Gregory Brown, Director
One hundred and forty-one years ago, Fr. Michael McGivney along with the founding members of Council 1, San Salvador, began what today is the largest Catholic men’s fraternal organization comprised of nearly 2 million men who are apart of 16,000 councils worldwide. Blessed McGivney had a number of reasons why he began the Knights of Columbus but chief among them was “to form its members in Catholic faith and virtue,” and “to unite members in their Catholic identity and the practice of their Catholic faith” (Section 2, Charter Constitution and Laws of the Knights of Columbus). Allowing men to come together to pray, be formed in their Catholic faith and share in fraternity were of the upmost importance to our founder; whose zeal for the salvation of souls was a driving force to his life and ministry. Today, we as Catholic men, more than ever, are called to renew the vision of Blessed Fr. McGivney. To make Jesus Christ the source and summit of all that we do; and ensure our Catholic faith, missionary zeal, and the proclamation of the Kingdom of God permeates all aspects of council life and membership engagement.
As such, we want to reiterate 4 promises the Knights of Columbus make to all our Brother Knights and prospective Brothers:
To help all men grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ
To provide opportunities for men to serve Christ in His Church including being a missionary disciple
To provide opportunities for men to serve those most in need in their communities and around the world IN THE NAME OF CHRIST JESUS
A promise to provide protection and aid to widows and orphans through our insurance arm
Men today are hungry for faith centered content and fraternity that help them grow in faith and become better Catholic men, husbands, and fathers. We know that our Catholic parishes and families need men who are faith-filled leaders who strive to grow in holiness, knowledge, and disciple others towards the Kingdom of Heaven. We are firm in our understanding that this goal is accomplished through prayer, formation, and fraternity.
To aid in this mission of helping all men grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ and forming men in their Catholic faith; under the leadership and behest of our Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly, the Knights of Columbus have begun a comprehensive Evangelization and Faith Formation initiative. The purpose of the EFF initiative is three-fold, Encounter, Strengthen, and Commission. A life of faith begins with an encounter with Jesus Christ that calls us to repentance and a radical reorientation of our lives because of His immense love poured out upon the Cross. We then strengthen our relationship with God through our personal prayer, study to be formed in the Catholic faith and in holy virtue, and we share in a fraternal brotherhood that holds us accountable. Lastly, we respond and accept Christ’s commission in Matthew 28:19-20, to be sent out as disciple makers, to share Jesus Christ with others so they may encounter God and His radical life giving love.
At the heart of every Knight of Columbus is a deep relationship with Jesus Christ, knowing that God loves us, He died for our sins and the need to radically reorient our lives to strive for Heaven. At the heart of every Knight of Columbus is our Catholic faith which invites us to seek holiness through our Baptism and daily prayer. At the heart of every Knight of Columbus is a desire to build the Kingdom of God by being a disciple of Jesus Christ; therefore, having the courage to share with others the Good News of Jesus Christ and His Church.
The first element of the Evangelization and Faith Formation initiative is this COR. COR is Latin for heart and the root word for courage. COR exists to form and strengthen Catholic men in faith and virtue as missionary disciples by drawing them into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ through prayer, formation, and fraternity. The goal of each COR is to provide the opportunity for men to encounter Christ, to strive to be more Christ like, to strengthen our bonds of brotherhood, and to prepare for the courageous mission of evangelization.
COR essentials:
Additional gathering for the men focusing on prayer, formation and fraternity
Optional
Open to all men of the parish
Held at minimum monthly
Three key and required elements:
Prayer: reciprocal relationship between God and man where man responds to God’s invitation then encounters the Creator
Formation: lifelong process where we become more like Christ through knowledge and understanding of the Catholic faith.
Fraternity: sharing in a common mission, faith, and brotherhood
Our EFF team is here to assist councils as they strive to form Catholic men in virtue and identity, building up the Kingdom of God and strengthening them to better serve their families, Church and communities. We already have several Councils actively piloting COR with more councils interested each week. Our team would love to talk to your council about beginning COR, to help men of your parish grow in their Catholic faith and relationship with Jesus Christ.
With gratitude,
Gregory Brown
ggb@me.com