Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson
Knights of Charity
When Pope Benedict XVI spoke to the world at his installation Mass he boldly announced, "The Church is alive!" The Church is alive because Jesus lives. And He is with us. It is this reality that animates our charitable work.
Charity is the essence of our mission as Knights.
The care and concern we show for those in need is the hallmark of our Order. Year after year, our works of charity increase and our financial contributions grow, leaving no doubt that "He is with us."
We set new records for charitable giving and volunteer hours last year. Total contributions to charity at all levels climbed to nearly $136 million, exceeding last year's total by more than $5 million.
And we volunteered a record 63.2 million hours of service. This is up from 61 million hours last year.
These totals are truly impressive!
They are important for several reasons. Most critical now, is the recommendation before the U.S. Congress to repeal the tax-exempt status of fraternal organizations including the Knights of Columbus. Needless to say, this would have a serious negative impact on us and on every fraternal organization. We have been working very hard on this issue, meeting with key senators about the value of our charitable work to our communities and the nation. I believe that the tide is turning in our favor. But we cannot afford to take any chances. Already many brother Knights have contacted members of the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committees. And if it is necessary, we will ask every U.S. Knight to contact his senators and representatives.
Our great record of volunteerism and charity makes us leaders in our communities. As leaders, we deserve to have our voice heard on this issue.
According to Independent Sector, the value of each volunteer hour in 2004 was more than $17. So, last year, our volunteer hours were worth more than $1 billion. That is a tremendous record, and one that everyone should know.
In 2004, we also reported $114 million spent by our Order at every level of the organization to promote, support and grow the Knights of Columbus.
In nearly one third of our jurisdictions 100 percent of the councils completed our fraternal survey.
The average Orderwide per-member contribution was $80.45. Brother Knights in British Columbia reported the highest per-member contribution of more than $262. Ten jurisdictions reported average per-member contributions of $100 or more.
More than half of all jurisdictions reported total gifts of more than $1 million. Leading jurisdictions were: Ontario, California, Quebec, Illinois, Florida, Texas, Michigan, New Jersey, Minnesota and Ohio.
These are fantastic records but we can and we will do more.
Membership and Council Growth
When it comes to membership, we have just completed a great year! As of June 30, our membership stood at an all time high of 1,703,307. Two-thirds of these men are associate members and one-third of these are insurance members. We recruited 72,378 new Knights. Our net gain of 22,835 is the highest in 24 years! It is also the 32nd consecutive year that we have had a net gain in membership. These are great accomplishments, and I want you all to know how proud I am of the recruitment you've done.
And although all of our new members are special to us, there is one who is very special. It's a pleasure today to acknowledge Jerry Kissel our 1.7 millionth member. Jerry joined Immaculate Conception Council 13681 in Springfield, Mo., in April. He was recruited by Grand Knight Dr. James Shelley. Both men are being presented with specially engraved gold cufflinks to mark this historic event. I know you join me in congratulating Dr. Shelley and Brother Kissell. I also want to congratulate every Knight who recruited a new member over the past year. Official recognition of the 1.7 millionth member can obviously go to only one person, but many thousands of Knights did a terrific job of recruiting to help get us here. To all of you who helped us reach this milestone, I say: well done!
Membership must continue to be our number one priority. We are showing solid and steady growth. But we know that a great opportunity for growth is out there.
This past fraternal year showed that through our efforts we can achieve even greater growth. The Catholic Church continues to grow in every one of our jurisdictions. That provides us a great opportunity to grow the Order. Our goal is to invite every eligible Catholic man to become a brother Knight!
New council development was exceptionally strong this fraternal year. As of June 30, we had a record 12,767 councils which is 287 more than last year. And this is a new high.
Parish round tables continue to be an important way for us to be present in parishes not yet large enough to sustain a council. This year we had 3,196 round tables, bringing us closer to Father McGivney's vision of the Knights of Columbus in every parish.
Our goal is to have the Knights of Columbus so connected to the life of the Church today that wherever a Catholic man and his family goes, he will find our fraternal brotherhood waiting to offer him the experience of a lifetime as a Knight.
