columbia march 2016

MARCH 2016MARCH 2016

COLUMBIACOLUMBIAKNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS

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We put our money whereour faith is.

We do not invest in companies that deal in abortions, contraception,human cloning, embryonic stem-cell research, for-profit health care

that pays for any of the aforementioned, or pornography.

L I F E I N S U R A N C E D I S A B I L I T Y I N S U R A N C E L O N G - T E R M CA R E I N S U R A N C E R E T I R E M E N T A N N U I T I E S

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KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS

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M a r C h 2 0 1 6 ♦ V o l u M e 9 6 ♦ N u M b e r 3

D E P A R T M E N T SBuilding a better worldCouncils can strengthen Catholicfamily life through our prayer pro-gram and consecration to the HolyFamily.BY SUPREME KNIGHT CARL A. ANDERSON

Fathers for GoodAn interview about the U.S. bish-ops’ new pastoral statement onpornography.BY BRIAN CAULFIELD

Culture of LifePublic opinion and a new pro-lifegeneration stand opposed to thetragic legacy of abortion on demand.BY ARCHBISHOP CHARLES J. CHAPUT

Knights in Action

Learning the faith, living the faithAmid both difficulties and joys, thevocation of marriage and family is acall to reflect the love of God.BY SUPREME CHAPLAIN

ARCHBISHOP WILLIAM E. LORI

PLUS: Catholic Man of the Month

Knights of Columbus NewsNFL Hall of Famers Help Distrib-ute Coats Before Super Bowl •Knights Lead 51st InternationalEucharistic Congress

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Surviving IsisPartnering with medical clinics in Iraq, the Order assistsrefugees persecuted for their faith.BY ELIZABETH HANSEN

Bishop of the Last FrontierServing the geographically largest U.S. diocese involvesimmense challenges and blessings.BY ROBERT HANNON

A Witness in WinterDespite the forecast of a historic blizzard, tens of thousandsgathered in Washington for the annual March for Life.BY ALTON J. PELOWSKI

Pilgrimage to the Millet CrossFor 90 years, New York Knights have honored the mission-ary and patriotic heritage of Old Fort Niagara.BY KEVIN T. DI CAMILLO

The Radiant Charity of Madre NatiMexico’s first female saint is an eloquent witness of lovefor Christ and the poor.BY J.D. LONG-GARCÍA

The Father Millet Cross, which was dedicated at Fort Niagara in1926 thanks to the Knights of Columbus in New York State, is pic-tured with the Toronto skyline in the distance.

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EDITORIAL

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COLUMBIAPUBLISHER

Knights of Columbus________

SUPREME OFFICERSCarl A. AndersonSUPREME KNIGHT

Most Rev. William E. Lori, S.T.D.SUPREME CHAPLAINLogan T. Ludwig

DEPUTY SUPREME KNIGHTCharles E. Maurer Jr.SUPREME SECRETARY

Michael J. O’ConnorSUPREME TREASURERJohn A. MarrellaSUPREME ADVOCATE

________

EDITORIALAlton J. Pelowski

EDITORAndrew J. MattMANAGING EDITOR

Anna BninskiASSOCIATE EDITOR

________

Venerable Michael McGivney (1852-90)Apostle to the Young,

Protector of Christian Family Life andFounder of the Knights of Columbus,

Intercede for Us.________

HOW TO REACH USMAIL

COLUMBIA1 Columbus Plaza

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203-752-4210, option #3PRAYER CARDS & SUPPLIES

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Membership in the Knights of Columbus is open to men 18 years of age or older who are practical (that is, practicing)Catholics in union with the Holy See. This means that anapplicant or member accepts the teaching authority of theCatholic Church on matters of faith and morals, aspires tolive in accord with the precepts of the Catholic Church,

and is in good standing in the Catholic Church.________

Copyright © 2016All rights reserved

________

ON THE COVERThe Blessed Sacrament is carried through the

streets of Cebu City, Philippines, accompanied by more than 1.5 million people during the

International Eucharistic Conference Jan 29.

Prayer Time: A Collection of Catholic Prayers The booklet Prayer Time: A Collection of Catholic Prayers (#309)is an invaluable resource for growing in faith and devotion. Partof the Veritas Series published by the Order’s Catholic Infor-mation Service, it includes numerous traditional prayers anddevotions, prayers for various intentions, helps from the Cate-chism, guidance on the sacrament of reconciliation and familyprayer, and more. To download or order this and other Catholicresources, visit kofc.org/cis.

EACH YEAR, the Mass readings forthe Thursday after Ash Wednesdayfocus less on repentance and fastingthan on a fundamental choice. Mosesspeaks to the people of Israel at thethreshold of the Promised Land, urg-ing them to follow the command-ments and flee from idolatry: “I haveset before you life and death, blessingand curse. Choose life, then, that youand your descendants may live” (Dt30:19). In the Gospel reading, Jesuschallenges his listeners, “If anyonewishes to come after me, he must denyhimself and take up his cross daily andfollow me. For whoever wishes to savehis life will lose it, but whoever loseshis life for my sake will save it” (Lk9:23-24). In each case, there are twoalternative paths — one that leads tolife and one that leads to death.

St. John Paul II also recognized aclear choice between life and death inthe moral and spiritual challenges ofour time. He wrote in his encyclicalEvangelium Vitae that we are “in themidst of” a great conflict, that “we arefacing an enormous and dramatic clashbetween good and evil, death and life,the ‘culture of death’ and the ‘culture oflife’” (28). In turn, Pope Francis has notonly adopted this language regarding aclash of “cultures,” but has expanded it.

In addition to the “culture ofdeath,” Pope Francis has often referredto a “throwaway culture” that sees theweak and defenseless as disposable; a“culture of relativism,” which “drivesone person to take advantage of an-other, to treat others as mere objects”

(Laudato Si’, 123); and the “globaliza-tion of indifference” toward God andneighbor. He has further decried a“culture of the provisional” that seesnothing as definitive and a “culture ofcomfort, which makes us think of onlyourselves” (Homily, July 8, 2013). Inresponse, the Holy Father has calledon the Church to build an authentic“culture of encounter” and a “cultureof solidarity, mercy and compassion.”

When seen together, it becomesclear that the choice presented byMoses, the Lord’s invitation to carryone’s cross and follow him, and theconflicting “cultures” today are allclosely related. Each comes down to achoice: Do we recognize that we arecreated by God for communion withhim and one another, and strive to liveaccordingly, or are we instead resolvedto answer to no one but ourselves?

This issue of Columbia includes sev-eral stories about people who, inspiredby faith, have reached out in charityand made personal sacrifices in re-sponse to the needs of those on themargins of society. In doing so, theybear witness to Christ, who both re-veals the mercy of God the Father and“fully reveals man to man himself ”(Gaudium et Spes, 22). As we celebratethe Paschal Mystery, there is no bettertime to take stock of our relationshipswith God and others, and to recommitourselves to following Christ on thepath to life.♦

ALTON J. PELOWSKI

EDITOR

On the Path to Life

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BUILDING A BETTER WORLD

M A R C H 2 0 1 6 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 3

Consecration and RenewalCouncils can strengthen Catholic family life

through our prayer program and consecration to the Holy Family

by Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson

IN MY COLUMN last month, I relateda part of the conversation the supremechaplain and I had with Pope Francisregarding our Order’s new emphasis onstrengthening Catholic family life.

During the last fraternal year, we im-plemented a new family life program ti-tled Building the Domestic Church:The Family Fully Alive. Each month, itprovides prayers, Scripture readings andmeditations for families on different as-pects of the domestic church and rec-ommends charitable activitiesthat councils can sponsor. Atlast August’s Supreme Conven-tion, we began our 17th Order-wide rosary-based pilgrim iconprayer program — this yeardedicated to the Holy Family.

Then, at the midyear StateDeputies meeting, I an-nounced an important newinitiative: Building the DomesticChurch While Strengthening OurParish. It encourages councils to spon-sor programs promoting Catholic fam-ily life while integrating their activitiesmore closely into the life of their parish.

Last month, I asked that the openingMass at all state conventions this yearinclude an act of family consecration tothe Holy Family. This should becomean essential part of our family life pro-grams, and should move from stateconvention Masses to the parisheswhere our local councils are based.

The response of Pope Francis and ofmany bishops and priests to these pro-grams has been greatly encouraging, andI now take this opportunity to announceanother expansion of our initiative.

Our Holy Family Prayer Programhas met with such success that weshould take it to a new level. I haveasked our state deputies and statechaplains to continue our Holy Fam-ily Prayer Program in local parishes,but also to select one Saturday thisOctober to offer the program as adiocesan-wide event, and to invite allCatholic families.

The diocesan-wide event should re-tain the rosary, papal meditations on

family life, and the litany to the HolyFamily that is already a part of theparish-based prayer program. But itshould be expanded to include recita-tion of the new act of family consecra-tion to the Holy Family and solemnBenediction of the Blessed Sacrament.

State councils should begin now tomake preparations for this diocesan-wide Holy Family Prayer Program.State chaplains should also assist in se-lecting a suitable parish in each dioceseand in coordinating the event with thelocal bishop.

Recently, Pope Francis reminded usthat the Church continues to proposemarriage “not as an ideal only for afew” but as “a reality that can be expe-rienced by all the baptized faithful.”

This is precisely the idea of ourprogram. Every family can benefit,and every family should be invited toparticipate.

One of the great lessons of the re-cent World Meeting of Families inPhiladelphia was that millions of fam-ilies can be helped by coming together

in solidarity with and foreach other.

What is also necessary foran effective evangelization offamily life is for Catholic fam-ilies to realize that the princi-ples of charity, unity andfraternity apply also to themas families. This is one of thekeys to understanding the

family as a “domestic church.”There is no Catholic organization

better positioned today to assist in therenewal of family life than the Knightsof Columbus. But the realization ofthis goal will require the renewed ded-ication of our local councils.

A renewal of Catholic family life canbegin with a simple plan: the consecra-tion of millions of Catholic families tothe Holy Family and their dedicationto living as a domestic church withintheir parish communities.

The Knights of Columbus can beginto make this happen. With the interces-sion of Our Lady of Guadalupe and ourvenerable founder, Father McGivney,let us begin!

Vivat Jesus!

Millions of families can behelped by coming together

in solidarity with and for each other.


LEARNING THE FAITH, LIVING THE FAITH

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THE SECOND VATICAN Counciltaught that “authentic married love iscaught up into divine love and is di-rected and enriched by the redemptivepower of Christ and the salvific actionof the Church” (Gaudium et Spes, 48).To some, this might sound idealistic,out of touch with the daily challengesof living the vocation of marriage andfamily. People might ask: “Is my lovefor my spouse and my children ‘caughtup into divine love’ when I’m strug-gling to support my family orjust trying to keep peaceamong my children?”There’s no doubt that fami-

lies today face tough chal-lenges. In fact, the vocation ofmarriage and family has alwaysbeen challenging. But the bestway we can defend marriageand family is by living this vo-cation to the fullest.

BUILT ON FAITHMore than 50 years ago, the fathers ofVatican II recognized that marriage wasthreatened by divorce and so-called“free love,” and that “married love istoo often dishonored by selfishness, he-donism, and unlawful contraceptivepractices.” The council also cited theeconomic, social and psychologicalpressures facing families in the modernworld (GS, 47). For the past five decades, societal sup-

port for marriage and family has erodedeven further. But there’s no sense inlonging for the good old days or justcomplaining about the way things are.

