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The Founder of the
Knights of Columbus
Over a century ago, in mid-August
of 1890, one  of the largest funerals in
the history of Waterbury, Connecticut,
took place. The throngs who attended were grieving the death, at age 38, of Father
Michael J. McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus.
Delegations were present from almost every
one of the 57 Knights of Columbus councils that had been chartered in the Order's first eight years. The Bishop of Hartford and more than 70 of
Connecticut's Catholic priests were joined by many civic leaders. It was reported that every available carriage for miles around had been rented for the great procession.
Father McGivney's funeral was an indication
of the love and respect the people felt for this hard-working, holy, parish
priest. It also reflected the deep personal appeal that immigrant Catholics
immediately found in the Knights of Columbus. Since that time, the Order's
growth has never stopped. Today it is the largest society of Catholic men in the
world, with 1.6 million members in the United
States, Canada, the Philippines,
Mexico, and several Central American and Caribbean countries.
To mark the Order's hundredth anniversary in
1982, the Knights of Columbus brought the remains of Father McGivney from
Waterbury back to St. Mary's Church in New Haven, where he had founded the
Order. There he now rests in a setting in which daily Mass is offered for the
deceased members and their deceased spouses of the Order and prayers are said in
his honor. His cause for canonization is proceeding.
Visit the site below for more information on
Father McGivney's life and the status of progress toward his canonization:
Father
McGivney Guild
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