Our programs such as the membership blitz program in October and April, and the Shining Armor Award, are working. But they are not a substitute for the impact that each of us has when we go up to that man at Church or at work, in our family or in our neighborhood, and ask, "Would you be interested in joining the Knights of Columbus?"
Our Columbian Squires program also grew. The 117 circles we added last year gives us a total of 1,339 circles, our highest ever. As of June 30, membership stood at 22,551 Squires.
Our sponsorship of Boy Scout troops continues to grow. Last year, councils sponsored 34,505 Scouts in 3,023 troops.
Squires and Scouts count on us for leadership and guidance. And when they turn 18, we must be there to ask: "Would you be interested in joining the Knights of Columbus?"
Fourth Degree
As of June 30, membership in the Fourth Degree stood at 292,289. This is an increase of 5,659. The Order instituted 69 new assemblies for a total number of 2,599.
Our "Serving Those Who Served" program reaches out to our veterans. Many Fourth Degree Knights have become a regular, steady source of volunteers at veterans hospitals across the U.S.
Our immediate goal is to grow the Fourth Degree to 300,000 Sir Knights. And we can reach this goal by the end of 2005.
We are proud of the many Fourth Degree Knights who have assisted the Moses Project, in placing statues depicting the Ten Commandments in public spaces. A special thank you is also extended to the Fourth Degree Knights who took part in the 100th anniversary events in both Mexico and the Philippines. Additionally, our Canadian Sir Knights made strong showings at rallies in Ottawa and across that country prior to Parliament's vote to allow same-sex marriage.
At the invitation of Cardinal Jozef Glemp of Warsaw, Poland, I was honored to lead a delegation of Fourth Degree Knights, including Supreme Master Joseph Schultz, to take part in Poland's National Eucharistic Congress.
When we met last August, we thought the issue of keeping the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance had been resolved. The Supreme Court had just thrown out the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the words "under God" in the Pledge. Unfortunately, earlier this year the plaintiff was back. He sued the U.S. Congress, the United States, the state of California and five school districts in the Sacramento area.
In May of this year, seven brother Knights and their families, along with the Supreme Council, asked that federal court for permission to intervene in the new lawsuit. And I am happy to report to you that two weeks ago that a Federal Judge granted our motion. So this time, when the case works its way back to the Supreme Court, the Knights of Columbus will be right there in the courtroom, defending the Pledge at every step of the way.
During the months to come, we will do everything possible to ensure that the words "under God" remain in the pledge -- just where they belong.
Church Activities
The visual backdrop of this year's Supreme Convention is a mosaic from our newly redesigned Holy Family Chapel. The new chapel, created by Father Marko Rupnik, the artist who created the Redemptoris Mater chapel in the Vatican for Pope John Paul II, was dedicated by Bishop Lori during the State Deputies' meeting in June. Father Rupnik and his community of artists have created a masterpiece for us, and we are very grateful.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of one of the most important advances in Church teaching during our time, the Second Vatican Council's Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, Gaudium et Spes.
The laity has a unique vocation to seek first the kingdom of God and then to engage in the affairs of the world and direct them according to God's will. As Knights we are privileged to collaborate as closely as we do with our pope, our bishops, and with our priests.
A report of the Order's Church Activities in 2004 must begin by recounting the final days and funeral of Pope John Paul II and the election and installation of Pope Benedict XVI. Every Knight should be proud that our longtime financial support of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications made it possible for billions of persons worldwide to watch these historic events. At least 124 TV networks in nearly half of the countries in the world broadcasted Pope Benedict's first Mass, and even more viewers tuned into a total of 155 television networks to watch John Paul's funeral.
We thank Archbishop John P. Foley, President of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, and our brother Knight, for providing commentary for these telecasts and for noting the role of the Knights of Columbus in making them possible.
The Church, the world, and the Knights of Columbus, will benefit greatly from Pope John Paul's legacy for years to come.
In the last audience granted to our Order's Board of Directors, in October 2003, Pope John Paul challenged us as laity to continue our work of renewal. He told us that we must "seek new ways of being a leaven of the Gospel in the world and a spiritual force for the renewal of the Church in holiness, unity and truth."
