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On October 2, 1881, a meeting convened in the basement of St. Mary's Church. At this meeting, Father Michael J. McGivney, curate at St. Mary's parish in New Haven, Connecticut, laid the foundation for the organization of the Knights of Columbus. (1) The Knights of Columbus emerged as an organization that fit the social, economic, and religious needs of the Irish- American Catholic minority in the New England area in the last quarter of the nineteenth century.
The roots of these Irish immigrants as well as the hardships they encountered facing the anti-Catholic sentiment of the Protestant New Englanders can explain the development of the organization. The great potato famine in Ireland in the mid-1840's led to the emigration of hundreds of thousands to the United States.(2) New Haven, Connecticut, the founding site of the Knights of Columbus, drew many of these immigrants because of the large number of jobs available working on the railroads and in factories. The large number of immigrants, which had led to competition in the workplace, stimulated a strong anti-foreigner complex among the "native" New Englanders. These nativists, in which Protestantism was firmly entrenched, viewed the Catholic immigrants as pawns of the Pope of Rome, a tyrannical despot looking to extend his empire.(3) Nativism and the formation of the Know Nothing Party led to political and social warfare, including the stiffening of naturalization laws, exclusion of Catholics and foreigners from public office, as well as propaganda and violence against the "Catholic menace."(4) The Catholic immigrants, who remembered well the political and religious battles between England and their nation of origin, turned to their strong sense of nationality and deep identity with Catholicism to adjust to the situation.(5)
One means by which the Irish Catholics dealt with the situation was to establish its own separate educational and charitable institutions, and benevolent societies.(6) The formation of societies was not foreign to nineteenth century America. Around six hundred secret societies, ranging from ritualistic Masonic -like societies to temperance and literary groups, were established in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Following the depression of the 1870's, many of these groups organized as fraternal insurance societies for people of all classes seeking communal or economic security.(7)
It was the idea of Father Michael J. McGivney to create a Catholic organization to "prevent our people from entering Secret Societies by offering the same if not better advantages to our members," and secondly, "to unite the men of our faith throughout the Diocese of Hartford, that we may thereby gain strength to aid each other in time of sickness; to provide for decent burial, and to render pecuniary assistance to the families of deceased members."(8)
The adoption of the name Knights of Columbus allows one to appreciate the motivations of the initial members. By adopting Columbus as their patron, it is evident that these members wanted to demonstrate their pride in their American-Catholic heritage by affirming the discovery of America by Columbus as a Catholic event.(9) Calling themselves "Knights," they demonstrated their willingness to combat the strong anti-Catholic and anti-Irish sentiment of the New Englanders.(10) This was a group of men trying to accommodate themselves to an American way of life by pledging their loyalty to their Church, to each other, and to America.(11)
Today, the Knights of Columbus are still dedicated to "Unity, Charity, and Fraternity," (the Order's Motto) (12) while providing top-quality life insurance plans to members and their families.
The highest body governing the Knights of Columbus is the Supreme Council. The Supreme Council is composed of the supreme officers, the supreme directors, the past supreme knights, the state deputy and the last living past state deputy of the various state councils, and delegates chosen by the state councils. The supreme officers possess executive authority and are elected by the supreme directors annually. Subordinate councils at both state and local levels are set up in a similar fashion. A council may be established upon the completion of 30 members or applicants for membership. Membership in the Knights of Columbus is open to practical Catholic men, over the age of 18, in union with the Holy See. These men are expected to follow the Commandments of God and the Precepts of the Church. Members of the subordinate councils are responsible for reviewing applications and voting on the acceptance of an applicant. Upon acceptance, a member is initiated as a First Degree Knight. A Knight may subsequently be advanced through the Second Degree, Third Degree, and Fourth Degree. The degree ceremonials stand for the Order's lessons of Charity, Unity, Fraternity, and Patriotism.(13)
The Knights of Columbus have been very active serving their communities at the local and global levels. Over the past 10 years, the Knights Orderwide have volunteered more than 397 million hours of service and donated over $945 million to charity.(14) The Knights are dedicated to serving church, community, council, family, and youth. On the local level, each council is responsible for tackling the needs of its respective area. Many councils are actively involved in the special olympics, pro-life activities, health programs, athletics, conventions and workshops for its members, as well as education. And, these are just a few of the activities the Knights sponsor. The Knights of Columbus were first recognized on a worldwide scale for their service to others during World War I. The Knights worked in the training camps in the United States, in hostels in England and Ireland, in huts behind the lines, and, after the war, in Allied occupied areas in France, Germany, Italy, and Siberia, providing a wide range of social programs for the servicemen. Over the years, the Knights have committed themselves to "Surge ..... with Service."(15)
The Knights of Columbus offer a wide range of benefits to its members including scholarships, loans, a monthly magazine, Columbia Magazine, and a comprehensive insurance program. (16) The insurance feature has been present from the inception of the society, as one of the goals of the organization was to be able to guarantee Catholic widows and their children financial security. The insurance program has grown from its meager beginnings into a corporation encompassing 1.3 million individual policies.(17) The benefits of the organization have been designed "for Brother Knights by Brother Knights"(18) to ensure the welfare of its members.
