Brother Knights,

 This year the Kansas Knights of Columbus is focusing on the spiritual growth of all individuals in our jurisdiction's boundaries. As part of this we are encouraging the study of the lives of holy men and women that came before us. While these individuals may have faced very different challenges and cultures than we do currently, we will discover many parallels between these holy men and women and ourselves. Each of these reflections will be created by individuals in our own state. They will follow the rough format of one paragraph dedicated to the history of the holy man or woman followed by one paragraph dedicated to how that individual's life can influence our lives today. Each reflection will end with a small, concrete challenge in which we can grow in the practices of our faith. These challenges are intended to be concrete and manageable. I encourage you to find time in your busy schedule to prioritize growing your faith.

     St Thomas More was born in 1478 son of Barrister and Judge John More and his wife Agnes. He received a classical education and at age 13 became the protégé of Archbishop John Morton. He was a knowledgeable, honest and faithful scholar. He served his country as a Barrister, Honest Judge, Lord Chancellor and in 1523 became Speaker of the House of Commons.

Moore considered himself a loyal friend of the king. But circumstances came about where King Henry VIII required total and absolute loyalty to him and considered himself in full and total control of the Church in England, directing all to repudiate any foreign authority, prince or Potentate by oath. Rather than publicly oppose the king, More resigned his position, but when he refused to take the oath he was arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London.

During St Thomas’s incarceration friends and family members including his wife attempted to coax him into changing his course of action, his answer to her was “My good woman, you are no good at doing business. Do you really want me to exchange eternity for twenty years?” After fifteen months More, was put on trial and convicted on the basis of perjured testimony. He denied that Parliament had the authority to set up a temporal head of the Church. He Prayed, “that though the lordships have now here on earth been judges of my condemnation, we may yet hereafter in heaven merrily all meet together to everlasting salvation.”
St Thomas was executed on July 6, 1535, he displayed his characteristic wit, asking for the executioner’s help in ascending the scaffold: “As for my coming down, let me shift for myself.” Addressing the gathered crowd, he spoke: I die in and for the faith of the Holy Catholic Church. Pray for me in this world, and I shall pray for you in that world. Pray for the king that it please God to send him good counselors. I die as the king’s servant, but God’s first.”

Thomas More was canonized a Saint in 1935. In 2000 was declared “ The heavenly patron of statesmen and politicians.” His life teaches us that government is above all an exercise of virtue. Unwavering in this rigorous stance, this English statesman placed his own public activity at the service of the person, especially if that person was weak of poor; he dealt with social controversies with superb sense of fairness; he was vigorously committed to favoring and defending the family; he supported the all-round education of the young. He devoted his entire life of work to God and neighbor.

With our general election upon us in just a few short weeks my challenge to you is to seek the intercession of St Thomas More and all the saints and pray the our newly elected official may have the same commitments he had in his public life.

Ray Rodriguez
Faith Formation & Evangelization Chairman

Our goal is to strengthen our men and their families in the faith. when we entered the order, we were reminded to constantly inform ourselves in the Catholic faith. This formation goes beyond mere facts or religious practice to an authentic connection with a loving god and his son Jesus Christ. Programs in this category are designed to draw us closer to god and the Church in a tangible and meaningful way — whether through helping the future shepherds of the mother Church, quiet contemplation in a spiritual reflection program, or honoring Mary, mother of God. These programs should strive to arm us for the spiritual battle that our men and families face daily.

Spiritual Reflection

Create annual opportunities for prayer and reflection as a fraternity. Many Catholic young people can attest that religious retreats are radically rejuvenating spiritual events that often leave a lasting impact on participants’ relationship to their faith. Yet, so often, retreats seem only to be open to students and youth. Under the guidance of their chaplain, councils can attend a retreat or day of reflection together or perhaps organize their own event for the men of their parish. Councils and jurisdictions can also hold low-cost retreats of their own. These events might be open only to council members or men of the parish — or may be open to entire families. If councils are unable to organize these events themselves, they could go as a
group and attend a retreat in their area to satisfy the requirement. Council participation in spiritual reflection is required to qualify for the Columbian award.

Refund Support Vocations Program (RSVP)

Keep the faith alive by supporting our seminarians and postulants. As the strong right arm of the church, Knights of Columbus are committed to providing moral, financial and spiritual support to our future priests and religious at all stages of their formation. A featured program, RSVP counts for two credits toward the Columbian award. Through this program, council and parish families will raise funds to support seminarians or religious in formation, in their area. For every $500 donated to an individual, the supreme Council will refund $100 back to the council — up to a maximum of $400 (four individuals) per council per fraternal year. Though financial support is vitally important, it is not the only aspect of the RSVP program. Councils are also called to provide their “adopted” seminarian or religious with moral support and prayers for their success. The request form #2863 is in the council report form booklet and posted on the Kansas State Council website. This form must be submitted before June 30. All the official rules are found on the back of the #2863 request form. If your council does not donate the $500.00 to a single seminarian or religious, you still need to fill out this form. If you adopted a seminarian or religious you are still eligible for a plaque, or the current year plate, to be put on the plaque you already have.