Do this, John Paul said, "in fidelity to the vision of Father Michael McGivney."
Few popes in the 2,000-year history of our Church have had so momentous an impact as the man many now call John Paul the Great. The Knights of Columbus had the privilege of supporting him in so many ways over the past 27 years. The greatest tribute we can pay him is by living up to the potential he saw in us and in our founder, and of being equally loyal and in serving his successor, Pope Benedict XVI.
On July 1, Pope Benedict received our supreme chaplain, Bishop Lori, and me in audience at the Vatican. The Holy Father was very interested in our plans for the future, and he was very knowledgeable about the work we do and the importance of our support of the church.
On your behalf, I expressed the Order's enthusiasm for his papacy and our willingness to support him as he guides our Church into the 21st century with vigor, faith and holiness.
During this past year we also provided financial assistance to several Vatican congregations and projects associated with the Holy See. Among those receiving support were: the Pontifical Council for the Family, the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, St. Peter's Basilica for restoration of grottoes and frescoes there, and the athletic fields we operate in Rome.
Other important contributions included our assistance to the Patriarchate of Venice to promote the preservation of Christian communities in Muslim countries; a $100,000 grant to help rebuild Catholic churches damaged by terrorists in Baghdad; and the annual proceeds from our $2 million Pacem in Terris Fund to the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem.
At the conclusion of this meeting we will convene our third Knights of Columbus Eucharistic Congress. This two-day meeting of worship, spiritual reflection, private devotion and a public eucharistic procession will show that we Knights of Columbus are also Knights of the Eucharist. And in close cooperation with our brother Knight Cardinal Marc Ouellet, we have pledged $1 million to support the 49th International Eucharistic Congress to be held in Quebec in 2008.
Last September, we provided financial and other support to the Congregation of Major Superiors of Women Religious for its two-day eucharistic congress at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.
Another important event last September was the pilgrimage of your Board of Directors to Poland, where we had the privilege of participating in a Mass on the Feast of St. Faustina at the Basilica of the Divine Mercy near Krakow and at the Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa.
Last October the Knights of Columbus took part in the International Eucharistic Congress held in Guadalajara, Mexico. In a procession of the Blessed Sacrament in Guadalajara, our Mexican Fourth Degree Knights led the more than 1.5 million people through the city streets.
A highlight of my service as consultor to the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace was its publication this year of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church. Working for justice and peace is working for charity. It is an essential part of our work as Knights. The Compendium is a valuable new tool for us, as we continue the work that has always been at the heart of our lives as Knights of Columbus.
We continue to strongly support the cause for canonization of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta in both spiritual and material ways. We have already printed 2 million pieces of devotional materials for her, and millions more have been prepared for distribution at World Youth Day in Cologne.
Bishop Lori and I were in Rome June 28 for the official proceedings at which the cause for beatification of John Paul II was officially opened. We encourage all Knights to ask his intercession for the work of the Order.
Vocations
And there is no better expression of this than our Refund Support Vocations Program which gives our seminarians a lasting connection to the Knights.
Through RSVP, we "adopt" seminarians and provide them with financial assistance and moral support.
Last year, for the first time ever, financial help from councils to future priests and brothers, exceeded $2.5 million. Since the program's start in 1981, more than $32 million has been raised and contributed. During that time, 52,271 seminarians and postulants have been helped.
During the last academic year, 35 new Father McGivney scholarships were awarded to U.S. and Canadian seminarians. In addition 61 scholarships were renewed. Bishop Daily awards were given to 13 U.S. and Canadian seminarians; and 25 scholarships were renewed. Since these programs began nearly $4 million has been awarded.
Solidarity with Our Troops
Earlier this summer, I received an e-mail note from Father Joe Coffey, one of more than one thousand Catholic priests who serve as chaplains in our armed forces. Father Coffey serves aboard the USS George Washington, a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, and he wrote to express his thanks to all of you for what he called "your incredibly generous support of our Military Archdiocese." He continued, "I am a 4th degree Knight, and I have always been amazed at the incredible generosity of the Knights of Columbus. Thank you and God bless you all."
