Fort Howard Knights

A few months ago Brother Knight John Steinhauer made a proposal to our council to organize a pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe located near La Crosse, Wisconsin.  Traditionally, May is marked by special devotions to the Ever-Virgin Mary; we chose our one-day pilgrimage for May 11, 2010.  We also opened up the invitation to several councils and parishes throughout Green Bay.  We originally thought we could fill a 50 passenger bus, but had to settle on a 36 passenger instead.

The day started out cold and rainy as thirty-five of us headed west to La Crosse, about a three and half hour trip.  Along the way we took time to pray the Rosary, sing a few Marion hymns, and watch a moving movie and video of the Shrine.  Arriving at the Pilgrim Center just in time for a quick lunch before heading up to the Shrine, a good ¼ mile or so located on a bluff over looking a small valley.  After a short tour we celebrated Mass with Father Pete at the Shrine.  Afterwards we had limited time to walk the grounds, before heading down the bluff to the gift shop and our awaiting ride back to Green Bay.

Everyone was pleased with the staff and volunteers services. The Shrine and grounds are magnificent, all were impressed and appreciated.

Check out our picture gallery of our trip

Received this email today; some interesting observations from a non-Catholic:

Didn’t “Snopes” this, so not sure if numbers are accurate…numbers not withstanding, a lot of good points about the Catholic institution.)

The mainstream media does not get it. 

I am not happy that the Catholic Clergy is at 1.7% but this does place an interesting slant on the age old problem.
 
 I received this …it was written by a Jewish business man…us Catholics could take some PR lessons from him….

Excerpts of an article written by Sam Miller, prominent  Cleveland  Jewish businessman – NOT Catholic.

Why would newspapers carry on a vendetta on one of the most important institutions that we have today in the  United States , namely the Catholic Church?

Do you know – the Catholic Church educates 2.6 million elementary and high school students everyday at the cost to that Church of 10 billion dollars, and a savings on the other hand to the American taxpayer of 18 billion dollars. The graduates go on to university studies at the rate of 92%.

The Church has 230 colleges and universities in the  U.S.  with an enrollment of 700,000 students.

The Catholic Church has a non-profit hospital system of 637 hospitals, which account for hospital treatment of 1 out of every 5 people – not just Catholics – in the  United States  today.

But the press is vindictive and trying to totally denigrate in every way the Catholic Church in this country. They have blamed the disease of pedophilia on the Catholic Church, which is as irresponsible as blaming adultery on the institution of marriage.

Let me give you some figures that Catholics should know and remember. For example, 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged other inappropriate sexual contact in a study by the  United   Methodist   Church  , 41.8% of clergy women reported unwanted sexual behavior; 17% of laywomen have been sexually harassed.

Meanwhile, 1.7% of the Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia. 10% of the Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. (please see Rev. Rob Pollock post) This is not just a Catholic problem.

A study of American priests showed that most are happy in the priesthood and find it even better than they had expected, and that most, if given the choice, would choose to be priests again in face of all this obnoxious PR the church has been receiving.

The Catholic Church is bleeding from self-inflicted wounds. The agony that Catholics have felt and suffered is not necessarily the fault of the Church. You have been hurt by a small number of wayward priests that have probably been weeded out by now.

Walk with your shoulders high and your head higher. Be a proud member of the most important non-governmental entity in the  United States today. Then remember what Jeremiah said: ‘Stand by the roads, and look and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is and walk in it, and find rest for your souls’. Be proud to speak up for your faith with pride and reverence and learn what your Church does for all other religions.

 

Be proud that you’re a Catholic.

 

— and it’s just 1 minute 41 seconds!
View it .. and pass it on !!

BISHOP RICKEN SPEAKS  ABOUT THE CONFERENCE
 

Go to http://www.esto-vir.org/ and register to attend

Following email is passed along for your information:

Worthy District Deputies, Communicators and Brothers, 

In our January issue of the Wisconsin Knights Notes, Father Cooper explains that the Knights of Columbus is partnering with The Great Adventure to bring our brother Knights of Wisconsin into deeper spiritual formation through Bible study and as such will be offering The Great Adventure: A Quick Journey Through the Bible. To assist you in organizing and implementing your Quick Journey study, we invite you to partake in one of the Quick Journey training sessions offered by The Great Adventure team. 

The sessions will be held on two different days at two different locations:Jan. 26, 2010 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm St. Bronislava, Plover Jan. 28, 2010 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm St. Matthias, Milwaukee. The cost is $25 and includes the Quick Journey Leader’s Pack, which consists of: Leader’s Guide & Workbook, Bible Timeline Chart, Bookmark and Bible Memory Beads. 