One final focus of the Knights of Columbus is the promotion of the Catholic Church and its ideals. The Catholic Information Service of the Knights of Columbus was founded in 1947 to provide Catholic publications for missions, schools, correctional facitilities or any other seeking to learn more about the Catholic faith. The Knights have been dedicated to the crusade for life, war against pornography, and promotion of Catholic education. The Knights of Columbus look to ensure the growth of the Church by supporting vocations and providing a Church mortgage loan program to assist parishes in building projects. The Knights have supported the Vatican through the compiling of the Vatican Film and Papal Film Libraries. In addition, the Order was proud to have answered the call of the Pope to finance the restoration of the facade of St. Peter's Basilica between 1985 and 1987. When it comes to evangelization, the Knights have spoken loud and clear with their message being, "Don't keep the faith -- spread it!"(19)
These Men They Call Knights
This is an on-line version of a brochure that is given to each individual upon
becoming a member of the Knights of Columbus. The brochure outlines the important
aspects of the organization.
http://cgibin1.erols.com/kc2169/thesemen.htm
Frequently Asked Questions (KofC No. 660)
As the name of the site suggests, this site provides the answers to basic
questions about the Knights of Columbus.
http://www.mindspring.com/~mccarthys/kc660/faq.htm
Web Sites of Interest to Knights of Columbus
This site provides links to sites with general information about the Knights of
Columbus as well as links to the state councils and local councils (organized by
number and country, state (province) and city).
http://www.serv.net/~jwilliam/otherweb.html
The Vatican
This is the official site of the Vatican. It provides information on the beliefs
and practices of the Catholic Church.
http://www.vatican.va/
Virtuous Avenue
This site provides a good outline of the beliefs of the Catholic Church. It is a
quick way to learn the basics about the church.
http://www.avenue.com/v/prayknow.html
- 1. Christopher J. Kauffman, 1982.
- Faith and Fraternalism. (New York, Harper & Row Publishers.), p. 1.
- 2. Kauffman, 1982, p. 3.
- 3. Kauffman, 1982, p. 5.
- 4. Kauffman, 1982, p. 5.
- 5. Kauffman, 1982, p. 3-4.
- 6. Kauffman, 1982, p. 7.
- 7. Kauffman, 1982, p. 8-9.
- 8. Kauffman, 1982, p. 19.
- 9. Kauffman, 1982, p. 16.
- 10. Kauffman, 1982, p. 17.
- 11. Kauffman, 1982, p. 28.
- 12. http://www.kofc-supreme-council.org/who/history.html
- 13. http://cgibin1.erols.com/kc2169/thesemen.htm
- 14. http://www.kofc-supreme-council.org/do/
- 15. http://www.kofc-supreme-council.org/do/
- 16. http://www.kofc-supreme-council.org/offer/membership.html
- 17. http://www.kofc-supreme-council.org/offer/insurance.html
- 18. http://cgibin1.erols.com/kc2169/thesemen.htm
- 19. http://cgibin1.erols.com/kc2169/thesemen.htm
Created by Elisa J. Beres
For Soc 257: New Religious Movements
Spring Term, 1998
University of Virginia
Last modified: 07/19/01