AMDG
Since 1967 the Norfolk, Virginia Knights of Columbus Council 3548,
has sponsored and organized the annual St. Patrick's Day parade that has been a
wonderful community service over the years. However, this year, the
Council honored Terry McAuliffe, the Governor of the State of Virginia, by
naming him the Parade Marshall, ignoring the fact that he is openly
pro-abortion and pro gay marriage. By honoring the Governor, Council 3548
is ignoring the pleas of their local pastor and flaunting the teachings of the
Church. Fr. Dan Beeman, with the backing of his Bishop, wrote an eloquent
letter below in condemnation of the action of Council 3548 and severed the
relationship of his parish, Holy Trinity Church. The letter and further
links below are taken from Deacon Greg Kandra's blog at http://www.patheos.com/blogs/deaconsbench/2015/03/virginia-parish-severs-ties-with-knights-of-columbus-over-plans-to-honor-gov-terry-mcauliffe/.
A Very Lame Excuse. The K of C
Virginia State Council responded that it "deeply regrets the violation of
this policy." The state deputy said that the selection of Gov. Terry
McAuliffe to lead the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade does not imply approval
of his views. So what? Damage is being done. Can't they understand
that Council 3548 is helping the governor's future political aspirations by
providing honor, prestige, photo ops, publicity, and a platform from which to
speak? Many people will believe that the
Knights approve of his work, his views and his policies. Withdrawing the invitation, although awkward at this late date, still is an option.
Suppose
for the sake of argument that a governor favored the legalization of homosexual
relations between an adult and a consenting 14 year old adolescent. Would Counsel 3548 invite this hypothetical
governor to be the Grand Marshall of their St. Patrick’s Day Parade? Of course not. Then why invite a pro-abortion governor? Aren’t they both evils? Where is the consistency in their principles? The way our society is heading, some day this
example may not be so far fetched. For
the time being much of society accepts the one evil, but not the other.
An essential prerequisite for any
man to enter the order and become a fledgling 1st Degree knight in the first place is to be a faithful
practicing Catholic. The Grand Knight of Council 3548, the District
Deputy, and the officers of the Knights of Columbus at the state level are
generally 4th Degree knights and should know better. The State Council at first
did decide to name another Grand Marshall, but then in a cowardly manner bowed to
expediency and reversed their decision. With such moral principles, it
is very questionable whether these men should ever have been accepted as 1st
degree members of the Knights of Columbus. This is as bad as Notre Dame
inviting pro-abortion, pro gay marriage President Barack Obama to be their
commencement speaker and on top of that, giving him an honorary degree.
All of this would make our saintly founder, Fr. Michael J. McGivney (1852-1890) turn over in his grave, not to mention St. Patrick himself. This action of Council 3548 is a betrayal of the ideals upon which Fr. McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus.
All of this would make our saintly founder, Fr. Michael J. McGivney (1852-1890) turn over in his grave, not to mention St. Patrick himself. This action of Council 3548 is a betrayal of the ideals upon which Fr. McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus.
The shame of this scandal reflects upon me as well as on all of my brother knights, not
to mention the National organization of the Knights of Columbus and all
its faithful councils. It lessens the credibility of our Supreme Knight,
Carl A. Anderson as our principal spokesman and author. People tend to
generalize to the entire organization. Such a black mark upon our order may discourage new members from joining this eminent organization and even cause some members to sever their ties with the Knights of Columbus.
Furthermore, it diminishes much of the great work the Knights of Columbus are doing all over the country and the world. The national website, kofc.org would give the reader a good overview. My blogs #145 & #153 at http://paulrsebastianphd.blogspot.com give a good idea of what my own local Knights of Columbus Council 3335 is doing. Blog #39 has a “Knight’s Prayer”, #126 is about Christopher Columbus, and #146 honors the 60th Wedding Anniversary of our former grand knight to promote long lasting marriages.
Furthermore, it diminishes much of the great work the Knights of Columbus are doing all over the country and the world. The national website, kofc.org would give the reader a good overview. My blogs #145 & #153 at http://paulrsebastianphd.blogspot.com give a good idea of what my own local Knights of Columbus Council 3335 is doing. Blog #39 has a “Knight’s Prayer”, #126 is about Christopher Columbus, and #146 honors the 60th Wedding Anniversary of our former grand knight to promote long lasting marriages.