This is an excellent opportunity for you to gain key insights on implementing and maintaining a fruitful Bible study experience, and we strongly encourage those leading the studies and those assisting as core team members to attend. It will also be beneficial for interested Council Chaplains and others to attend as well.

Our brother Knight, Bob Yerkes, with The Great Adventure, will be there to assist and will have student materials on hand to purchase at a discounted rate.

To register, please see the attached flyer, fill it out and mail it in to the address provided. If you have any questions, please contact Corinne Murphy, Study Group Specialist for The Great Adventure at cmurphy@ascensionpress.com or 610-696-7795 ext 204.

 I thank you for your time and commitment and truly believe that this formation offered to our councils is a strong foundation for the Knights as we prepare to go forward and live out our role as leaders in our homes and communities. The ideal Council Brother to lead this endeavor would be the Church Chairman. Please pass this along to that committee.

Worthy Communicators and Brothers of the Wisconsin Jurisdiction,

You have never seen me send out a more urgent message and I pray that you never will again!

 The attached letter to our State Deputy, from Supreme Knight Carl Anderson, and their directions to me explains in clear terms the action that each of us needs to take in the next few days. Please contact your Congress men and Senators in Washington, now, to state your objection to forced abortion funding in the Health Care Reform Act.

Congress is about to pass a Health Care Reform Act that will force Catholics and all Christians of conscience to end human life on demand. Last week Archbishop Timothy Dolan, now of New York, signed what is known as the “Manhattan Declaration”. This document is cosigned by most all main stream Christian Religions in the Nation and, of course, by the USCCB. The document is brief, to the point and states emphatically as follows:

The Manhattan Declaration

A Call of Christian Conscience

Christians, when they have lived up to the highest ideals of their faith, have defended the weak and vulnerable and worked tirelessly to protect and strengthen vital institutions of civil society, beginning with the family.

We are Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christians who have united at this hour to reaffirm fundamental truths about justice and the common good, and to call upon our fellow citizens, believers and non-believers alike, to join us in defending them. These truths are:

1.       the sanctity of human life

2.       the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife

3.       the rights of conscience and religious liberty.
Inasmuch as these truths are foundational to human dignity and the well-being of society, they are inviolable and non-negotiable. Because they are increasingly under assault from powerful forces in our culture, we are compelled today to speak out forcefully in their defence, and to commit ourselves to honouring them fully no matter what pressures are brought upon us and our institutions to abandon or compromise them. We make this commitment not as partisans of any political group but as followers of Jesus Christ, the crucified and risen Lord, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

319862 signatures in support

…and growing!
Sign the Declaration »
 Brothers, read carefully the last paragraph because our Bishops are now suggesting that if this Act goes into law, in its present form, it will require Christians of conscience to resort to civil disobedience in the defense of life. This is very serious. If you are alarmed, you need to be… again, it is time that you contact your Congressmen and both Senators to voice your objection to this “Culture of Death” law.

Please bring this up at all Council Business meetings. This is a matter of faith and needs to be discussed so that actions can be taken individually and as a group. You need to have your voice heard now!

One week from today, on Wednesday, September 23, the largest 40 Days for Life campaign in history launches in 212 cities across 45 American states, 5 Canadian provinces, and Denmark.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so take a moment — right now — to look at this picture:

For 40 intense days, tens of thousands of faithful volunteers will be praying, fasting, holding peaceful vigils outside abortion facilities, and spreading the pro-life message through community outreach.

Participation in 40 Days for Life is not always easy and can involve sacrifice.

So why are you and I about to do this?

For more information and to read the entire post please click here

Get your pens out and start writing! This year’s theme is “The Freedom of Choice Act: How ‘Choice’ Affects A Baby In The Mother’s Womb”

For more information and Student entry forms please download the following pdf file: Essay Contest

Students in grades 7 through 12 of all schools in the state of Wisconsin and of any religious denomination or no religious denomination, are eligible to submit an essay related to this year’s theme.

This was passed to me yeasterday; hope you enjoy it

This fun YouTube video features a 1980s pop classic. The rock band Toto scored their biggest hit with Africa in 1982. The song is instantly recognizable. But it has been reinvented.

Perpetuum Jazzile is an a cappella jazz choir from Slovenia. It’s hard to think of something further from an ‘80s rock band. But their version of Africa may best the original. The group has amazing voices.

But the beginning of this video is really striking. Group members simulate an African thunderstorm with their hands. It’s really something to see and hear.