Father Coffee and his fellow chaplains are spread pretty thin. Only 8 percent of U.S. military chaplains are Catholic, but 28 percent of active duty personnel -- some 375,000 soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen -- are Catholics.
This year, we're helping them in a variety of ways, including providing financial support for a new program called "Catholics Seeking Christ." This is a peer-to-peer ministry program in which groups of young Catholics in the armed services can work together to strengthen their faith.
And in Washington, D.C., we are also providing financial support for a new headquarters for the Military Archdiocese, and a residence for bishops and priests working there. $1.1 million will come from earnings from the Knights of Columbus Military Vicariate Fund.
We have also printed another 100,000 copies of our special Catholic prayer book for the military, called Armed with the Faith. That brings the total to 300,000 copies, and we'll soon be printing 50,000 Spanish language copies.
The Knights of Columbus have been serving the spiritual and social needs of the armed forces ever since 1916, and we regard it as one of our highest and most important priorities.
Over the past year, many Knights have given the last full measure of devotion to their country. Please join me in standing as I read the names of our brother Knights who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the war against terrorism since last year's Supreme Convention. They are:
Army Private First Class Raymond Faulstich, Jr., a Squire from Leonardstown, Maryland; Army National Guard Specialist Derrick J. Lutters, Council 1993 in Burlington, Colorado; Army Specialist Christopher A Merville, Council 4227 in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Army Sergeant Benjamin C. Morton, Council 1862 in Wright, Kansas; Marine Corps Lance Corporal Neil D. Petsche, Council 4776 in Lena, Illinois; and Army 1st Lieutenant Aaron N. Seesan, Council 9666 in Kings Point, N.Y.
Culture of Life-Strengthening Marriage
In our ongoing effort to build a Culture of Life, there is good news, and there is some that's not so good.
The news from Villa Maria Guadalupe is always good. The international pro-life retreat center we opened last year and now operate with the wonderful Sisters of Life has really "come to life" since its dedication last October. This year, the sisters have hosted a wide variety retreats. And Connecticut Knights have been spending many weekends at the center in Stamford, helping to renovate it. During the June meeting of state deputies, the wives spent a day at the center. Villa Maria will be increasingly important in the worldwide pro-life movement for years to come.
We Knights of Columbus have been at the forefront of the battle against abortion, and on behalf of creating a Culture of Life, for 32 years. There have been disappointments and setbacks during that time, and most of them have come from court decisions, beginning with Roe v. Wade and continuing through a series of decisions that have upheld it and even expanded upon it.
In 1973, the Supreme Court created out of whole cloth a "right" to extinguish the life of an innocent unborn child. And in the process, it seized for itself, a power that no one has a right to exercise. And at every turn, relying on Roe v Wade, courts at all levels have refused to allow laws that would limit abortions, even including that sickening procedure called partial birth abortion.
Last year, Mississippi adopted a law limiting abortions after the first trimester. Two months ago, a federal judge struck it down.
In 2003, Virginia adopted a law banning partial birth abortion. Two months ago, a federal appeals court struck it down.
Earlier this year, Idaho adopted a law requiring parental consent for women under 18 seeking an abortion. Last month, a federal court struck it down.
And in 2003, the United States Congress passed and President Bush signed a federal partial birth abortion ban. And last month, a federal appeals court struck it down, That court, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, said this: "Neither we, nor Congress, are free to disagree with the Supreme Court's determination."
My brother Knights, we however remain free to disagree. And since we are holding this year's convention in Illinois, permit me to quote Abraham Lincoln. As he took the oath of office in March of 1861, the first shots of the Civil War were just a few weeks away. In his inaugural address, Lincoln referred to that other awful Supreme Court decision in our history, Dred Scott, in which the justices decided that black Americans did not have constitutional rights.
Said Lincoln: "if the policy of the Government upon vital questions affecting the whole people is to be irrevocably fixed by decisions of the Supreme Court ... the people will have ceased to be their own rulers."
More than 40 million unborn children have died over the past three decades because six judges would rather cling to the disastrous legal precedent of Roe v. Wade than reverse it.
Now, for the first time in eleven years, there is a vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court. Justice O'Connor, who has resigned, was invariably among those who voted to uphold Roe v. Wade. Her departure provides us an opportunity.
