Grand Knight’s Message for January 2019
As I write this message, I am reminded of the devotion and courage shown by our members, our clergy and religious, and all of the laity in standing up for what we believe! Today, we have hundreds of thousands of youth and adults Marching for Life in Washington and in cities and communities all over the country. All of this is done in the face of stunningly ferocious anti-catholic, anti-Knights of Columbus, anti-Life rhetoric on display in our wonderful and blessed country.
We are reminded by Supreme Knight Carl Anderson that there have been times in our country’s past when uninformed or prejudiced people questioned whether Catholics could be good citizens or honest public servants. Such attacks on the basis of our Catholic faith are hardly new. The Knights of Columbus was formed amid a period of anti-Catholic bigotry. We stood against that then, and we do so now. We have spoken out against persecution around the world for nearly a century and will continue to do so. From our very beginning, the Knights of Columbus has been an organization adhering to the teachings of the Catholic Church. As with the Church, our primary motivation in everything is Christ’s great commandment, that we love God completely and our neighbor as ourselves.
This love also motivates us to stand with the Church on the important issues of life and marriage, precisely because the Church’s teaching reflects and is based on that love. We stand with our Church because we believe that what our faith teaches is consistent with reason, is timeless and transcends the changing sentiments of any particular time or place. Pope Francis asked “each Knight, and every Council, to bear witness to the authentic nature of marriage and the family, the sanctity and inviolable dignity of human life, and the beauty and truth of human sexuality.”
Simply put, our positions are now, and have always been, Catholic positions. We will continue to express our love of God and neighbor by helping those in need and by standing with our Church, regardless of the popularity of doing so. We continually remember that our Christian witness is considered a fundamental obligation as members of the Knights of Columbus.
Vivat Jesus!