and commitment.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/northamptonshire/asop/people/caroline_chisholm.shtml


Loyola
The following website gives some insights into the charisms of St Ignatius and how his followers have used the charisms of the Order he founded to engage in Catholic education.


http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/st-ignatius-of-loyola-100.php






MacKillop
The Sisters of St Joseph (the "Brown Joeys") provide us with some understanding of the charisms of their foundress, St Mary of the Cross. She is Australia's first canonised saint and her canonisation was celebrated in Rome and around the world on Sunday, 17 October, 2010.


www.faithdoingjustice.com.au/docs/Editorial1010.pdf



Rice
Blessed Edmund Rice is the founder of the Congregation of Christian Brothers. This short history of his life gives us some clues about the gifts with which he was blessed and which he used to help the poor in and around Waterford.
http://www.ercrs.com.au/dloads/cms/A%20short%20biography%20of%20Blessed%20Edmund%20Rice.pdf


Teresa
Blessed Mother Teresa lived an amazing life. This brief biography does not do justice to its richness, but it does help us to understand a little about her giftedness and her faith in God strengthened her when there seemed little hope for those whom she served.

http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintOfDay/default.asp?id=1907


Xavier
St Francis Xavier was a good friend of St Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). He joined Ignatius in his plan to establish a group of men who would dedicate their lives to bringing God's message to the world. To gain an insight into the charism of St Francis Xavier, visit the following website:

http://www.biographybase.com/biography/xavier_francis.html