Into the Breach

Deepen member spirituality and formation to combat crisis of religious faith in our world. In his apostolic exhortation, Into the Breach, Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted outlines the challenges faced by men of faith in the world today. Into the Breach is a call to battle for Catholic men which urges them to wholeheartedly embrace masculine virtues in a world at crisis. Councils will institute men’s study groups to read the apostolic exhortation Into the Breach and use copies of the Into the Breach Booklet and Study Guide as a resource. By reading and discussing Bishop Olmsted’s inspirational words and the accompanying study guide with like-minded men of faith, councils will prayerfully examine the enormous breach in the battle line that lies before them. in doing so, they will begin to devise a personal plan of spiritual battle.

Marian Icon Prayer Program

Spread devotion to Our Lady through the Marian Icon Prayer Program. As the new Marian Icon pilgrimages through the jurisdiction, councils will host a prayer service at their parish. Like its predecessors, the program features a unique Marian image that is renewed with a new icon approximately every two years. Each Knights of Columbus jurisdiction receives several Marian images, which serve as the centerpieces for prayer services conducted in churches and council meeting places throughout the order for the duration of the initiative. Previous Orderwide Marian Prayer Programs have gathered more than 16 million people together at 140,000 prayer services.

Building the Domestic Church Kiosk

Help strengthen the domestic church (our families) by providing exceptional religious education materials to all Catholics. Building the Domestic Church Kiosks (#BDC-K) contain engaging, faith-based literature and are available for councils to distribute to members, parishioners, and the general public. By organizing activities in their parishes, councils will educate and evangelize using the rich resources found in the Catholic information service (CIS) Building the Domestic Church series of booklets. For $150, councils will receive a Building the Domestic Church Kiosk(#BDC-K) and the first set of 225 booklets of the most popular CIS resources, aimed at helping Catholics to live out the Church’s vision for our families.

Rosary Program

Build faithful families and communities by praying the rosary. This program encourages devotion to Mary, the patroness of our Order, and emphasizes the importance of prayer in community and as a family. The Rosary Program encourages councils to schedule regular rosary prayer services on any day of the week, at any time of the year, with the guidance of their pastor. Councils should personally invite each family of the parish and offer attending families a copy of the Knights of Columbus Catholic information service’s A Scriptural Rosary for the Family (#319). encourage families to read this booklet and learn how their faith can be strengthened through a devotion to Our Lady, while praying the rosary at home together regularly. Kits with rosary rings, rosary prayer guides, and leader books are available for councils to order by visiting supplies online through the officers online Portal.

Holy Hour

Encourage deep personal encounter with god. The chivalric character of the Knights of Columbus and the Church’s long tradition of spiritual combat resonate with men today — especially as threats from the world and the devil are so keenly felt. Eucharistic adoration in the form of a regularly scheduled Holy Hour is a simple, direct, and meaningful way to address these needs. It is familiar to many, easy to organize, and something everyone can participate in together regardless of age, vocation, stage of life or membership status. Councils can organize their Holy Hours in a variety of ways and incorporate aspects such as: perpetual adoration, the sacrament of reconciliation, prayer for particular intentions and more. a Knights of Columbus Holy Hour, prepared for the men of the parish, could include a reflection, communal rosary, prayers for intercession by Father McGivney or St. Joseph, and various other aspects as decided by the council.

Sacramental Gifts

Support families during the most important events in the life of the domestic church: the sacraments. The sacraments stand as the most significant events in the life of the domestic church. The Knights of Columbus will be there to support and embrace our parish families at these essential moments of encounter with Christ. Councils will play an integral role in these momentous faith events and the lives of our families and parish community through prayer and the presentation of symbolic gifts. As children and adult members become more integrated into the life of the church and their parish, they should know that members of the Knights of Columbus will always be present in a tangible and meaningful way, regardless of who else is there for them.

Faith Activity of the Year

The Faith Activity Scrapbook Award will be given to the council which has the best Faith Activity Project. Each Council should prepare a scrapbook. Start saving your pictures, articles, notes and a detailed description, and send in scrapbook form NO LATER THAN APRIL 1. The State winner will be forwarded and entered in the Supreme Service Awards Program.

Fr. Kapaun’s Men

Kapaun’s Men are men who are committed to fighting the great spiritual battle that rages around us. We are a band of brothers who do not fight alone. Jesus Christ is our strength and our leader. Father Kapaun is our friend and guide. A true Servant Leader, Father Kapaun epitomized Christian manhood and challenged his men to do the same. We desire to emulate his virtues and so become better husbands, fathers, leaders, and friends.

If you or a group of men are interested in joining Kapaun’s Men please click on the following link.
https://frkapaun.org/