#LasallianLife
Brother Gabe Fiumano, FSC ‘47 - God Loves YOU
May 17, 2024
“As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love… I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. . . It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain… This I command you: love one another.” (John 15)
This gospel was providentially proclaimed on Tuesday, the morning after God called Brother Gabriel Fiumano back to His loving care. A Syracuse native and graduate of the CBA class of 1947, Brother Gabe lived his vocational call to the Brothers of the Christian Schools for 75 years - three quarters of a century. Brother Gabe was a Lasallian educator in the truest sense, serving among us at CBA Syracuse in a variety of roles from 1983 until 2021 - a commitment of 38 years of ministry.
There is a powerful, transformative, and pervasive message in a Lasallian school: God loves you. Brother Gabe proclaimed this message with joy. In his classroom, students were reminded to write at the top of their papers, “God loves me.” In the nurse’s office, he warmly shared God’s healing love with each student he encountered, through his care for both physical and spiritual ailments. He conveyed God’s joyful love to parents, grandparents, alumni, and friends whether helping them choose CBA spirit wear or cooking and serving pizza fritte at the stadium. As he served among us, Brother Gabe shared countless stories about his life and ministry, rendered with great zeal and a beautiful wide smile.
So much love and joy emanated from this long-lived Christian Brother - evidence of the living presence of Jesus in Brother Gabe’s heart. He loved to dance and sing, proclaiming, “I do not want to fly on Eagles Wings. I want to dance an Irish jig.”
As we celebrate his life, let us rejoice in God’s greatest lesson that Brother Gabe personified - God loves you. May we keep this lesson of love alive in our hearts and cherish Brother Gabe’s memory by sharing it with all who we encounter in our daily lives. May our hearts dance with joy in his memory, guided by the words of this week’s Gospel: “Love one another.”
Eternal rest grant unto Brother Gabe, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
Prayerfully and most gratefully,
Mr. Matthew Keough
President, Christian Brothers Academy