Instead, more and more couples mustmake a conscious decision to make theirhomes truly a domestic church — ahome built on the solid rock of faith.Families are made beautiful by a self-giving love that not only endures butflourishes amid sacrifices and sufferings.Such a home, rooted in faith and love,bears witness to Christ and his love forhis people. Such a home bears witnessto the beauty and nobility of the voca-tion of marriage.

As the cultural erosion of authenticmarriage continues, one thing mightbe clearer than ever: A couple cannotgo it alone. There’s really no way to livethe vocation of marriage without get-ting caught up into divine love. Farfrom being a starry-eyed notion, this isthe only way to transform life’s suffer-ings and inconveniences into momentsof grace. In the famous words of Jesuit Father

Pedro Arrupe, “Nothing is more prac-tical than finding God, that is, thanfalling in love in a quite absolute, finalway.” When a couple has fallen in love,not only with each other but withGod in this absolute and final way,they will come to see even the most

difficult moments of life as an invita-tion to love God more deeply and tobear witness to his love “in season andout of season, whether convenient orinconvenient” (cf. 2 Tm 4:2).

SAVING MYSTERIESThis leads me to offer a suggestion to all

families attracted to the idea ofliving as a “domestic church,” andof having their all-too-humanlove caught up and transformedby divine love. It’s not novel butit is powerful, and it’s somethingalmost every family can do. Mysuggestion is that we, as familiesand as a family of faith, go to theSource of the divine love we share

by taking part in the Church’s liturgicalcelebrations during Holy Week.I can almost hear objections: “My

kids will never sit still that long.”“Don’t you know what it means just toget my family to church on Sunday?”“How will my 13-year-old manage tosit through a two-and-a-half hourEaster Vigil?” Formidable objections,all! And it’s true that I probably don’thave a realistic idea of how hard it is,especially for young families, to spendthat much time in church, even if theseare the holiest days in the year! Afterall, the only things I have to pack upare my crozier and miter, not a diaperbag, blankets or toys. Nonetheless, letme stand my ground.

Caught Up Into Divine LoveAmid both difficulties and joys,

the vocation of marriage and family is a call to reflect the love of God

by Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William E. Lori

Go to the Source of the divine love we share by takingpart in the Church’s liturgical celebrations during Holy Week.


Offered inSolidarity withPope Francis

LEARNING THE FAITH, LIVING THE FAITH

HOLY FATHER’SPRAYER INTENTIONS

UNIVERSAL: That families inneed may receive the necessarysupport and that children maygrow up in healthy and peacefulenvironments.

EVANGELIZATION: That thoseChristians who, on account oftheir faith, are discriminatedagainst or are being persecuted,may remain strong and faithful tothe Gospel, thanks to the incessantprayer of the Church.

CATHOLIC MAN OF THE MONTH

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Holy Week and Easter are not just acollection of solemn ceremonies. This isthe time when the Church re-lives andvividly reenacts all that our Redeemerdid to bring about our salvation — theLord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem,the Last Supper with his Apostles, hissuffering and death on the Cross, andthe victory of his Resurrection. We notonly recall but also encounter palpablyGod’s utterly generous, self-giving love— that divine love which must enfoldour marriages and families. HolyWeek, and specifically the EasterTriduum, is the apex of the Church’s

liturgical year and brings us, again andagain, to the epicenter of the Church’sfaith. Here is where our baptismal callto love is nurtured; where my vocationas a priest is renewed; where the voca-tion of marriage and family is caughtup into Christ’s sacrificial love for hisBride, the Church.So, how can you and your house-

hold prepare to take part in these litur-gical celebrations? There’s no magicformula, but I do think it’s helpful if,during Lent, getting ready for HolyWeek becomes a family project. Forparents, this might mean reading in

advance the prayers and Scripturereadings for Holy Week and meditat-ing for a few moments each day onwhat the Lord has done to save us.There are also many online and printresources to help parents teach theirchildren about the events of HolyWeek and about what to anticipate inthe liturgy itself.So with that, I wish you and your

family a blessed Holy Week and aHappy Easter. May you and yourhousehold truly rejoice to be caught upinto the self-giving love of our cruci-fied and risen Redeemer!♦

THE OLDEST of three children,Luigi Rocchi was born in Rome onFeb. 19, 1932. Two years later, his par-ents, a mechanic and a homemaker,moved north to Tolentino, where Roc-chi would live with them for the restof his life.A lively boy who loved to play

games, Rocchi struggled to run and atage 4 was diagnosed with musculardystrophy. Though a strong student,constant falls later forced Rocchi toleave high school. At age 20, Rocchientered into a long period of crisis asthe disease confined him to a wheel-chair. Having always yearned to marryand have a family, he now saw himselfas a “nothing.”Then, at age 28, he met Giulio, a

man who was twisted by arthritis intoa “human ball of yarn” and yet radiatedserenity and joy. Rocchi later wrote thatthis encounter, together with the wordshis mother spoke to him every night —“Luigino, Jesus loves you” — openedhis heart. “I don’t care if I’m healed onthe outside, heal me on the inside,” herecalled praying to Our Lady at thetime. “Don’t let me be a man for my-self, make me a man for others.”

In time, Rocchi embraced his suffer-ing as a gift and a mission. Typing witha stick fastened to his forehead, hewrote over 1,700 personal letters ofcounsel and consolation to people whosought meaning in their suffering. Healso wrote articles, gave weekly radioaddresses and received a constantstream of visitors who were drawn tohis humility, courage and wisdom. “Iam not a hero, or a saint,” he wrote.“I’m only someone who has put him-self in God’s hands, believes in his loveand lets himself be led.” Luigi Rocchi died at age 47 on

March 26, 1979, and was declaredVenerable by Pope Francis on April 3,2014.♦

Venerable Luigi Rocchi (1932-1979)

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KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS NEWS

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NFL Hall of Famers Help Distribute Coats Before Super Bowl

ONE YEAR AFTER Pope Francis made his historic visitto the Philippines in January 2015, the nation hosted the51st International Eucharistic Congress in Cebu City,Jan. 24-31. Archbishop Jose Palma of Cebu, a member ofthe Knights for nearly 40 years, served as the host of thecongress.Bringing together some 15,000 official delegates fromaround the world, the congress featured presentations byclergy and leading theologians, catechetical sessions, youthrallies, visits to local parishes and charitable outreach to thepoor, the imprisoned and those still suffering from the dev-astating effects of Typhoon Haiyan in 2013. A number ofmembers of the hierarchy who are also longtime Knightsof Columbus delivered addresses, including Cardinal LuisAntonio Tagle of Manila, Cardinal Orlando Quevedo ofCotabato, and Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York. Among the highlights of the weeklong gathering was anevening torchlight eucharistic procession with more than1.5 million participants stretching over five kilometers.Earlier in the week, 5,000 children received their first holyCommunion.With more than 350,000 members of the Knights ofColumbus in the predominantly Catholic country, Knightswere a visible presence as hundreds served as congress del-egates and many others were key figures in the Masses, pre-sentations, processions and publicity. In addition, theSupreme Council was a major sponsor of the congress, pro-viding funding for the satellite uplink that broadcast theproceedings worldwide and for the publication of a daily

newspaper and other media materials that were providedfree to all participants.In a satellite telecast that was broadcast at the conclusionof the congress, Pope Francis said, “The theme of the Eu-charistic Congress — ‘Christ in You, Our Hope of Glory’— is very timely. It reminds us that the risen Jesus is alwaysalive and present in his Church, above all in the Eucharist.… It is also a summons to go forth, as missionaries, tobring the message of the Father’s tenderness, forgivenessand mercy to every man, woman and child. How much ourworld needs this message!”♦

Knights Lead 51st International Eucharistic Congress

On Feb. 1, the Monday before the Super Bowl, California Knights of Columbus and Supreme Advocate John Marrella joined Football Hall ofFamers Anthony Muñoz (Cincinnati Bengals) and Dave Casper (Oakland Raiders); Raiders Head Coach Jack Del Rio and his wife, Linda;and several current NFL players and coaches to distribute new coats to more than 270 needy students of Our Lady of the Visitacion School inSan Francisco. Sponsors of the Knights of Columbus Coats for Kids event included Catholic Athletes for Christ, the Raiders Foundation, theJack and Linda Del Rio Foundation and the Anthony Muñoz Foundation. This winter, the Knights of Columbus distributed more than 78,000coats in 1,600 communities throughout the United States and Canada.

A Fourth Degree honor guard accompanies (from left) Cardinal Or-lando Quevedo of Cotabato, papal envoy Cardinal Charles Bo ofYangon, Myanmar, and Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila atthe International Eucharistic Congress in Cebu City, Philippines.


FATHERS FOR GOOD

FIND ADDITIONAL ARTICLES AND RESOURCES FOR CATHOLIC MEN AND THEIR FAMILIES AT FATHERSFORGOOD.ORG.

M A R C H 2 0 1 6 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 7

Thinksto

ck

In November 2015, the U.S. bishops approved a state-ment titled Create in Me a Clean Heart: A Pastoral Re-

sponse to Pornography. Andrew Lichtenwalner, executivedirector of the Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Lifeand Youth for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops,spoke with Fathers for Good editor Brian Caulfield aboutthe statement, which outlines the harms pornography in-flicts on individuals, families and culture, and which offersguidance and hope. Lichtenwalner is a member of SacredHeart Council 2577 in Bowie, Md. For more information,visit usccb.org/cleanheart.

COLUMBIA: Why have the U.S.bishops issued this statement now?

LICHTENWALNER: Pornography hasalways been a challenge, but at notime in history has it been so pervasiveand damaging. The Internet and mo-bile technology make pornographyreadily available not only at home andat work, but virtually anywhere. Itreaches young people and even chil-dren in ways never before possible,and some experts have documented itsaddictive nature. The bishops recognized the serious chal-lenge facing marriages and families, as well as the need fora renewed encounter with Jesus Christ and his mercy.

COLUMBIA: What does the term “pastoral response” mean?LICHTENWALNER: Clean Heart is “pastoral” because the

bishops, as pastors (shepherds), wanted the statement “togive a word of hope and healing to those who have beenharmed by pornography and to raise awareness of its per-vasiveness and harms.” It is primarily addressed to Catholicleaders and parents but also seeks to encourage all who needsupport. Jesus Christ is at the center of the statement, whichseeks to point people to his mercy and healing, through hisChurch, and to the many resources available to help peoplecultivate the virtue of chastity.

COLUMBIA: How should Catholic families use thisstatement?

LICHTENWALNER: All Catholic parents should read it andtake practical steps to protect their home and family. CleanHeart encourages parents to make the home a safe place

and an environment of chastity by being vigilant about theuse of media and technology, educating themselves aboutfiltering software, and fostering openness and trust withtheir children. For men who struggle with pornographyuse, Clean Heart is an encouragement to seek the Lord’smercy in the sacrament of reconciliation and get the helpthey need to fight and win this battle. As the bishops state,“You are not alone in your struggle. ... God’s grace and con-crete help are always available. Healing is always possible.”

COLUMBIA: How should pastors in-troduce the statement to their flocks?

LICHTENWALNER: In addition toreading and praying about it them-selves, a great way for pastors to intro-duce the statement is to share it withall their parish ministry leaders, andwith the pastoral council, perhaps or-ganizing a time to discuss it togetherand think about ways the parish canassist those affected by pornography.The statement could be advertised inthe bulletin, copies could be madeavailable in the church along with

other resources, and prayers for those struggling withpornography could be included in the Prayers of the Faith-ful during Mass. Priests also should have information thatcan be shared in the confessional with those facing habitualpornography use or addiction.

