Knights of Columbus  

                                            Council 7304                Brighton, Michigan 

The Knights of Columbus is an international Catholic lay society, best described as a Catholic family fraternal service organization. Begun over a century ago as a men's fraternal benefit society, it has evolved into a service organization with a strong family orientation. The Knights of Columbus is present in the United States, Canada, the Philippines, Mexico, and several other countries. Its many programs and activities benefit members and their families, while aiding the Catholic Church and the community at large.

On October 2, 1881, Father Michael J. McGivney, 29-year-old assistant pastor at St. Mary's Church in New Haven, Conn., brought together a group of laymen with whom he discussed his dream for a Catholic fraternal benefit society. It not only would assist widows and orphans of deceased members through its life insurance program, but also would boost members' sense of pride in their Catholic religion, then frequently challenged in the anti-Catholic climate of 19th-century America. Father McGivney and his associates met several more times over the next several months to continue planning, and the new organization -- the Knights of Columbus -- was formally launched in early February, 1882. After 113 years the Knights of Columbus numbers over 1.5 million members whose concern for others has produced an outpouring of personal service and financial assistance to religious and community programs where the Order's 10,000 units are present. In 1994 Knights contributed more than $100 million and gave well over 48 million hours in volunteer service to good causes of all kinds. (Both figures were new record highs for the K of C, and the total charitable giving marked the first time that contributions had gone over the $100 million mark.) The 10-year cumulative totals are $867,912,749 in contributions and 339,579,891 hours of volunteer service.

 Why the name?

The founders chose Christopher Columbus as patron of the new organization to emphasize Catholic contributions to the exploration and evangelization of the Americas. Calling the members 'Knights' signified a commitment to high ideals of religious devotion and service to others.

About 1.2 million of the more than 1.5 million Knights of Columbus are the United States, with the rest in Canada, the Philippines, Mexico, and several Central American and Caribbean countries. In terms of level of membership, all members have reached at least the 'First Degree' and most are 'Third Degree' members. For those who wish to participate, there also is a Fourth Degree, whose members make a special commitment to the virtue of patriotism. (Members of Fourth Degree Honor Guards in their colorful regalia of plumed hats and capes are a distinctive feature of many major Catholic ceremonies.) While only men are members of the K of C, in countless cases the families of members are active in its programs as well. The Knights of Columbus is organized into local units called councils. (The local unit of the Fourth Degree is called an assembly.) Councils vary greatly in size, from a few dozen members to hundreds. Many operate within individual parishes, while others draw members from several neighboring parishes. These local units are grouped at the state level under a state council. The international governing body, the Supreme Council, has its headquarters in New Haven. The chief executive officer of the Knights of Columbus is called the Supreme Knight. The present Supreme Knight is Virgil C. Dechant. The Knights of Columbus also has a youth organization, the Columbian Squires, whose local units are called circles. (K of C councils in many places also sponsor Scout troops.)

While the fundamental religious, civic, and humanitarian purposes of the organization, described above, are the same everywhere, their concrete, programmatic expressions vary substantially from community to community. A typical Knights of Columbus council has a year-round program of religious, service, and social activities tailored to local circumstances and the interests of members and their families. Some councils have their own clubhouses, others don't. In all cases councils seek to respond to local Church and civic needs. The activities of a typical council might include such things as distributing food to the needy, conducting sports programs for youth, running a low-cost housing program, hosting a fundraiser for a family with heavy medical bills, painting classrooms in the parish school, and so on. In recent years, support of programs for the mentally retarded has been a priority for many councils. (The Knights contributed one million dollars and provided 6,000 volunteers for the 1995 international Special Olympics, held in New Haven in July.) Knights of Columbus are also active in promoting and supporting vocations to the priesthood and religious life, and provide assistance for the higher education of young people through scholarship and student loan programs. In sum, the K of C is a leader in the volunteer movement in the United States and other countries where it exists.

Membership in the Knights of Columbus is open to practical Catholic men in union with the Holy See, who shall not be less than 18 years of age on their last birthday. A practical Catholic is one who lives up to the Commandments of God and the precepts of the Church. Application blanks are available from any member of the Knights of Columbus. Every knight is happy to propose eligible Catholic men for consideration as members.  Acceptance of the applicant depends upon a vote of the members of the subordinate council in which he is making application.  All priests and religious brothers having duly made application for membership and participated in the ceremonials become honorary life members of the Order and are exempt from payment of dues.

Application for membership must be made through the council in the community nearest the applicant's place of residence. Interested prospects without a permanent domicile, such as men temporarily away from home through duty in the armed forces, may make application through their hometown council or at the nearest council on a military base.

If favorably voted upon, the applicant becomes a member by initiation known as the First Degree. He subsequently is advanced through the Second Degree and the Third Degree.

There are modest initiation fees and dues set by subordinate councils under regulations established by the Supreme Council. The insurance privileges are available to all members who can qualify, which represents an important advantage of membership. For men in every walk of life the name Knights of Columbus engenders the image of a united organization, efficiently going about it tasks of charity, unity, fraternity, patriotism and defense of the priesthood. It is composed of men who are giving unselfishly of their time and talents in service of God and their country.

Membership in the Knights of Columbus provides opportunity for wholesome association with congenial companions who are, first of all, practical Catholic gentlemen. It offers the opportunity for fellowship with those who are of the same belief, who recognize the same duty to God, to family and to neighbor and who stand side by side in defense of those beliefs. Programs are so organized as to appeal to the individual interest of the members. Through many constructive activities of Christian fraternity, members are enabled to render service to their Church, their country and their fellowman. Through membership they develop a consciousness of their ability to lead and to assist.