We knights are democrats, republicans, and independents. We
are brothers all........and Catholics faithful to the truth. As an organization, we are apolitical. We do not
use the order for political ends. We serve local parishes and the
community, but no political party. We only get involved in an issue when
social justice, and church teachings are being violated because we are
defenders of the faith. We are defenders of Christ the King and His
Church.
Therefore, the National Knights of Columbus in New Haven
Connecticut should consider disciplining, censuring, forcing a reorganization
of Council 3548, placing it on probation, or even expelling it as a last resort.
Brother Knights, please make your thoughts known to me at
paulrsebastian@yahoo.com and the Supreme Council through
<communications@kofc.org>,
“Andrew Walther (203-824-5412)
Public Relations” <andrew.walther@kofc.org>,
“Joseph Cullen (203-415-9314) Senior Communications Specialist” <joseph.cullen@kofc.org>, <CommunicationsDept@kofc.org>,
We
are waiting for the reaction of our Supreme Knight Carl Anderson and the
Supreme Council. May it reaffirm in
detail the principles and ideals of which our order was founded and every
counsel should follow.
Virginia parish severs ties with Knights of Columbus over plans to honor Gov. Terry McAuliffe
March 11, 2015 by
 |
| Governor of the State of Virginia, Terry Mcauliffe |
Lifesite News has the scoop:
A Virginia Knights of Columbus council is pressing forward with plans to honor pro-abortion, pro-homosexual “marriage” Gov. Terry McAuliffe by having him as grand marshal of its St. Patrick’s Day Parade. In response, the parish priest has strongly reproached the council and cut ties.
Norfolk Knights of Columbus Council 3548, which has organized the Norfolk Saint Patrick’s Day Parade since 1967, had secured McAuliffe as grand marshal, apparently keeping the choice from the pastor of Holy Trinity Parish, where the council is based. When Father Dan Beeman took it up with the state council on the advice of his bishop, he was told by the state council that another grand marshal would be chosen, a decision that was reversed ten days later.
Read more.“Governor McAuliffe stands contrary to the Catholic Church in not one but many of the most essential teachings of the Church in the political arena,” the Norfolk pastor wrote in a March 5 letter to parishioners, distributed at Sunday Mass on March 8. “He himself promised to be a ‘brick wall’ against restrictions on abortion, has taken away commonsense protections for women in abortion facilities and lowered safety standards, and consistently takes money from pro-abortion lobbying groups.”
The full text of the pastor’s letter:
Dear Parishioners,
I write to alert you to an unfortunate situation which I have done my best to avoid, but to no avail. As you are aware, each year Norfolk is home to the annual Saint Patrick’s Day Parade. The local Knights of Columbus Council #3548 have been the sponsors and originators of the parade since 1967. As a Catholic men’s fraternal organization, the Knights of Columbus sought to bring a celebration in honor of one of our Church’s greatest Saints to the people of Norfolk. Each year, the Knights pay special honor to one particular “Grand Marshall” who is given the title, is honored at an annual Emerald Ball, and is then given the charge of leading the parade.
It had been the custom to honor a local resident or community member with that title for a number of years. Last winter, I wrote to the Knights of Columbus at the request of the Bishop’s Vicar for the East, advising them that it would be best if we allowed the parade to remain a non-political event. I asked them not to honor any political candidate, office holder, or former office holder above the city level, as politicians at those levels often make decisions about issues which Catholics hold as non-negotiable to our Catholic faith. It was our strong urging that they not honor any political persons, but that if they did, they should not honor anyone who stands in opposition to the teaching of the Church on issues of life, marriage, or religious liberty. I wrote that letter at the request of our own Bishop to be sure that the Knights understood this is an important part of distinguishing our Catholic identity in public forums and awards.