COLUMBIA: Given the pervasiveness of pornography,what practical effect will the letter have?

LICHTENWALNER: As a statement from the body of bish-ops, Clean Heart is a decisive reference point and an en-couragement for all those battling pornography andseeking freedom from its chains. It is a rallying cry thatjoins a growing number of religious leaders as well as non-believers who agree that pornography hurts women, chil-dren and men, damages relationships, and enslaves heartsand minds. Freedom and healing are really possible — oneheart, one marriage, one family, one parish at a time. Mercyand healing are available in Christ and through his Church.There are many good initiatives already underway that de-serve ongoing support, and Clean Heart is a foundation forfurther efforts by the USCCB.♦

A Clean HeartAn interview about the U.S. bishops’ new pastoral statement on pornography

by Brian Caulfield


Partnering with medical clinics in Iraq, the Order assists refugeespersecuted for their faith

by Elizabeth Hansen

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In September 2015, 15-year-old Katreena quickly wonthe hearts of the sisters and elderly residents at her tem-

porary home in Connecticut. A diminutive Iraqi girl withhair long enough to sit on, her quiet and cheerful pres-ence became a mainstay while she served meals at St.Joseph’s Residence in Enfield, Conn. Although Katreenaspeaks little English, she expressed a clear fondness for theLittle Sisters of the Poor. To her, the residence director,Mother Genevieve Regina, was “Sister Mama.”

Katreena’s crutches, though, betrayed the reason for herbrief respite in scenic northern Connecticut: She requiredurgent medical attention beyond what a Slovakian med-ical clinic for refugees in Erbil, Iraq, or Iraqi medicine ingeneral, could provide.

A little over a year earlier, in the summer of 2014, sheand her family fled their home near Mosul, Iraq’s secondlargest city. Together with tens of thousands of otherChristian families, they barely escaped the invasion thatirrevocably changed their lives. Forever seared in theirmemories is the day “ISIS came.”

To assist those affected by the persecution, the Knightsof Columbus launched its Christian Refugee Relief Fundin August 2014 and has since raised more than $8 million.Katreena and her family are among those who have bene-fited, and through a partnership between the Knights andmedical clinics in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, Katreenareceived the life-saving treatment she needed.

Katreena, an Iraqi girl who was injuredwhile fleeing from ISIS with her familyin 2014, is pictured with Dr. ZuzanaDudová in Erbil, Iraq.

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FLIGHT TO ERBIL AND BEYOND“It was peaceful; it was a normal city,” Katreena’s mother,Rajaa, said, describing their middle-class home in the Ninevehregion of Iraq, where Katreena had her own bedroom. Thatwas before militants of the Islamic State, also known as ISISand Daesh, swept through on their way to toppling Mosul. Their neighbor’s two children were killed in the explosions

of bombardment, as was Katreena’s aunt. Katreena immedi-ately fled with her family — her parents, three younger siblings

and grandmother — on a dangerous 50-mile journey, compli-cated by Katreena’s serious medical conditions. Hoping thedisplacement would be short-term, they left everything be-hind; Katreena even left her personal savings in a small “piggybank” in her room.According to the United Nations, more than 600,000 Iraqis

were driven from their homes in June 2014 alone. Many ofthese were Christians, like Katreena’s family, or other religiousminorities who had been targeted by ISIS and told that theymust either convert to Islam, pay a submission tax or leave.Death awaited those who refused. Katreena’s family followedthe mass migration to the city of Erbil in the Kurdistan re-gion of northern Iraq, finding shelter first in a church nave.Now, they are among the lucky families to have a more per-manent living space: one bedroom in a house that they sharewith several other families.Amid the turmoil of fleeing and living in overcrowded con-

ditions, Katreena’s foot became badly infected, exacerbatingher already complicated health issues. By the time she came

Above: Katreena and her mother, Rajaa, are pictured with Little Sistersof the Poor at St. Joseph’s Residence in Enfield, Conn., in October 2015.• Left: Dr. Zuzana Dudová takes the heartbeat of a young child at theClinic of St. Zdenka Schelingová in Erbil, Iraq.


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to the Clinic of St. Zdenka Schelingová, run by a medicalstaff from Slovakia, Katreena’s situation was dire. She neededa lifeline. And in the fall of 2015 — after more than a yearof living as a refugee — she finally got one.Clinic director Dr. Zuzana Dudová, 29, reached out to the

Knights of Columbus for help when she realized that Katreena’scase was beyond the clinic’s capabilities. During the previousspring, the Order began providing support to the Erbil clinicthrough its Christian Refugee Relief Fund.Meanwhile, a hospital had diagnosed Katreena with a failed

kidney. She was literally on the way to have surgery to removethat kidney when her family learned that the Knights couldbring Katreena to the United States for treatment.After she arrived, it became clear that her trip to Connecti-

cut had almost certainly saved her life. It turned out the re-moval of the kidney was unnecessary and doctors warned thathad she had her kidney removed in Iraq as had been planned,the surgery would likely have killed her due to a persistent in-fection that had not been resolved. A month of treatment at the Connecticut Children’s Med-

ical Center in Hartford shed a great deal of light on Katreena’soverall situation, and stabilized her kidney issues. Unwillingto stay in the United States without the rest of her family, sheand her mother returned to Erbil — though she would besorely missed by new friends at the Little Sisters’ home.Given the medical problems she continues to face, Katreena

and her family hope to be able to immigrate to the UnitedStates, where the level of care would be higher and surgeriesand treatments unavailable to her in Iraq would be possible.

MEDICAL MISSION OF MERCYKatreena was able to receive the immediate medical attentionshe needed, but with no foreseeable prospect of returning tothe home from which she and her family were driven, andwith limits of health care infrastructure in Iraq, her future re-mains uncertain. The difficulty of her situation underscoreschallenges faced by many in Iraq today. This is where theheroic efforts of Dr. Dudová and her team come into play.Founded by St. Elizabeth University of Health Care and

Social Work in Bratislava, Slovakia, the team’s two clinics cur-rently serve two different refugee populations. In Erbil, themajority of refugees are Christians; farther northwest inDohuk, the mobile Clinic of Blessed Jerzy Popiełuszko travelsamong the more isolated camps of Yazidi refugees, anotherreligious minority persecuted by ISIS. Since being put in touch with the clinics around Easter

2014, the Knights of Columbus has donated more than$400,000 to fund the bulk of their operations, including thepurchase of medicine and equipment, lab work and salaries.Any extra staff the team can afford is crucial; in addition tomanaging the whole operation, Dudová currently serves as

the only doctor at the Dohuk clinic. The Erbil clinic has onlyone doctor as well. Patients come in a steady, daily stream,and the staff must regularly turn away up to half of them. “Many times, we’re saying to ourselves that it’s already too

much,” Dudová said, describing the overwhelming nature ofher work. “But thanks to God, we continue.”With the media spotlight on Europe’s refugee crisis — the

worst since World War II — the world is starting to pay atten-tion to the wave of displaced men, women and children fleeingtheir war-torn homelands. But Europe is only the tip of the ice-berg. “It’s much worse back in Iraq and Syria,” said Dudová. A native of Slovakia, Dudová had been working as a physi-

cian in Cambodia, serving orphans with HIV. She then cameto Erbil at the end of 2014, right after the massive influx ofrefugees to that region.She intended to stay only a few months; now, more than a

year later, she is certain “this is the right place to be.” Dudováspeaks with a gentle self-assurance about her work, even asshe reflects on the horrors her patients have witnessed and thestress they continue to live through.After more than a year since the refugees’ initial displace-

ment, “people are still living in very miserable conditions,”Dudová explained. For some, ailments such as infectious dis-eases and respiratory problems reflect their overcrowded livingsituations. Others suffer from chronic issues such as diabetesand heart disease.

Katreena stands with Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson in his office atthe Knights of Columbus headquarters in New Haven, Conn.


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Refugees also face the trauma of having been hunted downand run out of their homes, and the despair of facing an inde-terminable amount of time in camps or overcrowded houseswith no way to provide for their families. The psychological ef-fect of falling from relative comfort to refugee status is perhapsmore subtle than maladies like Katreena’s. “But it is affectingthe way they are looking at life,” Dudová said. “They are tired.”The experience of Katreena’s family illustrates a limbo-like

status shared by the other refugees. Their home was embla-zoned with the Arabic letter “nun” — ن — the first letter ofthe word Nasara (meaning “Nazarenes”), which ISIS uses torefer to Christians. Rajaa explained their situation further:There is no way to go home to the Nineveh region, no wayto earn money and very little chance of obtaining a visa toimmigrate to the West. Visibly frustrated, she added, “Whowants to live like that?”

STANDING IN SOLIDARITYDespite the refugees’ hardships, Dudová knows that withoutsupport from the Church — from the local archdiocese togroups such as the Knights of Columbus — the situationwould be drastically worse. “People would be still staying in open spaces without ac-

cess to basic life needs … probably begging in the streets,”Dudová said.

In Erbil, the Knights’ Christian Refugee Relief Fund hashelped to meet those needs not only through its partnershipwith the Slovakian clinics but also a $2 million donation to thearchdiocese to build approximately 70 permanent housing unitsfor families. In addition, the Order sponsored the delivery of amonth’s worth of food for more than 13,500 families last fall.The Church’s willingness to stand in solidarity with their

brothers and sisters in the Middle East can mean the differ-ence between a glimmer of hope and utter despair.When he addressed the Knights of Columbus Supreme

Convention in August 2015, Archbishop Bashar Matti Wardaof Erbil said Iraq’s Christians would continue to proclaim“that we are children of God, and this is our home.”He added, “You stood at our side just as our Mother Mary

and the beloved disciple did at the side of the crucified, evenas much of the world turned away.” Knowing the clinics are a part of this faithful service allows

Dudová to sustain her own hope and to share moments ofgrace in a compassionate hug, a listening ear or a simple smile.That reward, she said, is priceless.“For many of them, the very presence of our organization

is a source of comfort,” Dudová explained. “They see there’ssomeone who still cares for them.”♦

ELIZABETH HANSEN writes from Branford, Conn.

Yazidi refugees wait in line for treatment outside the Clinic of Blessed Jerzy Popiełuszko in Dohuk, Iraq.