Organized Columbians, united behind the individual Knight of Columbus, provides the power of an intelligent, alert body of Catholic men--a strength which the individual by himself cannot achieve.   Knights of Columbus have a proud heritage. The qualified Catholic man can share in that heritage and build an even greater future by affiliating himself with this forceful, effective body.

Another degree open to members of the Knights of Columbus is that of the Fourth (or Patriotic) Degree. On February 22, 1900, the first exemplification of that degree was held in New York City. The ritual added patriotism to the three original principles of the Order: charity, unity and fraternity. Any Third Degree member in good standing, one year after the anniversary of his First Degree, is eligible for membership in the Fourth Degree.  

The primary purpose of the Fourth Degree is to foster the spirit of patriotism by promoting responsible citizenship and a love of and loyalty to the Knights' respective countries through active membership in local Fourth Degree groups called assemblies. Fourth Degree members must retain their membership as Third Degree members in the local council to remain in good standing.  Certain members of the Fourth Degree serve as honor guards at civic and religious functions, an activity which has brought worldwide recognition to the Knights of Columbus organization.

Correct. With financial assistance from the Knights, the facade of St. Peter's was repaired in a 20-month project completed in 1987. The organization also has funded other restoration work in the Basilica, most recently including repairs to the roof of its Blessed Sacrament Chapel. That is only part of the story of the Order's support of the Pope and the Holy See. In 1981 the Knights established a $10 million trust fund -- the Vicarius Christi (Vicar of Christ) Fund -- whose proceeds go annually to the Holy Father for his personal charities. The Fund was increased to $20 million in 1988. To date, the Knights up to now have given well over $20 million to Pope John Paul II from this source. For 20 years the K of C has paid uplink costs of satellite telecasts that carry papal ceremonies like the Christmas Eve Midnight Mass to viewers in the United States and many other countries. (These are the most widely watched religious TV programs in the world.) It also has paid for the purchase of equipment used by the Vatican Television Center, and has given financial assistance to other offices and agencies of the Holy See. The organization's special relationship with the Holy Father and the Holy See can be seen in the fact that the Knights of Columbus was invited by the Vatican to join the Diocese of Brooklyn, N.Y., in co-hosting the Mass that Pope John Paul II will celebrate on the morning of October 6, 1995, at Aqueduct Raceway in Queens, N.Y., during his October 4-8 visit to the United States. It is a singular honor for a Catholic lay organization to be invited to play this role.

The Knights of Columbus regards abortion as a grave moral evil that does incalculable social harm. It holds that the unborn deserve the full protection of the law. It therefore considers the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion a tragic mistake, and has consistently supported peaceful, nonviolent measures to correct Roe v. Wade. The Knights of Columbus was among the organizations filing pro-life amicus curiae briefs in abortion related cases decided by the Supreme Court in 1989, 1990, 1991, and 1992. The K of C also filed an amicus brief in the 1990 Cruzan case involving the so called "right to die." Since 1973 the Knights of Columbus has printed and distributed free of charge millions of items of pro-life educational literature. It provides financial assistance to the pro-life programs of the U.S., Canadian and Mexican bishops. Thousands of Knights take part in the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C., each January. The organization also has assisted groups that seek to help women experiencing pregnancy-related problems. With regard to some current issues in the pro-life struggle, the Knights of Columbus is strongly opposed to the so called Freedom of Choice Act and to the inclusion of abortion coverage in any national health care program. It strongly supports the Hyde Amendment restricting federal funding of abortion as well as similar legislative proposals to restrict the performance or the funding of abortions. Other areas of concern to the Knights of Columbus Catholic education, family life, pornography and violence in the media -- these are among the issues that engage the K of C's attention and have done so for years. The organization supports a constitutional amendment making it possible to legislate against the desecration of the American flag. It also supports proposals for parental choice in education, provided the option of 'choice' extends to Catholic schools. Over the past four decades, the Knights' Catholic Information Service has distributed millions of pieces of literature about the Catholic Church to people replying to ads in mass-circulation publications. Besides seeking to promote vocations to the priesthood and religious life, the K of C has several different programs that offer financial assistance to seminarians and religious in formation. The Knights' prize-winning monthly magazine, Columbia, is the largest Catholic periodical in the United States. The K of C also supports the John Paul II Institute for Studies of Marriage and Family Life, a graduate-level theology school in Washington, D.C., for priests, religious, and lay persons.

 How do men join the Knights of Columbus?

A man applying for membership must be a practicing Catholic, at least 18 years of age, in union with the Holy See. Those interested in applying should contact a local Knights of Columbus council. Qualified members can purchase Knights of Columbus insurance if they wish to do so, and about a third of the members do, but this is not required. The amount of Knights of Columbus insurance in force is over $28 billion.

How are the Knights different the Masons or Shriners?

Knights are not bound by secrecy in swearing oaths or promising not to give information under penalty by the order. Their sole purpose is that of Charity, Unity, Fraternity, and Patriotism

67% of the Firemen and Policemen in New York, plus members who were victims on the airplanes hijacked and in the Pentagon had policies paid to their beneficiaries. The surviving minor children of the police and firemen will be receiving full, 4-year scholarships to any Catholic University.

Some councils have a women’s auxiliary and a Columbian squires program for boys under 18. Council 7304 doesn't have any specific programs; however, families are encouraged in participating in the recreational programs, picnics, parties, and fundraisers of the council. The wives are the backbone of support for the Knights.

No, insurance products are optional, however, most members take advantage of being able to plan for the financial security of their families and investment options for their retirement portfolio. The products are great investments as the motto is "Knights helping Knights"

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