St Stan Illustrated Story

41 P odoliniec was by no means strange to him, for he had been a stu- dent there at the Piarist College. He had then had ample oppor- tunity to observe and admire the life and zeal of these priests, their love of poverty, their piety, and their unselfish dedication to the education and training of youth – particularly penniless youth. Even though his stay with them had been but a short one, he himself had experienced the salu- tary effects of the educational method employed in the Piarist “Pious Schools.” Indeed, the Piarist way of life must have had a powerful attraction for John if, after four years at Jesuit Colleges, he returned to Podolin- iec to enter the Community of the Piarist Fathers. On July 2, 1654, he was received into the novitiate, vested with the habit of the Order, and given his new name: Stanislaus of Jesus and Mary.