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SUPPORT THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS CHRISTIAN REFUGEE RELIEF FUND. VISIT CHRISTIANSATRISK.ORG

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Catholic clergy lamented the destruction of Iraq’s oldestChristian monastery, St. Elijah, and urged the inter-

national community to do more to stop such assaults.“I had the same emotional and perhaps spiritual experi-

ence as I did when I was standing over the bodies of fallensoldiers,” Father Jeffrey Whorton told Catholic News Serviceafter seeing satellite images of the monastery’s destruction.Father Whorton, who served as

a Catholic chaplain for the U.S.military in Iraq and holds therank of major, was instrumentalalong with others in seeing apreservation initiative mountedon the 1,400-year-old structure.Father Whorton said he believedhe was the last priest to “offerMass on that altar before it wasdestroyed.” The Associated Press con-

firmed the news that the ancientmonastery on the outskirts ofMosul had been turned into afield of rubble, with exclusivesatellite images published earlyJan. 20, 2016. Islamic State mili-tants claimed responsibility.Father Whorton, who now works at Fort Bragg, N.C., had

the chance to both worship and give informal tours of themonastery during his tour of duty in Iraq.“In the forefront of my mind was the reality that in the

1700s, 150 or so (monks) had been martyred there,” theAmerican priest said. “So I knew I was in a sacred place of-fering the holy sacrifice of the Mass. I felt extremely unwor-thy standing at the venerable altar. That, along withcelebrating with the Holy Father, was the highlight of myentire priesthood.”Father Whorton recalled a piece of wood shaped like a yoke

that stood above the entrance to the nave of the monastery.“For me, there was a kind of putting on the yoke of Christ

and to bend low into that space where my fallen brothersand sisters had died (centuries ago). It was extremely emo-tional and a spiritually palpable event for me,” he said.Many had voiced concern about the fate of the monastery

after Islamic State militants swept into the area in June 2014

and had cut off most communication there. Hundreds ofthousands of Christians were forced to flee rather than con-vert to Islam, pay a submission tax or be killed.Father Whorton said the finality of ancient monastery’s

fate has weighed heavy on him.“I did not realize until I saw the pictures of the destruction

that I would be one of the ones to literally close the door onthis ancient church,” he said.Assyrian Father Emanuel

Youkhana, who heads the ChristianAid Program Northern Iraq, CAPNI,denounced the attack as yet anotherassault on Christians and their her-itage in their ancient homeland.“Dozens and dozens of scientific,

philosophic, historical and otherbooks were written or translated insuch monasteries. This is a memoryof Iraq which has been cut off,” hetold CNS. “When they damage my 2,000

years of Christianity and 5,000years of Assyrian heritage as the in-digenous people of this country,”Father Youkhana said, “my questionis this: If my history is being dam-

aged, my present is being threatened, is there any future?”He cited the Islamic State’s bulldozing of the ancient As-

syrian city of Nimrod, where the Tower of Babel is believedto have existed. The United Nations called its destructioncultural cleansing and a war crime. Father Youkhana also drew attention to the destruction of

archaeological sites in Nineveh along with the forced dis-placement of Christians and other religious minorities longpresent in Iraq from their historic area. And he renewed acall for the international community to do more to preservethe Christian presence in their ancient homeland. “What will be the future of Christianity [in the Middle

East] if we don’t protect or give future chances for Christiansto survive and to build a future,” he said. “We have to keepthis mosaic and diversity, not give up.”♦

DALE GAVLAK is an American freelance journalist basedin Amman, Jordan.

The Demolition of Christian MemoryAs a result of ISIS’ campaign of religious cleansing, an ancient Christian monastery has been destroyed

by Dale Gavlak, Catholic News Service

The 1,400-year-old St. Elijah Monastery is seenin a 2009 photo, before being razed by Islamic Statemilitants in late 2014.

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New Year’s Eve 2014 found newly ordained Bishop ChadZielinski carrying a duffle bag across the black tarmac

of the Fairbanks airport. In the darkness of a northern wintermorning, broken only by the glare of sodium lights on snowmounds, he was in line to board a small twin-engine prop fly-ing to Alaska’s central Yukon.

Bishop Zielinski was no stranger to small aircraft and re-mote locations. He had served 14 years as a military chap-lain, with three tours of duty in war zones. He had merely

traded in Afghanistan’s dust for Alaska’s snow. What wasunfamiliar was the destination — Nulato, a small villagesitting on the banks of the Yukon River, roughly 300 mileswest of Fairbanks.

With a smile, Bishop Zielinski recalled that morning flightand said, “Looking down from the plane in the growing light,the white expanse of snow seemed to stretch on forever.”

From takeoff to landing, it was starting to sink in: he was nowhead of the geographically largest diocese in the United States.

Bishop of the Last FrontierBishop of the Last Frontier

Serving the geographically largest U.S. diocese involves immense challenges and blessings

by Robert Hannon | photos by JR Ancheta

MAR 16 E 2_13_Mar E 12 2/13/16 1:33 PM Page 14

M A R C H 2 0 1 6 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 15

Bishop Chad Zielinski of Fairbanks steps onto ice while disembarking his con-necting flight to Hooper Bay, Alaska. The rural village has a population of ap-proximately 1,000, primarily consisting of Alaska Native Yup’ik people.

AN UNEXPECTED CALLThe number of practicing Catholics in the Diocese of Fair-banks hovers around 10,000, making it, from one perspective,among the smallest dioceses in the country. The borders ofthe diocese, however, encompass more than 400,000 squaremiles — almost twice the area of Texas. Hundreds of miles oftundra, forests, rivers and mountains separate most of the dio-cese’s 46 parishes; only nine parishes can be reached by road.Flying is the surest way to reach rural parishes. Getting back

home is another matter.Weather systems in Alaska come in fast and hard. A few

weeks following Bishop Zielinski’s ordination, one priestfound his short visit to the most remote parish in the diocese— located on Little Diomede Island at the center of theBering Strait — extended to 39 days. Arctic storms and me-chanical problems had grounded all helicopter flights for overa month. Mother Nature’s unpredictability means that thoseministering in the Diocese of Fairbanks routinely block outtwo days on either end of village trips.Bishop Zielinski was prepared to roll the dice on his first

trip to the interior. After discovering that the people of Nulatoand Koyukuk hadn’t seen a bishop in years, he promised tovisit, and before long he was seated in a small plane as it nosedits way westward to a village of 300 souls.Living in Alaska seems to agree with Bishop Zielinski,

who recognizes God’s providence in the steps that have ledhim there.“I wanted to go to Alaska ever since I did a report on it in

fourth grade,” he said. “In fact, two days after I graduatedfrom high school, a buddy and I drove there to work in a fishprocessing plant for the summer.”Born in Detroit in 1964, the oldest of five children, Chad

Zielinski was raised on a 120-acre farm in Alpena, Mich., wheremuch of his youth was filled with outdoor activities. As a college freshman, with plans to eventually study law,

he decided to join the Air Force. It was about this time that Airman Zielinski also joined the

Knights of Columbus.“Growing up in Alpena we had four churches with very ac-

tive Knights,” the bishop recalled. “They really modeledChristian service. And I’m proud to report that Alaska’sKnights of Columbus were recognized at the Supreme Con-vention as having the highest number of service hours of anycouncils on record. They are so generous with our needs.” While stationed in Idaho, Airman Zielinski became good

friends with the chaplain, and it gradually dawned on himthat he had a vocation to the priesthood. At the end of hismilitary service, he began his seminary formation and was or-dained a priest of Gaylord, Mich., in 1996.Five years later, in the months following the 9/11 terrorist

attacks, Father Zielinski learned there was a shortage ofCatholic chaplains in the Armed Forces. Beginning in 2002,he served as an Air Force chaplain at bases throughout theUnited States and served combat tours in Iraq andAfghanistan. Several times he celebrated Mass while mortarand rocket fire punctuated the liturgy. In October 2014, while serving at Eielson Air Force Base

outside of Fairbanks, Father Zielinski received a call fromArchbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, the papal nuncio to the

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16 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ M A R C H 2 0 1 6

Bishop Zielinski anoints 79-year-old Henrietta Naneng, a Yup’ik elder and active parishioner, at her home in Hooper Bay, Alaska. Also pictured isJesuit Father Gregg Wood. • After celebrating Mass, Bishop Zielinski greets a boy outside the Little Flower of Jesus Church in Hooper Bay. One ofthe many remote parishes in the diocese, Mass is celebrated there approximately once a month.

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United States. The archbishop said Pope Franciswas asking Father Zielinski to serve as the bishopof the Diocese of Fairbanks.“I kept asking him, ‘How can this be?’ It made

no sense,” Bishop Zielinski said, laughing as he re-called the conversation. “The nuncio was most gra-cious with me.”It was the first time an active U.S. chaplain had

been tapped to be the ordinary of a diocese — butthere was no mistake. On Dec. 15, 2014, ChadZielinski was ordained the sixth bishop of Fairbanks.

HOSPITALITY AND MISSIONBishop Zielinski’s initial visits to Nulato and Koyukuk werewell received and allowed him to experience firsthand the dy-namics of village life. Most rural Alaskan communities nowhave running water and boast a school, health clinic, villagecouncil building and at least a small runway for flights. Cellphone coverage is expanding slowly across the state.These modern amenities are welcomed, yet age-old tradi-

tions remain. The diocese is home to at least three distinctAlaska Native peoples: the Yup’ik/Cup’ik Eskimo, theAthabaskan Indian people, and the Inupiat Eskimo. Each peo-ple possesses its own rich culture and language.Bishop Zielinski has observed there is something reminis-

cent of early Christian communities in the generosity ofAlaska Native peoples.“The people are warm and welcoming, and they are excited

about their faith,” Bishop Zielinski said. “You see villages of800 people, and 200 show up for Mass. All these people haveblessed my life.”Each summer, other activities are put on hold so the harvest

of salmon can be caught, dried and stored for the year. Andin the villages, if someone catches an abundance of fish, orbrings down a moose, no one lacks for meat. The bounty isshared. The traditional potlatch gathering likewise providesan opportunity for people from various villages to share food,gifts and song.There are many challenges facing the people of Alaska, too.

Rural Alaska sees high rates of suicide, substance abuse, vio-lence and sexual assaults. Media influence has contributed toa further erosion of values and cultural identity. There are eco-nomic hurdles as well, as most villages are only partly run oncash economies. Jobs are scarce, and prices would stagger theaverage American consumer: $11 for a gallon of milk, $8 fora pound of ground beef or gallon of gas. What isn’t grown orharvested must be flown or barged in before ice locks up rivers.As a result, rather than parishes supporting the bishop’s pro-

grams, the diocese must financially support parish life in most

of its communities. Besides being the nation’s geographicallylargest diocese, Fairbanks is also the only one to fall under theCongregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, the Church’smissionary wing. Without the generosity of donors fromaround the United States, the Church in northern Alaskawould not exist as it is.However, Bishop Zielinski identifies an even more pressing

need: priests. In the 19th century, the Society of Jesus servedthe entire territory. As recently as the 1980s, parishes werelikely assigned their own Jesuit priest and were assisted byother men and women religious. Over time, the number ofpriests serving in the region decreased, and there are currentlyonly 15 serving the diocese’s 46 parishes.Some priests must circulate among six or eight remote vil-

lages, and Mass is a rarity for most rural Catholics in the dio-cese. Priests stationed in Fairbanks now routinely fly out toparishes across the diocese, and Bishop Zielinski says he haslearned that travel is an essential part of serving the people ofGod in the last frontier.“It’s wearing on your system,” he said, “and flying is one of

our largest expenses. But it is what we are called to do.”If he is daunted by the task before him, Bishop Zielinski

doesn’t show it. He has discussed his needs with his brotherbishops in the United States, and he has also established con-tacts with missionary dioceses around the world that areblessed with an abundance of priests. But he knows he mustmove with discernment.“Not every priest is called to serve in the far north, be-

cause winters are dark and cold,” he said. “But the hospi-tality of the people is warm and gracious, and we invitepriests who feel drawn to serve here to contact us. For theright servant, who will walk with the people, this frontiercan be a paradise.”♦

ROBERT HANNON is the former chancellor of the Diocese ofFairbanks and continues to assist the diocese with special projects.

During a welcome reception following his ordination, BishopZielinski, a member of Bishop Kaniecki Council 13566 inFairbanks, receives a Knights of Columbus jacket from theAlaska state council.

