As part of the Order’s year-long preparation for the 8th World Meeting of Families to be held September 22-27, 2015 in Philadelphia – Supreme Knight Carl Anderson recently announced a new initiative titled “Building the Domestic Church: The Family Fully Alive.” A copy of the program booklet was mailed to each grand knight of record, and we would ask that your council take an active part in this program. You can review the online version of the materials at kofc.org/familyfullyalive.
In the program booklet’s introduction, Supreme Knight Anderson stated that “through this program, our families can realize more fully their mission to be an authentic domestic church through daily prayer, catechesis and Scripture reading, as well as through monthly charitable and volunteer projects they can do as a family.” It is my hope that many of these charitable and volunteer projects will be sponsored by the local Knights of Columbus council.”
The supreme knight further stated that “this initiative can help all families deepen their relationship with the Lord. It can especially help divorced parents meet their obligation to raise their children in the Catholic faith
Through participating in the “Building the Domestic Church: The Family Fully Alive” initiative, your council will go a long way toward qualifying for the Columbian Award, which is a requirement for Star Council. Some of the suggested council-wide events – Food for Families, Coats for Kids, Global Wheelchair Mission – can fulfill all Columbian Award requirements in their Service Program categories, depending upon the level of outreach provided. And programs such as family movie nights, Renewal of Marriage Vow ceremonies and Christmas celebrations can help to fill up the Columbian Award application pretty quickly.
I hope that your council will participate in this exciting initiative. Supreme Knight Anderson has often referred to our good works as “a charity that evangelizes.” Nowhere is this more true than when we undertake programs that help people in our communities while helping our members and their families grow in the Catholic faith. For more information on “Building the Domestic Church: The Family Fully Alive” please visit kofc.org/familyfullyalive.