NASHVILLE. Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly reminded Knights of Columbus state deputies in a Nov. 5 address that the fraternal order’s founder, Blessed Michael McGivney, was “a man of action.”
“Our founder was not content to watch and lament the struggles of his parishioners and community. He rose to meet those struggles head-on – decisively and courageously,” Kelly said in an address during the semiannual meeting of state deputies held in Nashville Nov. 5-7.
Speaking to the leaders of nearly 70 jurisdictions, he encouraged them to grow in faith, expand the fraternal order’s membership, and advance the mission established by Blessed McGivney.
“A lot of men, especially young men, are looking for meaning and answers,” Kelly said. “We offer both – a life of service and a life of meaning. Don’t just encourage men to adopt our initiatives; explain to them why our initiatives matter, and how the Knights can help them be the kind of men God is calling them to be.”
Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, the Knights’ supreme chaplain, also addressed the state deputies, telling them that “our debt to Father McGivney is incalculable.”
“Without him, countless Catholic men would have lost their faith and countless families would have been set adrift,” he said. “Because of his holiness, barriers such as time, place and culture dissolve. He accompanies us on our journey of faith today, wherever we may be, no less than he accompanied his 19th-century parishioners of St. Mary’s in New Haven (Connecticut).”
Archbishop Lori added, “When we venerate Blessed McGivney throughout our jurisdictions, we are inviting him to smile upon us from his place in heaven, and more than that, we are inviting him to visit us in our need.”
In brief remarks following the Mass, Kelly launched the Knights’ new two-year pilgrim icon prayer program, inspired by “Patris Corde” (“With a Father’s Heart”), Pope Francis’ apostolic letter announcing the Year of St. Joseph, which began Dec. 8, 2020.