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A Witness in Winter

Despite the forecast of a historic blizzard, tens of thousands gathered in Washington for the annual March for Life

by Alton J. Pelowski

MAR 16 E 2_13_Mar E 12 2/13/16 1:33 PM Page 18

When snowflakes began to fall in Washington, D.C., onFriday, Jan. 22, signaling the arrival of one of the East

Coast’s all-time largest snowstorms, tens of thousands of peo-ple were gathered on and around the National Mall for the43rd March for Life. The forecast for Winter Storm Jonas hadforced many to cancel their travel plans to the nation’s capital,and Washington’s mayor declared a state of emergency as thecity prepared for the impending blizzard. But this did not pre-vent large groups of young people, Knights of Columbus andtheir families, and others from marching in peaceful protestof the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade.“A little snow couldn’t keep you away, could it?” asked

March for Life president Jeanne Mancini, welcoming thosegathered for the hour-long rally that preceded the march. “Theworld may think we’re a little bit crazy being here today,” sheadded, “but those of standing here know that there is no sac-rifice too great to fight the human rights abuse of abortion.”The growing crowd cheered loudly as they held up placards

with pro-life messages, including thousands of “Defend Life”signs provided by the Knights of Columbus. Pro-life legisla-tors, post-abortive women, former abortion clinic workersand other leaders were among those who took the stage, shar-ing personal testimonies and reflecting on the theme of the2016 march: “Pro-Life and Pro-Woman Go Hand-in-Hand.” At the conclusion of the rally, participants marched along the

1.5-mile stretch of Constitution Avenue toward the U.S. Capi-tol. Many joined in chants or prayed the rosary as they hurriedalong the route, reaching the Supreme Court building whileheavy snow covered the streets. Before long, thousands of youngpeople traveling with their respective dioceses, Catholic highschools and universities boarded their buses to head home.“We got out of D.C. by about 3 o’clock, and just started

west,” recalled Neil Pfeifer, a K of C general agent from Nor-folk, Neb., who attended the march for the first time. Pfeifer’sson, Noah, a senior at Norfolk Catholic High School and afellow member of Sacred Heart Council 1793, had gone twicebefore with the Archdiocese of Omaha and convinced his dadto be a chaperone for this year’s trip.“To see these kids so alive in their faith and on fire for this

cause blew me away,” Neil said, noting that the group wouldnormally stay longer and sightsee. “This year, it was aboutbusiness. With the snowstorm coming, we knew we’d have tocut things short. And the kids, they didn’t care. Their maingoal was to be there and to represent, and to show their strongbelief in the right to life.”The buses continued along the Pennsylvania Turnpike amid

traffic delays, until a semitrailer accident brought them to acomplete halt by 9 p.m. Altogether, more than 500 vehicles,including dozens of buses returning from the March for Lifeto such states as Missouri, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio,

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Members of George Washington University Council 13242 in Wash-ington, D.C., stand in front of the Supreme Court building during theMarch for Life Jan. 22.

MAR 16 E 2_13_Mar E 12 2/13/16 1:34 PM Page 19

were stranded along a 20-plus mile stretch of Interstate 76,approximately two hours east of Pittsburgh.By about 5:30 the next morning, the National Guard had

cleared the road enough for some of the vehicles toward thefront to be on their way. The bus carrying the Pfeifers madeit out, but most, including six other buses from the Archdio-cese of Omaha, were not so lucky. “By the time they got the truck moved, the snow was too

deep for anyone parked on the interstate to go anywhere,” saidSteve Merrill, a member of Council 1793 who has served as achaperone and bus captain for many years. “There was never a sense of being in danger; it was just an

inconvenience,” Merrill added. “This one really turned into apilgrimage. We tried to use all of our experiences as a teachingmoment.”With sufficient water, snacks and gas, as well as bathrooms

on board, the pilgrims made the best of their situation andspirits remained high. Each of the Omaha buses included apriest and a religious sister who led prayer and shared reflec-tions, turning the experience into an impromptu retreat. Late Saturday morning, Merrill learned that an outdoor

Mass was being organized just a few buses down. At the sug-gestion of Bill Dill, youth ministry events coordinator for theArchdiocese of St. Paul & Minneapolis, some of the Min-

nesota pilgrims had constructed an altar made of snow. FatherPatrick Behm, a priest of the Diocese of Sioux City andmember of Trinity Council 1466 in Le Mars, Iowa, was askedto celebrate. It did not take long for word to spread. A half-dozen priests

from various dioceses soon joined in to concelebrate as morethan 500 people from various states gathered together at whatsome called “St. John Paul the Great Hillside Chapel.”

“It was really beautiful,” Merrill recalled. “We had gone toMass at the cathedral in Pittsburgh and to the Basilica of theShrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, andthis Mass was just as moving.”It was not only a memorable experience for everyone pres-

ent, but reports of the Mass went viral on social media andwere published by news outlets around the country.“Our kids were disappointed we weren’t back there with

them to attend,” Neil Pfeifer said with a laugh.Most of the buses began moving again later that evening, after

nearly 24 hours on the turnpike. The pilgrims eventually madeit safely home, but they won’t soon forget the time that “a littlesnow” couldn’t keep them from traveling to Washington andstanding up for life.♦

ALTON J. PELOWSKI is editor of Columbia.

20 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ M A R C H 2 0 1 6

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Father Patrick Behm, a priest of the Diocese of Sioux City and member of Trinity Council 1466 in Le Mars, Iowa, celebrates a roadside Mass forhundreds of young pilgrims Jan. 23. Their buses were stranded on the Pennsylvania Turnpike since the previous evening, when they were stalled ontheir way home from the March for Life.

MAR 16 E 2_13_Mar E 12 2/13/16 1:34 PM Page 20

CULTURE OF LIFE

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M A R C H 2 0 1 6 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 21

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EDITOR’S NOTE: The following column, originally publishedby the Archdiocese of Philadelphia on Jan. 22, has beenslightly abridged and is reprinted here with permission.

The Jan. 22, 1973, U.S. Supreme Court Roe v. Wadedecision is important for two reasons: its flawed rea-

soning and its destructive effect. In practice, Roe legalizedabortion on demand. It has enabled the killing of tens ofmillions of unborn children, an entire American genera-tion. Abortion “procedures” —a sanitized understatement wor-thy of George Orwell — haveemotionally scarred millions ofadult women and men.Abortion supporters talk a

good line about reproductivehealth care. But there’s very littlehealth care in homicide. There’ssimply no way around the liv-ing, developing unborn daugh-ter or son — visible on anyultrasound machine — whoends up dead at the end of theabortion industry’s doublespeak.Abortion supporters press the

importance of reproductiverights. But they systematicallyviolate the most basic human right of all: the right to life.“Right to choose” advocates often claim that most

Americans support abortion rights. But polling data areeasily misused or misunderstood. Key information isoften overlooked or omitted because it doesn’t fit the pre-ferred storyline. The most recent Marist Poll, commissioned by the

Knights of Columbus and released in January, found that44 percent of surveyed Americans describe themselves aspro-life, while 51 percent describe themselves as pro-choice. But the really telling data emerge from beneaththose broad labels.More than 80 percent of Americans, including two-

thirds of pro-choice supporters, would restrict abortion to— at most — the first trimester of pregnancy. By a 25-point margin, Americans believe abortion does womenmore harm than good. Sixty percent believe abortion is

morally wrong. And 77 percent believe that our laws canprotect both a mother and her unborn child. Nearly 70percent oppose public funding for abortion.In an immediate sense, these facts change nothing.

Forty-three years after Roe, the abortion industry hasgrown fat on public money and pious in its own deceits.Its leaders really don’t care what Americans think, becausethey’ve been ideologues from the start, playing the longgame of changing people’s attitudes through aggressive

court action and sympatheticmedia. It’s an intelligent strategy.It should have worked. So it’s un-derstandable that industry leadersare annoyed and baffled — and in-creasingly paranoid — that pro-lifers have not gone away. Becausethey haven’t. Quite the opposite.We see the proof every January.

Year after year the March for Life’spro-life numbers keep coming andkeep growing. They also keep get-ting younger.Here’s why. Abortion is not like

other social issues. It’s visceral; in-stinctively repugnant; an obscen-ity in the present and a refusal ofthe future. It can’t be reduced to a

theoretical dispute or a smokescreen of laundered lan-guage about “reproductive health.” Health can never meanhomicide. No matter how good the verbal gymnastics, no“pro-choice” PR firm can escape the flesh and blood vio-lence to mother and child, and the lying to women, thatoccur in every abortion.The unborn child is alive, innocent and now observable,

thanks to the same medical technology that the abortionindustry perverts in every killing. Today’s young peoplemay differ from previous generations in many ways, butkilling innocent life isn’t one of them. And that simple factcan be the beginning of a new and better culture that re-spects the sanctity of human life at every stage. May we,with God’s help, make it so.♦

MOST REV. CHARLES J. CHAPUT, O.F.M. Cap., is archbishopof Philadelphia.

Roe v. Wade at 43Public opinion and a new pro-life generation stand opposed

to the tragic legacy of abortion on demand

by Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap.

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For 90 years, New York Knights have honored the missionaryand patriotic heritage of Old Fort Niagara

by Kevin T. Di Camillo

Pilgrimage to the Millet Cross

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For the past nine decades, Knights of Columbus fromacross upstate New York have made an annual pilgrimage

to the historic Millet Cross at Old Fort Niagara inYoungstown, N.Y. Organized and led by local Fourth Degreeassemblies, more than 100 Knights and their families gatherin early September for a solemn procession to a toweringbronze cross, followed by a memorial Mass in tribute to thosewho served at the old French garrison.“Father Millet planted the first cross here on Good Friday

over 300 years ago,” said John F. Sowinski, master of NewYork District #4 and a member of Father Baker Council2243 in Lackawanna, N.Y. “Every year, we come here tohonor his strong faith and those who died there. We alsoremember all who have given their lives in service to ourcountry.”The Millet Cross, which stands on a bluff overlooking

Lake Ontario, with Toronto visible across the water some 30miles away, was authorized in 1925 by President CalvinCoolidge and an Act of the Department of War. Both the ini-tial concept and the subsequent hard work of fundraisingcame from the Knights of Columbus, who were inspired bya local historian named Peter A. Porter. Their efforts made itpossible for the 18-foot cross to be dedicated in 1926.

FROM WOOD TO BRONZEFather Pierre Millet (pronounced “mil-LAY”), a Jesuit mission-ary, arrived to Fort Niagara (then known as Fort Denonville)in the spring of 1688 with reinforcements from France. Builtin part to deny British access to the Niagara River, the garrisonis located where the mouth of the river spills out into LakeOntario, 14 miles north of Niagara Falls. Upon landing at thefort, Father Millet and his compatriots were horrified to dis-cover that all but 12 of the more than 100 men stationed therefor the winter had died of starvation and scurvy.Father Millet wasted no time in attending to the spiritual

and physical needs of those few survivors. He then orderedthe new troops to erect an oak cross in the middle of the fort.Carved on the crossbeam was “Regn. Vinc. Imp. Chrs.” —the abbreviation for the Latin phrase Regnat Vincit ImperatChristus: “Christ reigns, conquers and rules.” Once the crosswas set in place, Father Millet offered the Mass of the Pre-sanctified, as it was Good Friday.An exceptional linguist, the intrepid Jesuit priest served the

French colonial forces as interpreter as well as chaplain. Afterleaving Fort Denonville, he spent the next decade bearing wit-ness to Christ among the Onondaga and Oneida peoples,converting many, including an Oneida chief. He endured fiveyears in captivity and spent the last decade of his life as a mis-sionary in Québec, where he died Dec. 31, 1708.

