IWKnights Corner for May 22, 2022 – 6th Sunday of Easter

Did you know this about the IW Knights of Columbus? 

FROM the monthly Columbia column – entitled: Images of Unity - by the editor of the Columbia Alton J. Pelowski:

     “ASK CATHOLICS about the Knights of Columbus, and images of charity and fraternity will probably spring to their minds, not to mention images of patriotism and the Fourth Degree.  The principle of unity, on the other hand, is a bit more intangible.  Nonetheless, unity remains essential to our identity and mission as Knights.  In fact, the Order’s motto from its earliest days — stamped on Supreme Council letterhead in 1882 and repeated by Blessed Michael McGivney in his correspondence — was ‘Unity and Charity.’  Unity was mentioned even before charity, which is now celebrated as the Order’s first principle.
Recall the lesson on unity from the Second Degree, now part of the combined exemplification of charity, unity and fraternity.  A single fiber is easily broken, but “when individual fibers are bound together, they become a strong cable.”  The analogy is helpful, but we miss the point if we reduce the importance of unity to the idea of ‘strength in numbers.’  Rather, the lesson begins: ‘Gentlemen, to be a Knight of Columbus means that you possess unity in purpose and unity in action, which come from our shared Catholic faith and the grace of the Holy Spirit.’
The late Archbishop Luis María Martínez of Mexico City, who served as state chaplain during and following a period of religious persecution in Mexico, summarized what he saw as a threefold unity of the Order: unity of faith, unity of organization and unity of action (see page 17).  All three are crucial, but it begins with unity of faith, which itself is grounded in the unity of the Church and, ultimately, the unity of the one God, the Holy Trinity.
Speaking of unity in such terms may sound somewhat abstract or elusive, but when I consider the Order’s spiritual and charitable response to the war in Ukraine, images of unity abound.  I also recall a photo taken a decade ago, in May 2012; it showed Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, and Archbishop Mieczysław Mokrzycki, Roman Catholic archbishop of Lviv, standing together and holding the symbolic ‘cable’ following the first-ever exemplifications in Ukraine.
Ten years later, unity can clearly be seen in the some 1,900 Ukrainian Knights, representing both the Greek and Latin Catholic traditions, courageously serving their country and those in need.  It is likewise seen in Polish Knights embracing Ukrainian refugees as their brothers and sisters; in continued support of the Order’s Ukraine Solidarity Fund, which has raised more than $11 million for direct relief; and especially in Knights around the world praying together for peace.
Blessed Michael McGivney was right: Unity goes hand in hand with Christian charity — which ‘binds everything together in perfect harmony’ (Col 3:14).  Whereas sin is the cause of division, unity fosters and is made possible by virtue, particularly the virtue of charity.  It is for this reason that Jesus prayed, above all, for the unity of his flock, and St. Paul exhorts us to ‘bear with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace’ (Eph 4:2-3).

You can find a link to the above article along with more information about the Knights of Columbus at IWKnights9981.com/bulletin or on facebook.com/IWknights9981 and NOW on Twitter at twitter.com/IwKnights.

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