CEREMONIALS
Charlie Perez, Chairman
Exemplification of Charity, Unity, and Fraternity
This new fraternal year will see Texas grow in unprecedented membership growth. Our Ceremonials will form these men in the knowledge of our faith and the principles of our Order. Your Councils remain in control of their own destiny regarding Ceremonials. Each Council may form their own team to conduct the Exemplification of Charity, Unity, and Fraternity. Districts may choose to form a Team to support their needs as well. You may also choose to form Diocesan Team(s) to provide ceremonial support for all the above.
Online exemplifications remain available through the Supreme Council to make this exemplification available to all and provide the resources to each of our Councils on the Supreme website. If you are not familiar with this resource, I encourage you to take a look. The web address listed here will take you to the Ceremonial Resource page on the Supreme website. https://www.kofc.org/en/for-members/resources/ceremonials.html?1tab=1tab0. Everything you need to know about the exemplification is on this page or the links that are located on this page. Take the time to explore it and get familiar with it, as it is a valuable resource and tool. Please be sure to share this information with your Council membership.
Grand Knights, I will be working to aid your Council’s in putting their team together and schedule regular exemplifications as we move forward. District Deputies, you should set a goal to get a team(s) formed to support 100% of the Council’s in your district. It’s easy to overcome the objections, as the costs are low to start a team and the parts can be read. At a minimum, every district should have one Ceremonial Team formed to support the needs of the District. The forming of Diocesan teams has been highly successful and have been available to support various ceremonial needs across our great state.
The Exemplification itself is simple to set up, as there are only five spoken parts, those being:
1. Presiding Officer (Serves as Master of Ceremonies)
2. Chaplain (Leads Assembly in Opening and Closing Prayers)
3. Presenter on Charity (Teaches the Lesson on Charity and delivers the Discourse on the Rosary)
4. Presenter on Unity (Teaches the Lesson on Unity)
5. Presenter on Fraternity (Teaches the Lesson on Fraternity)
In addition to the speaking parts, there are several supporting roles, those being:
1. Warden (Guides the Candidates and assists with the Lesson on Unity)
2. Investing Officer(s) (Presents Rosaries and Lapel Pins to the Candidates)
3. Financial Secretary (Registers Candidates and obtains the signature on the Constitutional Roll)
4. Field Agent (Meets and greets the Candidates and assists the Financial Secretary)
Members of the Ceremonial Team may conduct more than one of the above-listed roles.
The desire is for our Ceremonial Teams to make a great first impression on the Candidates, their families, and guests attending the ceremonial. The preferred dress for the Team members is a dark suit and tie. If the Team is not able to achieve this look, the next option would be dress pants, matching Council shirts and a sports coat. If the Team is not able to achieve this look, the next acceptable option would be dress pants and matching Council shirts. All members of the Team should wear the KofC Ceremonial Sash (yellow and white with Emblem of the Order).
Resources needed to properly conduct the Exemplification of Charity, Unity and Fraternity are minimal, those being:
1. Crucifix (12-18” in size)
2. Rosary (can be one of the candidate rosaries or a larger one)
3. Cable (used by the Warden during the lesson on Unity)
4. Fibers (distributed to the Candidates, by the Warden, during the lesson on Unity)
5. Degree Kits (#531) (enough to support the scheduled, as well as unscheduled, candidates)
6. Master script (10991) for use by the Team
7. Father McGivney Canonization Prayer cards (10502) (enough for all Candidates and guests)
The preferred location to present the Exemplification of Charity, Unity and Fraternity is in a Church but this ceremonial can be held in the Council Chamber or another suitable room, if it is not possible to hold it in the Church. Candidates, their families, friends, fellow parishioners, and anyone interested in learning more about the Knights are welcome to attend the Exemplification.
Depending upon the number of candidates, the exemplification will typically last no longer than thirty to forty minutes. To make the new members and their families feel welcome, be sure to schedule a social or dinner after the Exemplification. There should not be any talks at the conclusion of the Exemplification, as the social or dinner would be the appropriate time to recognize the Field Agent and the Grand Knight, if they wanted to say a few words to the group.
The Supreme Council has provided a copy of Frequently Asked Questions (“FAQ’s”) regarding this form of Exemplification of Charity, Unity, and Fraternity, which is seven pages in length and available in both English and Spanish. Both copies of the FAQ’s, along with a copy of the Script in English and Spanish can be found at the Ceremonials link of the Supreme Council website (kofc.org).
Brothers, to summarize, be sure to encourage all Councils to form their Exemplification Team so we can get new candidates to full Knighthood as soon as possible. Please report dates for scheduled Exemplifications to your Diocesan Deputy, District Deputy, and the Ceremonials Chairman. This will ensure all Councils can be made aware of an upcoming ceremonial. At any time, should you have any questions, please email me, or call me before reaching out to the Supreme Council offices. I can be reached via email at cbperez@rgv.rr.com or my cell number is 956-245-3154.
VIVAT JESUS!