College Knights gathered in New Haven for their annual conference are encouraged to be ‘spiritual entrepreneurs’ who win souls for Christ
By Cecilia Engbert
10/10/2024
Source
More than 200 representatives from 70 college councils across North America met in New Haven, Connecticut, for prayer, leadership training and fraternity during the 59th annual College Councils Conference Oct. 4-6. This year’s theme, “Fishers of Men,” invited the Knights to discern how they are being called to evangelize through Christian discipleship on campus and beyond.
The conference opened Friday, Oct. 4, with welcome events and continued Saturday, Oct. 5, with breakout sessions; panel discussions about campus engagement, religious freedom and more; and presentations from K of C leaders, including Deputy Supreme Knight Arthur Peters. The Knights had an opportunity for adoration and confession in St. Mary’s Church and said a prayer of consecration to St. Joseph before a vigil Mass celebrated by Bishop Earl Fernandes of Columbus, Ohio.
“We need new missionaries, new apostles of God’s love to transform our society,” Bishop Fernandes told the students in his homily. “You are soldiers of Christ in his army, ready to transform our world and our civilization, not by violence, but by the one real power in this world, and that is the power of love.”
The bishop expanded on the theme of missionary discipleship in his keynote address at the awards banquet that evening, urging students to become “spiritual entrepreneurs” to win souls for Christ.
“The first characteristic of an entrepreneur is that he has a vision. … Our vision is principally given to us by Jesus Christ in the New Testament to go and make disciples of all the nations,” he said. “It says in the wisdom literature, ‘without vision, the people perish,’ and our people are perishing right now because there’s a lack of leadership, in particular from men in our society.”
Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly, who introduced Bishop Fernandes as the keynote speaker, urged college Knights to prioritize four things in the coming school year: faith, brotherhood, accountability and action.
“Your vocation now in life is a vocation of service. It’s a vocation of service through your council to others on campus,” the supreme knight said. “You have so much to offer the other men on your campus; don’t hesitate to invite them to join you and do it through friendship.”
Acknowledging that many college Knights face antagonism because of their faith, the supreme knight encouraged them to be Catholic gentlemen of integrity and honor.
“Remember that you’re not alone in these struggles,” Supreme Knight Kelly said. “The Evil One wants you to think that you are alone, maybe that your council is alone, but you’re not alone. You have the Church, you have us. But most importantly, you have each other.”
Students at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas, experienced that antagonism when they established a Knights of Columbus council in 2022. Despite resistance from peers and the school administration, the council recruited approximately 40 members in its first year, organized a Eucharistic procession on campus, and participated in many pro-life activities, including the ASAP (Aid and Support After Pregnancy) progam and 40 Days for Life. In recognition of its work, St. Mary’s University Council 18327 received this year’s Outstanding College Council trophy at the awards banquet.
“This award means everything to our council after all the hard work we put in through our first year,” said Stephen Garcia, Council 18327’s grand knight. “I’m coming away from the convention with a renewed drive to create fishers of men in our council.”
George Washington University Council 13242 in Washington, D.C., received second place and Blessed Michael McGivney Council 17759 at St. Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, Maryland, received third. In addition, the following councils were honored for their programs in each of the Faith in Action categories:
Faith Award: Sedes Sapientiae Council 13295 at University of Maryland in College Park
Family Award: John Carroll University Council 8320 in University Heights, Ohio
Community Award: Pope Pius XII Council 15457 at South Dakota State University in Brookings
Life Award: Father Thomas D. Kraft Council 14764 at University of Utah in Salt Lake City
The conference closed Sunday with remarks from Supreme Master Michael McCusker.
Grant Jochum, past grand knight of Our Lady of Good Counsel Council 13015 at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, helped to plan the conference over the past year as a member of the College Councils Advisory Board.
“The theme ‘fishers of men’ is very fitting for Knights of Columbus, especially since our task is to recruit men to greater service, to a higher calling,” Jochum said. “As lay Catholic men, we are called to serve our community, to give of ourselves, of our time, talent, treasures, to build up the Church.”
Jochum was a panelist during the conference, helping lead discussions on Cor and other programs. Serving on the advisory board was a “full-circle moment” for Jochum, who found himself putting into practice what he’d learned about leadership at last year’s conference.
“Casting out into the deep and going on a great mission with Christ to bring men ever closer into that relationship with the Lord — that is the foundation and cornerstone of all that we do,” he added. “I think every guy who attended this conference came away with something positive that they can bring back to their own council, to improve what they’re doing on their campuses and make a difference in the cultures there.”
*****
CECILIA ENGBERT is a content producer for the Knights of Columbus communications department.