Programs
State Fraternal Mission ProgramStrengthening Our Parish Home
As Knights we are all called to serve God our Father, Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Mother Church and our parish homes. Today we must also turn our attention toward the challenges facing our Church and address them head on. As Knights we must unite to defend the faith and help grow the Church by providing her with our full support.
For over 136 years the charitable works of our Order have been seen and felt around world. But even with our past achievements we are burdened by a growing apathy among Catholics regarding their faith. Today less than 25% of Catholics attend Mass and far fewer Catholics actively participate in the living works of Christ found in discipleship and charitable action. Additionally, we are living on the edge of disaster as new religious vocations continue to struggle and our priests are stretched ever thinner to deliver sacramental salvation to those who seek it.
As an Order we must unite with our bishops and priests to help bring the lost flock home to our Lord Jesus Christ and remove all toxic indifference from our pews. It has never been more important that we align our KofC events and activities to help strengthen the front lines of our parish homes. Every Council in Tennessee must work throughout the upcoming fraternal year to implement programs and promote activities that will increase parish vitality and lighten the burden carried by our pastors. Let us all work to strengthen our parish homes by accomplishing our fraternal mission and by following these steps:
SERVE GOD BY PARTNERING WITH YOUR PASTOR
We are one body, one Church. We must create unity to help achieve the pastoral goals of our faith, our Bishops and our priests. The parts of our body do not operate autonomously from our heart and mind nor should our councils with the Church body. Let’s tear down the silos that separate us and engage in works of Christ through his ministry arm in arm and children of God.
ANCHOR YOUR COUNCIL AND PARISH IN THE SACRAMENTS
We can become distant from our sacraments when we allow the noise and distractions of a consumer driven
world to drown out Christ’s call to each of us. As Knights we must turn down the outside noise and turn up the light on the grace that only God’s Sacraments provide! Gather together and celebrate the Mass and join in the great sacrifice that set all humanity free from sin.
EMBRACE OUR COMMON PRIESTHOOD
In baptism we are each given a vocation to serve God as priest, prophet and king. We must allow ourselves to secularize our relationship with God and his Church. Reboot your vocation by recognizing that you are called
to serve God as a loyal citizen of his Holy Nation. Our priest, deacons and consecrated religious are our
partners in the battle against evil and in the mission to evangelize the world. Together let us live holy lives, profess God’s truth and govern our world according to God’s will.
HELP FOSTER A POSITIVE IMAGE OF OUR PRIESTS
We must work to help promote a positive image of our priests in the parish, in the home and in the community. Religious vocations are becoming an endangered species in many parts of the world. The number of men entering the seminary is not keeping pace with the growth of our Church. As priests retire and pass on we are struggling to replace them in many of our parishes. Let’s invite our priests into our hearts and homes and promote religious vocations wherever we may go.
TURN TO GOD FOR HIS HELP THROUGH PRAYER
We must always remember that our priests are under constant attack by forces that wish to destroy our Sacramental bonds with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Our best weapons and armor in this fight against evil is prayer. The Tennessee Knights of Columbus are partnering with a community of contemplative cloistered
nuns, The Handmaids of the Precious Blood, to encourage all Catholics to pray for the sanctification and
protection of our priests. Commit yourself and your Council to pray for our priest and for new vocations.
With Help From Our Sisters and from Heaven Above!
Let us not forget the words of Saint John Paul II. “There is no Church without the Eucharist and there is no Eucharist without the Priest.”
We are not alone in our commitment to protect and serve our priests around the world. Here in Tennessee, we are fortunate to be home to The Handmaids of the Precious Blood, a community of cloistered contemplative nuns. The Handmaids’ founding charism is directed primarily toward strengthening priests in their sublime but demanding vocation.
Giving themselves totally to Almighty God and to his Church forever, these amazing prayer warriors ask our Lord through Eucharistic Adoration, prayer and sacrifice to extend his grace and protection for our priests. The Sisters have organized through their international prayer associations over 30,000 individuals to pray and sacrifice daily for a particularly designated priest, and the number of committed coworkers continues to increase.
Aware of the respected ability of the Knights of Columbus to promote a growing awareness of the laity’s role of cooperation with their priests for the new evangelization and development of the domestic church, the Handmaids will join with us through prayer for the Knights as we strive to protect and serve Christ in his priests. We encourage you to learn more about our unified mission with the Handmaids by visiting www.WePrayforPriests.com
Supreme Mission ProgramFaith In Action
As Knights we are all called to serve God our Father, Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Mother Church and our parish homes. Today we must also turn our attention toward the challenges facing our Church and address them head on. As Knights we must unite to defend the faith and help grow the Church by providing her with our full support.
For over 136 years the charitable works of our Order have been seen and felt around world. But even with our past achievements we are burdened by a growing apathy among Catholics regarding their faith. Today less than 25% of Catholics attend Mass and far fewer Catholics actively participate in the living works of Christ found in discipleship and charitable action. Additionally, we are living on the edge of disaster as new religious vocations continue to struggle and our priests are stretched ever thinner to deliver sacramental salvation to those who seek it.
As an Order we must unite with our bishops and priests to help bring the lost flock home to our Lord Jesus Christ and remove all toxic indifference from our pews. It has never been more important that we align our KofC events and activities to help strengthen the front lines of our parish homes. Every Council in Tennessee must work throughout the upcoming fraternal year to implement programs and promote activities that will increase parish vitality and lighten the burden carried by our pastors. Let us all work to strengthen our parish homes by accomplishing our fraternal mission and by following these steps: