“Today, the Knights of Columbus is providentially positioned to play a key role in the new alliance between the Church and the family called for by Pope Francis … What is necessary now is our greater involvement in the renewal of parish and family life.”
-Supreme Knight Carl Anderson

“It is in the parish that one becomes engaged with the Church community, learns how to become a disciple of Christ, is nurtured by Scripture, is nourished by the sacraments, and ultimately becomes an evangelizer. Successful evangelization and catechetical initiatives must be focused on the parish.”
- USCCB

Through the Orderwide Building the Domestic Church initiative, Knights and their families have greater opportunities to participate in a variety of activities that promote the New Evangelization, strengthen our parishes and grow the Order.

Building the Domestic Church

Knights of Columbus has always been an organization dedicated to the well-being and support of Catholic family life. The family is the first and primary place where we experience and are formed in our Catholic faith. By building upon our current programs and activities, the Knights of Columbus continues to promote the family as a ”domestic church” where husbands and wives, parent and children, grow in their knowledge and practice of the Catholic Faith. In order to perform its important mission of evangelization, each family needs to find support in the sacramental life of the parish.

Strengthening our Parishes

Knights of Columbus councils have always responded to the most urgent needs of the Church, particularly through charitable and social outreach. In order to support the evangelization of family life today, our councils must be even more fully integrated into our parishes. As the world’s largest Catholic fraternal and family organization, we have a responsibility to dedicate our time, talent and resources to ensuring that our parishes our beacons of the new evangelization.

Domestic Church Activities

The following programs currently carry the “Domestic Church” activity designation. These may also be counted towards your Columbian Award application.

• Family Rosary Program
• Consecration to the Holy Family
• Family Fully Alive Devotional Program
• Family Week Celebrations
• Father’s Day Affirmation of Wedding Vows
• Food for Families
• Holy Family Prayer Program
• Journey to the Inn
• Keep Christ in Christmas Campaign
• Into the Breach
• CIS - Building the Domestic Church Series
• Simple Supper & Stations

In order to highlight the importance of this initiative and its impact on our mission, the Supreme Council has announced that this year, at least four major council programs must be designated as “Domestic Church” activities in order to earn the Columbian Award.

Council Action Plan