President Bush has nominated Judge John G. Roberts to fill this vacancy. When he announced his choice two weeks ago, the President reminded us that he had searched for "a person of superb credentials and the highest integrity; a person who will faithfully apply the Constitution and keep our founding promise of equal justice under law." In Judge Roberts, the President has nominated a man who has all of those qualifications.
I am not saying all this because it happens that Judge Roberts and I served together in the White House in the 1980s. I say it because if I were to bring to the court a matter of life-or-death, I could not hope to find a judge who is more fair and more compassionate than Judge John Roberts.
Judge Roberts deserves a fair and expeditious hearing and a straight up-or-down vote in the United States Senate. And most important of all, neither he nor any other nominee to the Supreme Court should be blocked because he refuses to submit to a pro-abortion litmus test!
It is also worth remembering that although no other issue carries the same life-or-death weight as abortion does, the Supreme Court will also be deciding other issues that have great importance to us as Knights and as faithful Catholic citizens. A tremendous struggle is going on in the courts over same-sex "marriage," which has already been imposed on the people of Massachusetts by a state supreme court ruling that can only be described as bizarre. And even more troubling, a federal judge in Nebraska has struck down that state's constitutional amendment defining marriage as being between a man and a woman.
Earlier this year, we strongly supported the successful drive, led by Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, to pass a state constitutional amendment protecting marriage in Kansas, and last year we joined the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in backing the Federal Marriage Amendment. This year, we have worked closely with the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops in opposing legislation in Parliament that would legalize same-sex marriage throughout Canada. There, too, the courts have been a serious problem. Courts in eight of the ten provinces of Canada had already used a bizarre interpretation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to overturn the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman. And that gave lots of momentum to the drive to legalize same-sex marriage in Ottawa. Canadian Knights distributed two million postcards to citizens throughout Canada, who mailed them to their members of Parliament, expressing their support for traditional marriage. But a majority of the MPs ignored them, just as legislators in our own home state of Connecticut ignored the 100,000 signatures on a petition opposing same-sex civil unions that were gathered by Connecticut Knights. They also ignored the strong opposition expressed by our Supreme Chaplain, Bishop Lori, and Archbishop Mansell of Hartford.
Father McGivney would have been shocked had he known that a century down the road, his Knights would find themselves having to fight in the courts and the legislatures to protect innocent human life and traditional marriage against the onslaughts of an out-of-control judiciary and an increasingly secular society.
We Knights of Columbus pledge to do everything in our power to end abortion, protect innocent life and traditional marriage.
God's Special Ppeople
The support provided by the Knights of Columbus for people with intellectual and physical disabilities is legendary. Over the past 30 years, we have raised and donated more than $382 million to programs for the intellectually and physically disabled.
Among the larger gifts of time and money we make annually is to Special Olympics and other programs for people with disabilities. Combined gifts in these categories totaled more than $17 million in 2004.
Earlier this year we announced a new partnership with Special Olympics. We committed $1 million over the next four years to grow the programs of Special Olympics in North America. We have pledged more volunteers for state and local games and will work with Special Olympics North America to expand its programs.
This new partnership includes a direct investment in the growth of Special Olympics Mexico. At the Mexico Knights' centennial convention in April, a $50,000 grant from the Knights of Columbus was given to Special Olympics. The grant will provide uniforms, equipment and help organize the games. We are working with Special Olympics to establish similar programs in the Caribbean and the Philippines.
Our commitment to Special Olympics and other programs for people with disabilities is an expression of our respect for the intrinsic worth of every human being.
Last April, we gave our highest honor, the Gaudium et Spes Award, to Jean Vanier, the founder of l'Arche, a network of faith-based communities that care for people with severe developmental disabilities in a community setting. Jean Vanier founded the first community in Toronto in 1969, and today there are 26 communities throughout Canada, serving nearly 500 people. It has also expanded around the world with more than 120 communities in 30 countries on six continents. Jean Vanier exemplifies the call to self-giving and Christ-centered community involvement that is a central theme in Gaudium et Spes. His life and dedication are an inspiration to all of us who devote so much time and effort to helping the disabled through our own councils.
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