Father Michael J. McGivney, the Founder of the Knights of Columbus, a Venerable Servant of God

His Faith

High ideals are not the exclusive preserve of the young, but they seem to go hand in hand with youthful energy and optimism. The trick is to keep our ideals burning brightly even when the vitality of youth begins to fade. This is, in part, what distinguishes a saint from the rest of us. A saint keeps the vision of God's love and the call to serve one's neighbor bright and clear to the end. In fact, when we look at the lives of holy men and women, we see that their ideals grow stronger with the passage of time. Physical energies may fade, but sanctity requires a clarity and consistency that remain to the end of one's days.

Father McGivney was an idealist. He was a man whose youthful vision and creativity expanded and matured even as his physical well-being diminished. His intense idealism is often expressed today in titles ascribed to him as his cause for canonization progresses: "Apostle to the Young" and "Protector of Christian Family Life." These provide an outline for a spiritual portrait of Father McGivney.

Fr. McGivney, apostle to the young

There was in Father McGivney some spark, some magnetism, that drew the young to him. He was at ease with little children and lost some of his natural reserve and formality with them. But it was to the young adults of his day that he was given a particular mission. Father McGivney was bonded to the young men and women of his flock in a mutual admiration and respect that endured even after his death in 1890. He was relatively young himself, only 25, when he began his first priestly assignment at St. Mary's Church in New Haven, Conn., and so he understood their aspirations as well as their struggles and temptations.
"Apostle" means "one who is sent. "Father McGivney was sent by God to the young people of his time to lead them along a secure path to Christian adulthood. In an age experiencing the growing despair and violence of teenagers and young adults, it is imperative that we look to models such as Father McGivney to learn the art of drawing the youth of our society to a life of moral excellence and the nobility of Christian service of God and neighbor. No stranger to adversity, Father McGivney is an apostle to those who, in our own era, struggle to find meaning and purpose in life. He is a heavenly patron for young men and women of the third millennium.

As a Servant of Charity

To habitually anticipate the needs of others is a sign of true Christian charity. To spend one's life alleviating the sufferings of others and bringing joy to one's neighbor brings witness to the reality of Christ's love in one's mind and heart. This is the pattern of service and ministry we discover in Father McGivney as we plot the events of his daily life.
Father McGivney seems never to have failed in his interest and concern for others, even at the expense of his own health and well being. We can only rejoice in the example he provides: united to Christ in the Mass, prayer and sacrifice yet never removed from the realities of life that so preoccupied the members of his flock.
There was in Father McGivney a balance between the human and divine. His ability to mourn with those in sorrow and rejoice with those in need of joy and encouragement typified his priestly disposition. Every one of us, cleric or lay, married or single, need to achieve such a balance, an integration, in our own lives.God hears our prayers for help, and he listens to the powerful intercession of his friends, the saints. Let us learn to invoke the intercession of his holy, humble and very human parish priest for our conversion and growth in spiritual life.

His Legacy: The Knights of Columbus

Through the Knights of Columbus, Father McGivney gave Catholic laymen a new opportunity – the chance to grow in holiness while contributing to their parishes, communities and security of their families. Today, more and more Church leaders are recognizing his spiritual genius in animating the laity.

Wherever they exist, Knights continue the tradition of support for bishops and parish priests exemplified by Father McGivney. Each year tens of thousands of Catholics attend the Marian Hour of Prayer programs, rosary prayer services, and pro-life Masses Knights sponsor.
Father McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus as a fraternal benefit society offering low-cost life insurance to immigrant families facing destitution if a breadwinner died. Today the Knights of Columbus has more than $50 billion of life insurance in force. Its insurance program has received the highest possible ratings from both the A. M. Best Co. and Standard & Poor's.

Source: Fr. Michael McGivney Guild