The Vision of Fr. McGivney

March 29, 1882 was a significant date in the annals of North American fraternal societies.  It was the day on which the General Assembly of the State of Connecticut granted the charter to the Knights of Columbus, "for the purpose of rendering mutual aid and assistance to it's members and their families."

It was also a glorious day in the life of a young Catholic priest, the Reverend Michael J. McGivney, curate of Saint Mary's Parish in New Haven, for it marked the fulfillment of his dream: to unite Catholic men in a society through which they might advance the ideals of their faith.

For four years Father McGivney had worked closely with the men of his parish.  Out of this ministry came the vision and the ambition to organize them into a great and helpful fraternal society.  Others had attempted to do this, but they had failed.

Father McGivney called together, in the parish rectory on January 9, 1882 a small group of young men in whom he had confidence.  They listened to him as he described the need for Catholic men to organize, and the many possibilities such organization offered.  They all agreed with him, that the time had come to launch a fraternal organization founded upon the ideals and having objectives suggested by the young priest.

In general, the objectives were a system of fraternal insurance to care for the widows and orphans of members, to provide fellowship among the members, to aid the cause of religion, and to perform charitable, educational and patriotic works for the benefit of their fellow men and their nation.

On February 6, 1882 the name Knights of Columbus was chosen and the decision made to apply to the state for a charter.

The early officers and founders of the Order felt, in the preliminary meetings, that the name of the new organization should relate to the Catholic Discoverer of America - to emphasize the fact that Catholics discovered, explored and colonized the North American continent and that it should embody Knightly ideals of service to Church, Country and fellow man.  Consequently, after an original proposal of "Son of Columbus", the title, Knights of Columbus, was adopted.

The following excerpts from the charter set forth briefly the purposes of the Order:

"Resolved, By this Assembly that Reverend Michael J. McGivney, Matthew C. O'Connor, Cornelius T. Driscoll, James T. Mullen, John T. Kerrigan, Daniel Colwell and William M. Geary and all other persons in the society with them under the name of the Knights of Columbus, together with all such persons as may hereafter become associated with them, and their successors, are constituted a body corporate and politic by the name of the Knights of Columbus for the following purposes;

            "(a) of rendering pecuniary aid to its members and beneficiaries of members;

            "(b) of rendering mutual aid and assistance to its sick and disabled members:

            "(c) of promoting such social and cultural intercourse among its members as shall be desirable and proper;

            "(d) of promoting and conduction educational, charitable, religious, social welfare, war relief and public relief work."

That these purposes have been fulfilled and the ambition of Father McGivney realized is abundantly proved by the society's record of accomplishments.

Father McGivney and his associates laid the foundations well.  They fixed high standards for membership and established sound principles for the guidance of the members.  They formulated rules and incorporated into them standards of conduct they regarded as vital to the achievement of the Order's ideals.

It took 15 years to have the Order thoroughly established in New England and along the upper Atlantic seaboard.  Then it began to spread outward and, within eight years, it was firmly established from Quebec to California and from Florida to Washington.

Within another two years the Order had been organized in every jurisdiction in North America and its principles of Charity, Unity, Fraternity and Patriotism had been adopted as the personal principles of hundreds of thousands of Catholic men.

Today the Knights of Columbus is an organized, functioning society in every state of the United States, the ten provinces of Canada, the Canal Zone, Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Philippines.