More than two centuries later, the Knights of Columbusundertook the construction of a permanent memorial inhonor of Father Millet and his heroic ministry at Fort Niag-ara. On Sept. 5, 1925, President Coolidge’s proclamation setaside a tiny parcel of land for the Father Millet Cross as a na-tional monument under the jurisdiction of the Departmentof War.That this happened in 1920s America is nothing short of

remarkable, explained Thomas Chambers, professor of his-tory at nearby Niagara University.“During a time of especially high-pitched anti-Catholi-

cism, the Millet Cross — a Catholic monument donated bya Catholic fraternal organization — was still seen as an im-portant tribute to erect on state land,” he said.The Daprato Statuary Company of New York and Chicago

created the cross with a unique inner structure — an ironframework, wrapped in sheet metal specially electroplatedwith a patented zinc-and-copper alloy.Measuring 18 by 15 feet, the Millet Cross stands on a con-

crete block base engraved only with the date “1926.” A ded-icatory plaque on the ground reads: “To Father Pierre Millet,French Jesuit Priest, Missionary to the Iroquois and Chaplainat Fort Niagara. Here on Good Friday, 1688, he dedicated aCross invoking God’s Mercy for the plague-stricken garrison.Erected by the Knights of Columbus, Fourth Degree, 6thNew York District, Calvert Province.”On the horizontal beam the original inscription is reiter-

ated: “Regn. Vinc. Imp. Chrs.” Between “Vinc.” and “Imp.”is an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a devotion charac-teristic of French Catholicism.On May 30, 1926, the Millet Cross was officially dedicated

and blessed by Bishop William Turner of Buffalo in a cere-mony attended by nearly 2,000 people, including state andlocal officials, the fort commandant, a military escort fromthe 28th Infantry and a Fourth Degree honor guard.In 1937, a decade after the annual pilgrimage to the Millet

Cross had begun, the U.S. National Parks Service publisheda historical account of the Father Millet Cross National Mon-ument that included this tribute: “It stands as a memorialnot only to Father Millet, but to those other priests whoseheroism took Christianity into the wilderness and whose de-votion sought to create in this new world a new France.”

A LIVING TRADITIONThe smallest national monument ever established, the 320-square foot site of the Father Millet Cross was removed fromthe national park system in 1949. However, the tradition ofannual pilgrimage has continued unabated, with numerousKnights and their families making the journey to pay tributeto Father Millet and the memory of those who served theircountry.Lewis Herman, a member of St. Pius X Council 11168 in

Getzville, has been making the pilgrimage for more than 20years and now takes his grandchildren. “My father was in-ducted into the Army for World War II here at Fort Niagara,”

A Fourth Degree honor guard from the St. Isaac Jogues Province stands atattention as Father Michael H. Burzynski, a priest of the Diocese of Buffaloand a member of St. Justin Council 5670 in Cheektowaga, N.Y., raisesthe chalice at Mass during the 2008 pilgrimage to the Millet Cross.

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Herman said. “This is a place to experience living history andfaith, which is why so many Knights bring their families.”The Millet Cross has survived the harsh winters and summer

heat of Western New York for nine decades, whereas the orig-inal wooden cross is estimated to have lasted five years at most.“While the cross still to this day is quite beautiful and

striking, a group of local Knights noticed that it was begin-ning to show its age, and they brought this to my attentionin 2013,” said Jerome Brubaker, curator and assistant directorof Old Fort Niagara. “The Knights have been very proactivein their concern for the Millet Cross.”One of the oldest, largest and best preserved military sites

in North America, Old Fort Niagara is still an active base forthe U.S. Coast Guard. Since the fort is part of Fort NiagaraState Park, the Historic Preservation Office of New YorkState Parks has begun to formulate a plan to fully restore theMillet Cross to its original luster and grandeur. Local Knightshave offered to assist in its restoration.After the Millet Cross was raised in 1926, the Knights also

helped fund the restoration of the small but beautiful chapelinside “The French Castle” at Fort Niagara, which was com-pleted by 1929. “One year, it rained and we had to have the ceremony in-

doors,” recalled Michael Flanagan, a member of St. JohnXXIII Council 7707 in Spencerport, who serves as the NewYork state program director. “We held Mass at the chapel inthe castle, and it was especially moving, praying in a placewhere so many men over the centuries have prayed.”A former master of New York District #4, Flanagan led the

pilgrimage in 2004 and 2005 and is proud to be part of sucha unique tradition. “The pilgrimage to the Millet Cross lives on because of the

faith of our brother Knights,” he said. “It is a special experi-ence, a moving experience, to gather, to recall our history andto celebrate Mass — as Knights and Catholic Americans.”♦

KEVIN T. DI CAMILLO is a member of Don Bosco Coun-cil 4960 in Brooklyn, N.Y.

In this archival photo from the 1930s, a priest presides at the Good Friday Mass of the Presanctified for pilgrims gathered at the Millet Cross.

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Mexico’s first female saint is an eloquent witness of love for Christ and the poor

by J.D. Long-García

The Radiant Charity of Madre Nati

Santa Maria Venegas Assembly in Lake County, Ind.,bears a unique name. It’s not often that a Knights ofColumbus assembly or council is named after a woman,let alone a saint related to one of the assembly’s members. Michael Velasco, the culture of life director for the In-diana state council, grew up hearing stories about hisgreat-grandaunt, Sister MaríaNatividad Venegas de la Torre,whom the family affectionatelycalled “Tia Nati.” When his latefather, John C. Velasco, was justa boy, Tia Nati nursed him backto health from malaria. Johnlater fled to the United States asa teenager with his mother andtwo brothers, during the periodof religious persecution in Mex-ico in the 1920s. “After the announcement wasmade that Tia Nati was going tobe canonized,” Michael recalled,“my father wept.” At age 87, the senior Velascotraveled to Rome with his wife,June, to attend the canonizationMass on May 21, 2000. A yearlater, just months before hisdeath, John became a chartermember of Santa Maria VenegasAssembly, named after hisgrandaunt, the first Mexicanwoman to be declared a saint.

SEEDS OF SANCTITYThe youngest of 12 children, María Natividad Venegas dela Torre was born in Zapotlanejo, near Guadalajara, in the

Mexican state of Jalisco on Sept. 8, 1868. Raised in adeeply religious household, Natividad, or Nati for short,learned to read the Bible at an early age and prayed therosary each day with her family. An energetic child, Nati was also drawn to contempla-tion. When playing hide-and-seek, she sought places

where no one could find her sothat she could pray.Her mother, who had preparedNati to receive her first holyCommunion at age 9, diedyoung, when Nati was 16. Her fa-ther, an accountant, then movedthe family to Compostela, in thestate of Nayarit, for economicreasons. Nati made frequent visitsto their parish church there togaze at an image of the crucifiedChrist called the “Lord of Mercy.”Nati’s father eventually broughtthe family back to Zapotlanejo,where he entrusted his childreninto the care of his brother andsister-in-law, Justo and CrispinaVenegas Velasco. He died threeyears later in 1887.Living with her aunt and uncle,Nati came to know the beauty ofnature and agriculture. She wouldlater write about the pastures,wheat, bananas, mangos and sugarcane, reflecting on God’s abundantgenerosity. Many who worked in

the fields were illiterate, and Nati began teaching the chil-dren how to read and gave them religious instruction. Shealso participated in parish life and attended daily Mass.

St. María de Jesús Sacramentado Venegas (1868-1959), foundress of the Daughters of the SacredHeart of Jesus, became Mexico’s first female saintin 2000.

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In 1898, Nati joined the Association of the Daughters ofMary and began to give serious thought to a religious vocation,praying frequently before the Blessed Sacrament. In November1905, her spiritual director recommended that she make anIgnatian retreat. Less than a month later, on Dec. 8, she joinedthe Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a pious union ofwomen dedicated to caring for poor and abandoned people atGuadalajara’s Sacred Heart Hospital. Sister Nati served inmany roles — as nurse, pharmacist and the community’s ac-countant — and earned a reputation for knowing patients byname and creating a family environment at the hospital.In 1921, Sister Nati was elected superior general, having

made her temporary religious vows in 1915. In order for theDaughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to receive official ap-proval as a congregation, a bishop encouraged Madre Nati, asthe sisters now called her, to write the constitutions. Thoughshe did not consider herself competent to do so, she com-pleted the task in 1924.

LA CRISTIADABeginning in 1926, Mexican President Plutarco Elías Callesstrictly enforced the persecutory laws of the anti-clerical con-stitution that had been adopted nearly a decade earlier. Thegovernment seized Church property, Catholic schools andseminaries; shut down hospitals, orphanages and homes forthe elderly; outlawed religious education; prohibited publicworship; and exiled Mexico’s bishops. This sparked a rebellionknown as the Cristero War, or Cristiada.Against all odds, Madre Nati was able to keep the hospital

open, said Sister Maria Rosa Bohórquez, a Daughter of theSacred Heart who serves as the order’s general counsel.“Madre was not afraid. She would always say, ‘The SacredHeart of Jesus will fix it all.’”When soldiers tried to shut the hospital down, Madre

Nati offered them food, disarming them through her com-passion. The sisters treated injured government soldiers andCristeros alike.

Madre Nati was also adamant that the Blessed Sacramentwould be present at the hospital. “To prevent the soldiers from committing sacrilege, the

Eucharist was often hidden with the bees,” recounted SisterClara Guenoveva Encarnación Luna, who knew the saint formany years. “The sisters always kept an empty hive for theLord.” On one occasion, when Madre Nati and a sister transported

the Blessed Sacrament to safety in a shoebox, they boarded abus filled with federal soldiers. If the sisters had been discov-ered, they would have likely been killed. Still, the saint re-mained calm, trusting in the Lord.It was during this same period that John Velasco, who like

his Tia Nati was born in Zapotlanejo, fled Mexico at age 15.His father and two uncles fought in the Cristero army againstthe anti-religious government, and their homes were fre-quently searched for ammunition and priests in hiding.In fact, John’s family used to smuggle their parish priest,

Father José Isabel Flores Varela, in and out of a secret roomin their home so that he could celebrate clandestine Masses.“If the soldiers had found the priest, I wouldn’t be here,”

Michael Velasco said. “They would have killed everyone. Theywere merciless.”Eventually, the soldiers caught Father Varela and hanged

him — three times.“Each time, just at the point of death, the soldiers let him

down and asked the priest to denounce God,” Velasco said,“But he wouldn’t do it. Eventually, a soldier cut his throat.” In 2000, Father Varela was one of the 25 Mexican martyrs,

including six priests who were members of the Knights ofColumbus, whom Pope John Paul II canonized together withMadre Nati, now known as Santa María de Jesús Sacramentado.

‘EVEN NOW SHE FILLS US UP’In 1930, when the constitutions of the Daughters of the Sa-cred Heart of Jesus had received approval, Madre Nati de-clared, “We will celebrate the approval of the congregationwithout fear.”This was also the year that she made her final vows and

took the name María de Jesus Sacramentado (Mary of Jesusin the Blessed Sacrament). She served as superior general ofthe congregation until 1954. Sister Clara had met her two years earlier, during her inter-

view for admission into the congregation at age 15.“She was a very simple woman. You could approach her

with confidence,” Sister Clara recalled, noting that the saintalways had a ready smile. All the sisters sought her gentle counsel and guidance, as

did the doctors, priests and other coworkers. Together theycared for patients of all ages.

