What makes a KC Council tick?

Title

Language

English

Year

1958

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Abstract

It points up to the soul of the KC apostolate.

Fulltext

On July 4th, you may behold a group of Knights of Columbus in the traditional civic parade in your town. Or you may attend a civic program sponsored by the local I<C council. After a destructive fire or a violent ty phoon, you may see the same group distri buting food, clothes, medicines and other relief goods to the victims. At the solemn procession for Christ the King in October, you may also be treated to the sight of colorfully uniformed Fourth Degree Knights marching solemnly with the throng. Or at Christmas time, you may find them visiting your home to solicit contributions members and stirs up their desire to join the Order. The first point in the program is Catholic Activity. As with the other five points, the implementation of the projects in this field falls under the charge of a group — the Catholic Activity Group. The Group is in turn divided into five committees: Charity, Devotion, Education, Family and Catholic Contact, each charged with undertaking a set of projects and activities pertaining to its scope. The Catholic Activity Group in its pro jects and activities aims to furnish the op portunity for members to practice their Catholic duties in the fields of charity, de votion and education and to enable the indi vidual Knight to set constant and worthy What Makes A KC Council Tick ? It points up to the soul of the KC apostolate. for some charity drive or for a yule pro gram which they are arranging for the in digent. For the most part, these activities that you witness are not the outcome of sponta neous inspirations. They take place as a re sult of a long established, carefully pre pared plan of action, which KC councils all over the world are asked uniformly to carry out in their respective communities. As in an organism, this action plan, called the Six-Point-Program, is the heart that pumps the vital lifeblood which makes the KC council buzz with activity. It injects coherence into the activity of the members. As the term suggests, the Six-Point>Program is divided into six distinct fields of endeavor. It is designed to include the widest variety of interests. As a result, it invites and impells action that grips the at tention of the members, draws them to meetings, gives them challenging outlets for their energies and makes them proud to be long to their KC council. At the same time, it also captures the interest of prospective example as an ideal Catholic to his family, his community and his fellow members. Towards this end, the proper committees sponsor fund drives for charitable causes, conduct annual retreats for the members, organize cathechetical classes, promote fa mily devotions such as family rosary, and honor members of the clergy. The main burden of keeping the members interested in the KC council falls heavily on the Six-Point-Program. Likewise, it is di vided into committees for Entertainment, Athletics, Civic Affairs, Cultural Affairs and Social Affairs. These committees se parately fulfill the duty of the group to pro vide a varied program of activities which will furnish enjoyment, entertainment, and benefit to the members of the KC council and their farfriiles and friends, at the same time enabling them to contribute the cons tructive advantages of their many talents and abilities to the program. Fraternity is frequently in the mind of anyone who hears mention of the Knights (Continued on page 19) July, 1958 13 WHAT MAKES.... (Continued from p. 13) of Columbus. And it is not surprising, be cause it is one of the essences of our Order. Father Michael J. McGivney had it in mind, when he first conceived the Knights of Co lumbus. The third group of the Six-Point-Program, the Fraternal Activity Group, has the task of maintaining a strong brotherly bond among the members. Birthday celebrants among the Knights are greeted and honored. Sick members are visited. The dead are re membered with Masses and spiritual bou quets. The five committees under this group are the> Personal Acknowledgment, Blood Do nors, Relief and Welfare, Sick and Memorial committees. The fourth group is the Membership-In surance Group. In the Philippines, KC councils so far have only been able to carry out activities concerning membership in this field. Because of^dollar restrictions, the KC insurance system in the United States has not been extended here. How ever, if the proposed operation of a local KC insurance system will be pushed through this group in the various KC coun cils may soon function completely. It is the duty of the Membership-Insur-f ance Group to maintain membership in the council at a level which will guarantee the effectiveness of its work and will make Columbjanism a potent and worthwhile fac tor in Catholic, community, and national life. The task is carried out by the Pros•pects, Admission, Enrollment, Conservation and Readmission committees. Although it has been almost a tradition among our Knights to work without fan fare, still the need for some publicity exists for the purpose of gaining sympathy for our Order, especially from those who are misin formed about us, and encouraging the mem bers and the other KC groups to activity. The adoption of THE CROSS Magazine as the national organ of our Order affords us a bigger local outlet for publicity. The other media, of course, are the metropolitan and community newspapers and magazines and the national and local radio stations. The Publicity Group with its assisting com mittees handles this work. Lately, a lot of rumpus has been raised in several quarters about the widespread delinquency of youth. This issue is not HE CAME BACK.... (Continued from page 12) could not have spoken the words that great ly comforted him, the gentle words com mending Him to the Rlessed Mother.' As I spoke of the love and mercy of the hea venly Father in the Sacred Heart of His Son, he cried in repentance for his sins; and he began to confess how wicked a son he was to the^heavenly Father, how he worked to help inK destroying the Church 'of the Divine Savior. And ' that bright Sunday morning, he expressed the desire to give up all connections with “this diabolical secret society fighting the Son of God Him self.” While he spoke of abjuring his membership, I still believe that there was a distinct smell of burnt sulphur suffusing the air in the sick-room. A few days later, before the Christmas of the Marian Year 1954, he confessed to a young priest (a veritable lover of Mary) and a great peace of soul descended upon him. Beholding him thus turned to a new liv ing saint of God, I felt that the brief interior happiness in my soul had turned to a sudden interior desolation. Little did I guess that I (Continued on page 23) "bandied about emptily. The problem is real, starkly real in some places. This currency of the problem may be seized upon by our KC councils to step up their youth work. The last group in the kC Six-Point-Pro gram is the Youth Activity Group. Many KC councils are active in this field. They sponsor Boy Scouts troops, organize sum mer athletic leagues, make available to the youth attractive recreational facilities, and conduct catechetical classes. Our Order has its own ybuth organiza tion in the Columbian Squires. The Squires are recruited usually from among the sons of members and the children of other Ca tholic middle class families. For the less privileged children, the KC councils may form other groups such as the Catholic Youth Organization. The committees under this group are Columbian Squires, Leadership-Services, Re ligious, Social-Recreation and Welfare. The Six-Point-Program is a well-balanced and extensive action plan. It is what makes a KC council tick. But it also requires the right leaders (group and pommittee chair men) and careful and thorough planning and implementation to keep it ticking. July 1958 19

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