Late Father Michael J. McGivney, the founder of the Knights of Columbus, has been declared as beatified by the Roman Catholic Church, putting him one step away from being canonized as a saint.
McGivney was given his title through an apostolic letter from Pope Francis that was read by Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark, New Jersey during a Mass of beatification at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Hartford, Conn., after which a tapestry of his portrait was unveiled in the cathedral's sanctuary.
The pope credited Blessed Michael McGivney for his "zeal for the proclamation of the Gospel and generous concern for his brothers and sisters, and announced that the liturgical memorial of Father McGivney will be observed annually in the Archdiocese of Hartford on Aug. 13 — the day between Father McGivney's Aug. 12 birth and death on Aug. 14.
McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus in 1882 to provide financial support for widows and orphans while keeping Catholic men and their families close to their faith. Today there are more than 2 million members in 16,000 councils in all 50 states, Canada, Mexico, and the Phillippines, along with new chapters in Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, France, and South Korea.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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