John C. Velasco, the grandnephew of St. María de Jesús Sacramentado Venegas,stands with Bishop Dale J. Melczek of Gary, at the charter presentation ofSanta Maria Venegas Assembly Aug. 8, 2001.

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“The elderly are travelers who we must take care of beforetheir life ends,” Madre Nati would say. “We must take care ofthem with all the tenderness possible.”

Sister Clara explained that the saint had many such sayings,and her words have become teachings for the sisters today:

“Suffering is short. Our joy will be eternal.” “Those who are merciful with the needy of the world will

not lack God’s mercy.”“The weight of the cross is burdensome for those carrying

it, but not for those who embrace it.” “The hospital is the antechamber to heaven.”Sister Clara served as Madre Nati’s nurse and shared a room

with her for some time. The saint didn’t sleep much, she said,but the alarm was always set for 5 a.m. so that they could at-tend eucharistic adoration.

“We have to visit my Jesus,” Madre Nati would say.Even toward the end of Madre Nati’s life, Sister Clara

would often find her tending to patients from her wheelchair.Children at the hospital thought of her as a grandmother, and

seminarians would sometimes remark that she loved themmore than their own mothers did.

In all, Madre Nati lived at the hospital for 55 years untilher death on July 30, 1959, at the age of 91.

“She didn’t live an extraordinary life,” Sister Clara said. “Shelived an ordinary life in an extraordinary way.”

For Michael Velasco, who recalls growing up with the sto-ries about his great grandaunt’s faith, courage and service tothe poor, Tia Nati was always just a part of the family.

Sister Maria Rosa affirmed that Madre Nati continues toinspire all the sisters in their service to the sick and poor.

“She is known for her great charity and is still intercedingfor us from heaven,” Sister Maria Rosa said. “Even now shefills us up, she loved us so much.”♦

J.D. LONG-GARCÍA is editor in chief of The Tidings andVida Nueva, the newspapers of the Archdiocese of Los Ange-les. He is a member of Father Marcel Salinas Council 11536in Mesa, Ariz.

John C. Velasco, age 10 (middle row, first boy on left), is pictured along with his mother (seated in back with his little brother, Cruz), hisbrother Aurelio (front row, last boy on right), his maternal grandmother (far right) and other relatives during a family picnic in Zapotlanejo,Mexico, in 1922.

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SCRAP METAL DRIVESt. Henry’s Council 14248 inOwasso, Okla., conducted ascrap metal drive to raisemoney for council functions.Knights went to homesthroughout the community,collecting everything frombarbecue grills to old appli-ances. The drive helpedneighbors recycle old, un-wanted items and raisedmore than $1,000 for charity.

CEMETERY CLEANUPMembers of St. Leo Council9477 in Casselton, N.D.,regularly volunteer to main-tain the cemetery at theirparish. Knights straightenheadstones and performgrounds maintenance as partof the ongoing program.

MEAT RAFFLESt. Clement Council 8095 inPlant City, Fla., organized itsannual meat raffle. Held with

support from a local butcherand an anonymous donor,the council sold tickets towin a trunk-load of packagedbeef. The raffle raised $2,400to support pro-life centers inthe area.

REDISTRIBUTINGWEALTH

Sarnia (Ontario) Council1429 raised $120,000through the sale of its socialhall. The funds were distrib-uted among four areaparishes, with the bulk goingto Our Lady of Mercy Churchto cover the cost of a new air-conditioning unit, windowsand electrical upgrades.

LIFE FROM LOAMCalvary Council 8144 in Scar-borough, Maine, promoted re-cycling by collecting foodgarbage and waste from dinersand having it commerciallyprocessed into organic fertilizer.

Knights then used the fertilizerto plant flowers and plants atthe entrances to their church.

RAFFLE AND STEAK DINNER

St. Joseph the Worker Coun-cil 13359 in Maple Grove,Minn., held a raffle and steakdinner to raise funds for thecouncil’s charitable activities.More than 170 guests at-tended the event, which in-cluded cash prizes and acabaret show. The dinner net-ted $9,000.

MEMORIAL SERVICESt. Hilary of Poitiers Council8840 in Mathews, La.,hosted a special memorialservice in honor of deceasedcouncil members. The eventincluded a bilingual rosary inEnglish and French, alongwith meditations written by apast grand knight of thecouncil. The memorial cul-

KNIGHTS ACTION REPORTS FROM COUNCILS, ASSEMBLIES AND COLUMBIAN SQUIRES CIRCLESIN

Vicksburg (Miss.) Assembly leads participants on a pro-life march from St. Aloysius HighSchool to a memorial to the unborn at Vicksburg Cemetery during an event sponsored byVicksburg Council 898. While marching, Knights led participants in praying the rosary.

minated with the blessing oftwo new evergreen trees thathad been planted in memoryof deceased Knights.

DINNER THEATERFather Francis Lawless Coun-cil 1534 in Moose Jaw,Saskatchewan, hosted a din-ner theater event for charity.Attendees enjoyed dinner be-fore a performance of theplay Pistols & Posies at St.Marguerite School.

COFFEE FOR THEHOMELESS

The Knights of Columbus Pa-terson (N.J.) Federation begancollecting donations of coffeefor Eva’s Village, a local organ-ization that serves hot coffeeto homeless people. TheKnights’ collection helped theorganization meet its goal ofhaving 1,000 pounds of coffeeon hand to continuously servethe homeless.

CHESS SCHOLARSHIPS

Bishop Foley Council 2660in Dearborn, Mich., awarded

Two young attendees view areproduction of the Shroudof Turin at a multimediaevent hosted by St. Vincentde Paul Council 9560 inCharlotte, N.C. The councilinvited local researcher KevinMoran to discuss his 35years of research on theshroud, along with photosand reproductions that shedlight on Christ’s resurrection.

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$500 scholarships to LucasWatson and David Pettinaro,members of the Divine ChildChess Club. The funds forthe scholarships were raisedthrough the council’s chesstournament.

IPSWICH DINNERBELLMembers of CarrolltonCouncil 498 in Ipswich,Mass., regularly assist withthe “Ipswich Dinnerbell,” aprogram sponsored by vari-ous churches, civic organiza-tions and businesses thatwelcomes the entire localcommunity to come togetherfor fellowship and dinnereach Monday night. Thecouncil hosts the event twiceeach year.

MASS ITEMS FOR MISSIONS

Bishop Gunn Council 1583in Gulfport, Miss., collectedchalices, cruets, crucifixes andother items that will be sentto Franciscan missionariesserving in Syria. The itemswill aid the missionaries inproviding Mass and thesacraments to Catholics inthe war-torn region.

COLLEGE CHAPELThe Knights of ColumbusWestern Metroplex Chapterin the Diocese of Fort Worth,Texas, donated $1,000 tohelp build a new church forthe St. John Paul II Univer-sity parish community, whichserves the students, facultyand alumni of the Universityof North Texas and TexasWoman’s University. A majorfundraising effort is under-way to build the church withsupport from K of C unitsfrom throughout the FortWorth Diocese.

SAINT STATUESPRUCED UP

Lucena (Luzon) Council3469 cleaned and repainted inthe courtyard in front of St.Ferdinand Church. Knightscleaned a statue of St. Ferdi-nand, along with its pedestaland plaque, and repainted theconcrete bumpers, walls andflag bases that adorn thechurch’s front courtyard.

HELPING ST. VINCENTSheridan Council 24 in Wa-terbury, Conn., donated$4,000 and 1,100 pounds offood to the local St. Vincentde Paul food pantry and soupkitchen. The donations wereraised during a food drivethat was held at the Basilicaof the Immaculate Concep-tion in Waterbury. In addi-tion to the donation ofnonperishable items, themonetary gift will allow theSociety of St. Vincent de Paulto purchase an additional30,000 pounds of food toserve the needy.

FLAGS FOR SCHOOLSt. Brigid Council 13204 andFather Joseph T. O’CallahanAssembly, both in JohnsCreek, Ga., donated $600 toprovide a large U.S. flag anda Vatican flag to Cristo ReyAtlanta Jesuit High School.

Members of Cotabato City (Mindanao) Council 3504 sortrice, sardines and noodles into care packages to be givento refugee families. The council mobilized 40 volunteers torepack and distribute 3,000 kits to families from Maguin-danao Province who have been displaced because of fight-ing between the Philippine Army and the BangsamoroIslamic Freedom Fighters, an Islamist militant group.

program encouraging peopleto add the words “In GodWe Trust” to all of their cor-respondence. The councilsells stickers bearing themessage that can be placedon envelopes and has distrib-uted more than 50,000 sincethe program began in 2014.

A LIFE CONNECTIONMichael-James FeiderCouncil 7048 in Mukwon-ago, Wis., donated $35,000to Life Connection to helpput a down payment on anew pregnancy resourcecenter building in Wauke-sha. Funds for the donationwere originally earmarked topurchase a council socialhall, but members scrappedthe idea and decided to do-nate the money to charityinstead. Knights fromCouncil 7048 will also helprenovate Life Connection’snew facility, while SouthMilwaukee Council 1709provided them with a newultrasound through theKnights of Columbus Ultra-sound Initiative.

Steven Steider and othermembers of Meadville (Pa.)Council 388 pick up trashand debris along State Route322 as part of the state’sadopt-a-highway program.The council has been partic-ipating in the program forseveral years and removed30 bags of garbage during itsmost recent event.

Skip Lemire (left) of Msgr.Nolan B. McKevitt Council689 in Marquette, Mich., andhis “pet” parrot visit withGeorge LaChapell as part ofthe council’s ongoing nurs-ing home ministry. A team ofKnights visits four area nurs-ing homes on a monthlybasis, meeting with residentsand spreading good cheer.

In addition, Knights donated16 flags for each classroom.Jesuit Father James R. VanDyke, school principal, pro-vided a special blessing forthe flags upon their delivery.

‘IN GOD WE TRUST’Fitzgerald Council 833 inLincoln, Neb., launched a


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2015 after serving as pastorfor 18 years. The plaque com-memorates the parish’s reli-gious education facility beingrenamed after Father Scully.

ROSARIES FORSCOUTS

Father Tim Vakoc Assemblyin St. Paul, Minn., donated800 rosaries to the Archdio-cese of St. Paul-MinneapolisCommittee on Scouting.The rosaries will be distrib-uted to Scouts participatingin activities at variousstatewide camps.

CASINO NIGHTPrince of Peace FoothillsCouncil 9184 in Taylors,S.C., hosted a casino nightthat raised $5,000 forBirthright of Greenville. Theevening included casino-stylegames for attendees, alongwith silent and live auctions,and plenty of food.

BUILDING RENAMEDCardinal Newman Council5324 in Matawan, N.J., do-nated a plaque to St. ClementChurch in honor of FatherJohn Scully, who retired in

BOWL-A-THONFather Lopez Council 5737in Pinellas Park, Fla., held itsannual Special OlympicsBowl-A-Thon with the helpof the Morning Star Schoolfor special needs students.The event drew more than 75Special Olympics athletesand raised $5,400.

HONORING VETERANSFather Joseph T. O’CallahanAssembly in Johns Creek,Ga., sponsored a dinner hon-oring Vietnam War veterans.The event drew more than100 people, including 30 vet-erans, and featured a militarycolor guard from the JohnsCreek Veterans Association.

