Solomon Leclercq

Solomon Leclercq, born Guillaume-Nicolas-Louis Leclercq on November 15, 1745, in Boulogne-sur-Mer, was a French religious brother of the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools (De La Salle Brothers). He is recognized for his martyrdom during the French Revolution and is the first member of his institute to be beatified and later canonized.

Life and Ministry

Leclercq was born into a family of merchants and attended a school run by the Brothers of the Christian Schools. After working in the family business, he entered the novitiate of the De La Salle Brothers in Rouen on March 25, 1767. He took his vows in 1769 and was sent to teach at Maréville in September 1770. Described as quiet, gentle, and somewhat shy, but also engaged and firm, Leclercq made his final profession in 1772. He served as director of novices at Maréville in 1773, procurator in 1777, and later taught mathematics at the scholasticate in Melun. In 1787, he became secretary to the Superior General of the Congregation.

During the French Revolution, the De La Salle Institute was declared illegal in 1790 due to members refusing to take an oath of allegiance to the new government following the toppling of King Louis XVI. In 1791, the Brothers were forced to abandon their schools and retire to civilian life. Brother Solomon remained at their property in Paris, dressed in ordinary clothes. He also refused to take the oath and, despite being under surveillance, wrote letters to his relatives. Around 1791, he and a priest named Clorivièm planned to establish a new religious congregation, which never materialized.

Martyrdom and Veneration

Leclercq was arrested on August 15, 1792, and imprisoned with other religious at a Carmelite convent in Paris. Revolutionaries killed him and his companions on September 2, 1792, in the convent garden. He was the first Brother of the Christian Schools to be martyred.

The process for his canonization began in Paris in 1901. He was declared a Servant of God on January 26, 1916, by Pope Benedict XV. His beatification was formally approved by Pope Pius XI on October 1, 1926, and he was beatified with 190 companions on October 17, 1926.

Following his beatification, Solomon Leclercq's cause was treated as a distinct one. A miracle attributed to his intercession was investigated in Venezuela and approved by medical consultants and theologians in Rome in 2016. Pope Francis approved the miracle on May 9, 2016, decreeing that Solomon Leclercq would be canonized. His canonization was celebrated by Pope Francis in Saint Peter's Square on October 16, 2016.

Legacy

Solomon Leclercq's steadfastness in his faith and his refusal to compromise his religious vows during a period of intense political and religious persecution in France have made him a significant figure of martyrdom for the De La Salle Brothers. His canonization in 2016 affirmed his status as a saint within the Catholic Church.

His feast day is September 2.