After receiving the letter in the winter of 2014, two members of the Knights of Columbus parade committee met with me because they had already chosen a Grand Marshall last year who did, in fact, stand publicly against the teaching of the Church and who had, in fact, campaigned specifically on positions against the Church. I met with the committee members and after extensive conversation, they agreed to name a new Grand Marshall for last year’s parade. They chose an excellent second option, the Chief of the Norfolk Police, and I was relieved to be able to participate in the Emerald Ball and Parade. In that meeting they specifically agreed to avoid political persons going forward as it could send a very mixed message for a Catholic organization to honor someone who stands in opposition to the Church’s teachings. They gave me their word they would not do this again.
I was saddened and shocked to learn only two weeks ago that the Knights of Columbus had, again, decided to give the honor of Grand Marshall to a politician. Going against their word to me last year, this year they decided to honor Governor Terry McAuliffe. Governor McAuliffe stands contrary to the Catholic Church in not one but many of the most essential teachings of the Church in the political arena. He himself promised to be a “brick wall” against restrictions on abortion, has taken away commonsense protections for women in abortion facilities and lowered safety standards, and consistently takes money from pro-abortion lobbying groups. Further, he not only favors the re-definition of marriage, he himself performed a gay “marriage” as soon as a court overturned the law of the Commonwealth. Marriage and Life are two of the foundational efforts of the Knights of Columbus as a national organization, so it is dumbfounding how the Knights could then decide to honor the Governor.
The council kept the decision from me until just a few weeks ago, when I was informed via a bulk mailing. At that point, I followed the advice and counsel of the Office of the Bishop. He asked that I refer the matter to the State Council of the Knights of Columbus and to also advise the National Office. I was told immediately by the State Deputy that the Knights would name another Grand Marshall. Ten days later, the State Deputy informed me that the Knights had reversed their decision and have decided to leave Governor McAuliffe as the Grand Marshall of the parade.
Bishop DiLorenzo believes strongly in the Catholic principle of subsidiarity – that decisions in the Church should be made at the lowest level possible. I agree with him that this decision should be handled internally within the Knights of Columbus as an organization. While it is a sad and unfortunate thing that the Knights would decide to allow this to continue against our request, I have to consider that I have done my part as the pastor to teach the Truth of the Church and allow them to operate in freedom. It is the clear teaching of the Bishops of the United States in Catholics in Political Life that, “the Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors, or platforms which would suggest support for their actions” (emphasis in original text). There is a difference between respecting the Office of Governor and allowing the Governor to march in the parade and honoring the Governor by naming him the Grand Marshall and official host of the parade. The Knights have chosen to act on their own, against the clear advice and teaching of the Church.As a result of their decision, the parish will not support or participate in the parade. I will not attend the Emerald Ball or Parade. Sadly, this also unnecessarily severs the relationship between Council #3548 and Holy Trinity parish.
Again, it is unfortunate that the Knights have decided to make something that should be a community event into something that is political. I am aware that some members of the Council disagreed with this decision, and that there are some who had nothing to do with the decision. I am grateful to those men for the support of what is right, and to Knights who are active members of the parish who stand for the truth. In a time where things of so much more importance exist, I am sad that this much energy has been devoted to something of this nature. Please pray for unity in the Church.
Faithfully in Christ,
Father Dan Beeman
Pastor
Knights of Columbus responds: “The State Council deeply regrets the violation of policy…”
March 12, 2015 by
On Thursday afternoon, the Knights of Columbus Virginia State Council posted an updated statement to its website:It said the state council “reaffirms the longstanding policy of the Knights of Columbus not to invite or bestow honors on public officials who do not support the legal protection of unborn children. … The State Council deeply regrets the violation of this policy by a council in Norfolk for its St. Patrick’s Day Parade. We are conducting an investigation to determine how and why this occurred, and we will ensure that such incidents do not recur in the future.”
The state deputy for the Knights of Columbus says the selection of Gov. Terry McAuliffe to lead the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade in Ocean View does not imply approval of his views.The Knights prefer to keep politics out of such celebrations as a general rule, wrote Steve Burnley, and usually discourage inviting politicians. But other governors as well as political and civic leaders have served as grand marshal in the past, he wrote.“The parade is a nonpartisan, apolitical civic event that is open to the public…” Burnley wrote. “The Governor’s participation should be understood in that sense alone.”
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