NEW HOME FOR PEWSSt. Peter’s Council 6735 inMerchantville, N.J., helpedrefurbish the chapel at Cam-den Catholic High School.Knights installed new drywalland traveled to Hazleton, Pa.,to pick up pews from a churchthat was being demolished.

UTILITY SHEDFather Baraga Council 2934in L’Anse, Mich., assembleda utility shed at an outdoorteaching site owned by Sa-cred Heart School. Thewooded lot, which was do-nated to the school, is usedas a teaching tool for scienceand environmental aware-ness. The new shed willstore equipment requiredfor classes.

FREEDOM TO BEARWITNESS

St. Vincent Council 1111 inCape Girardeau, Mo., partic-ipated in a “Freedom to BearWitness” rally at a local park.The event included speechesand talks on the theme ofbeing called to live out one’sfaith in the public and pri-vate spheres without intimi-dation, as well as time for

BASEBALL OUTINGPrince of Peace Council13457 in Flowery Branch,Ga., coordinated a charitableouting to a minor leaguebaseball game. Knights sold420 tickets to the event,which raised $1,700 forAmigos for Christ, a pro-gram that coordinates waterdistribution projects inNicaragua. In addition, Dea-con Nicholas Johnson, acouncil member, threw outthe game’s first pitch.

ORANGE RIBBONSMater Christi Council 14284in Chicago distributed orangeribbons at weekend Mass inremembrance of Christians —especially those in the MiddleEast — who have been perse-cuted and martyred for theirfaith. The color orange repre-sented the color of the jump-suits worn by 21 CopticChristians who were martyredin Libya in February 2015.

Knights and their families from throughout Northern Virginia work to clean the Vietnam Vet-erans Memorial in Washington, D.C. About 30 Knights, along with their families and friends,traveled to the nation’s capital to help maintain the memorial.

Ed Loder (left) of Bishop Fen-wick Council 2927 in Cincin-nati stands with Jim Moodyand the fish they caught during a council-sponsoredSpecial Olympics fishing tour-nament. Knights assisted 30athletes during the tourna-ment, in addition to preparinglunch and dinner for all atten-dees. Every participant caughtat least one fish.


MARCH 2 0 1 6 ♦ CO LUMB I A ♦ 31

KNIGHTS IN ACTION

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See more “Knights in Action” reports and

photos atwww.kofc.org/knightsinaction

MCGIVNEY HIGH WINDOW

Tri Cities Council 1098 inGranite City, Ill., presented a$6,000 check to Father Mc-Givney High School to helppurchase a stained-glass win-dow for the chapel of theschool’s new building. Thesix-foot-tall window featuresa Celtic cross with the words“Charity” and “Fraternity”along the bottom.

WI-FI NETWORKHoly Family Council 5547 inSilver Spring, Md., presented$1,000 to St. Francis Schoolto help with the completionof its Wi-Fi upgrade. Thefunds will help create an ac-cess point in every classroomso that all students have ac-cess to the school’s network.

CHURCH TOUCH UPSHeartland Council 7567 inArcadia, Fla., performed re-pair work at St. Paul Church.Knights replaced the lockmechanism on the church’sfront door, painted the frontof the building and placed anew bench at the parish’s Sa-cred Heart grotto.

PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT

St. Patrick Council 10567 inAdamsville, Ala., donatedmore than $1,200 toAdamsville ElementarySchool to help purchase newplayground equipment. Thefunds were raised during thecouncil’s pork shoulder sale.

BUILDING PROJECTSFather McKevitt Council3492 in Richland Center,Wis., purchased a monu-ment that features the TenCommandments and theBeatitudes for the street cor-ner in front of St. Mary’sChurch. The monument wasplaced following the comple-tion of an addition to St.

prayer. Signs, prayer cardsand U.S. flags were providedto all in attendance.

MARIAN HOMESMarian Homes, an organiza-tion founded by St. Mary ofSorrows Council 8600 inFairfax Station, Va., to pro-vide group homes to peoplewith intellectual disabilities,opened its third facility in2015. After obtaining thislatest piece of property,council members formedthree teams to demolish theinside of the building inpreparation for making itcompliant with the Ameri-cans with Disabilities Act.

BIRD & SQUIRRELHOUSES

Msgr. Peter M.H. Wyn-hoven Council 3091 inWestwego, La., worked witha local Boy Scout troop tobuild bird and squirrelhouses. Knights and Scoutsconstructed 17 houses,which were later placed atFountain Blue State Park.

An expectant mother views an ultrasound image of her un-born baby during a free ultrasound and heath awarenessproject sponsored by Banal Na Sakramento Council 8753 inQuezon City. The program offered parishioners free medicaland dental care, as well as various health-related treatments.

PREGNANCY RESOURCES

Sacred Heart of Jesus Council13641 in Grand Rapids,Mich., joined with students atSacred Heart Academy to col-lect donations for a local preg-nancy resource center. Thedrive resulted in 2,600 dia-pers, several blankets and casesof formula, and a playpen.

MASS KITFather Vincent R. CapodannoAssembly in Gulfport, Miss.,purchased a Mass kit and sup-plies to send to the Franciscanorder for priests in Syria. Dueto the perilous situation forCatholics in the Middle East,priests there need supplies thatcan be packed up quickly andtransported easily.

Mary’s Elementary Schooland a building project thatadded an elevator to thechurch. Knights donated$25,000 toward these proj-ects, which was raisedthrough the council’s recy-cling program, tractor pullsand other initiatives.

CANDLEHOLDERSDoctor Briggs Council 4597in Courtenay, British Colum-bia, donated $500 to St.Joseph Hospital to put to-ward the purchase of newcandleholders for the hospi-tal’s chapel.

EASIER TRANSPORTATION

St. John XXIII Council 7302in Cole Harbour, Nova Sco-tia, hosted a pig roast dinnerthat raised $3,000 for a localwoman with cerebral palsy.The funds were used to pur-chase a new wheelchair andvan ramp so that the womancan more easily enter and exita handicapped-accessible van.Previously, the woman’s 70-year-old parents were liftingher in and out of the vehicle.

Ed Trojanowski of All SaintsCouncil 9485 in Mesa, Ariz.,scrapes dirt from the bucketof a backhoe while helping tobuild a prayer garden at AllSaints Church. At the re-quest of the pastor, FatherRobert Caruso, Knights builta prayer garden that includesthe Stations of the Cross anda small pool and waterfall.The council plans to addbenches and lighting in thefuture.


JOIN THE FATHERMCGIVNEY GUILDPlease enroll me in the Father McGivney Guild:

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ZIP/POSTAL CODEComplete this coupon and mail to: The Father McGivney Guild, 1 Columbus Plaza, New Haven, CT 06510-3326 or enroll online at: www.fathermcgivney.org

OFFICIAL MARCH 1, 2016:To owners of Knights of Columbus insurance policies and persons

responsible for payment of premiums on such policies: Notice is herebygiven that in accordance with the provisions of Section 84 of the Lawsof the Order, payment of insurance premiums due on a monthly basisto the Knights of Columbus by check made payable to Knights ofColumbus and mailed to same at PO Box 1492, NEW HAVEN, CT06506-1492, before the expiration of the grace period set forth in thepolicy. In Canada: Knights of Columbus, Place d’Armes Station, P.O.Box 220, Montreal, QC H2Y 3G7

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K OF C ITEMSOFFICIAL SUPPLIERS

IN THE UNITED STATESTHE ENGLISH COMPANY INC.

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LYNCH AND KELLY INC.Official council and Fourth Degree equipment and officer robes

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knightsgear.comOrder these and other items online at:

Questions? Call: 1-855-GEAR-KOC (855-432-7562)

A.A. Pinnacle Gold LS Golf BallsThis budget-friendly ball produces great re-sults. With an MD90 Lithium Surlyn cut-proof cover, this ball offers good distance anda sharp short game. Full-color Emblem of theOrder is printed on each ball. Sold in dozens: $18/dozen Titleist DT Solo also available: $27/dozen

PROMOTIONAL & GIFT ITEMS

B. Water Repellent Lightweight JacketThis navy Devon & Jones® jacket willhelp you shrug off the raindrops. Thejacket has a lightweight breathable 65%polyester/35% cotton shell with abreathable mesh lining and elastic cuffsand waist. Yoke vents allow for airmovement. The outside pockets areself-locking, and there is an inside zippocket and a wind-guard coveredfront zipper. This jacket is availablewith the Emblem of the Order orthe Fourth Degree Emblem embroi-dered on the left chest in full-color.M-XL: $50 ; 2XL: $52 3XL: $53 ; 4XL: $54

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C. Diamond Pattern TieNavy blue silk woven tie with the Em-blem of the Order or Fourth Degree.Emblem repeated all over in a diamondpattern. Available in Standard Length:$20 and Long Length: $21

Bow tie with diamond pattern Emblemof the Order or Fourth Degree Emblem.(cannot be worn with regalia) $20


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M A R C H 2 0 1 6 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 33

TO BE FEATURED HERE, SEND YOUR COUNCIL’S “KNIGHTS IN ACTION” PHOTO AS WELL AS ITS DESCRIPTION TO: COLUMBIA, 1 COLUMBUS PLAZA, NEW HAVEN, CT 06510-3326 OR E-MAIL: [email protected].

Father Mark Wagner, chaplain of St. JosephCouncil 10644 in Modesto, Calif., blessesa highway patrol car with holy water fol-lowing a Blue Mass. Knights welcomed rep-resentatives from the Modesto Police andFire Departments, Stanislaus County Sher-iff, California Highway Patrol and otherfirst responders for a morning of prayer, theblessing of vehicles and a parish lunch. Theannual Blue Mass, so named for the tradi-tional color of police uniforms, was begunin honor of first responders in the monthsfollowing Sept. 11, 2001.

Building a better world one council

at a timeEvery day, Knights all over the world aregiven opportunities to make a difference— whether through community service,raising money or prayer. We celebrateeach and every Knight for his strength,his compassion and his dedication tobuilding a better world.

MAR 16 COVERS E 2_13 FINAL.qxp_Layout 1 2/13/16 7:01 PM Page 33

PLEASE, DO ALL YOU CAN TO ENCOURAGE PRIESTLY AND RELIGIOUS VOCATIONS. YOUR PRAYERS AND SUPPORT MAKE A DIFFERENCE.PLEASE, DO ALL YOU CAN TO ENCOURAGE PRIESTLY AND RELIGIOUS VOCATIONS. YOUR PRAYERS AND SUPPORT MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

‘THE MOSTIMPORTANT LESSONI’VE LEARNEDISTOTRUST.’

Leaving high school, I didn’t know whether ornot I was called to be a priest. But prayer, spiri-tual direction and the encouragement of thosearound me led me to a deeper discernment, andI entered seminary. My parents, siblings, friendsand local K of C council made my journey pos-sible with their prayers and support.

I looked to stories of the saints and the exam-ple of my parents, and from these I knew that Ihad to trust that God had a plan. Then, duringmy novitiate, I experienced falling in love withChrist, which gave me purpose, zeal and aboveall peace in my vocation. I will spend the rest ofmy life trying to share my love for Christ withthose around me.

In my six years in formation, the most impor-tant lesson I’ve learned is to trust. Taking thingsone step at a time requires trusting in providence.The peace and direction I now have in my lifeare a testament to that. Others trusted in me,which in turn allowed me to trust in Christ.

JOSH BATHON, CSCVowed Religious and Seminarian, Congregation of Holy CrossNotre Dame, Ind.

KEEP THE FAITH ALIVE

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by M

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