An Example of the Dark Side of Secularism—attacking the Knights of Columbus

Knights of Columbus Color Guard                                  courtesy Our Lady of the Rosary Council 12982   Gainesville, VA

IT MAKES SENSE TO ME 

By Larry Peterson

I am not going to use any names here. There is no point. Everyone knows who is who.

The Epiphany of the Lord for 2019 will be celebrated on January 6. The entrance antiphon  will read, “Arise Jerusalem, and look to the East and see your children gathered from the rising to the setting of the sun.”  Baruch 5:5

How fitting as we hear how the three wise men from the East, followed the brilliantly shining Star using it as their guide to lead them to the Savior of the world. They were seeking out Goodness and Love, and all they wished to do was worship the One who brought it.

Flash forward 2000+ years and  we head into the year 2019.  Two political “rising stars” from the West (who also happen to be United States Senators; one from California and one from Hawaii)  have decided to attack a man who has been named for consideration for a seat on the United States District Court in Nebraska. They are pounding the print and media with their message saying this man is not qualified to be a judge because his views are “extreme.” They know this because he is a member of the Knights of Columbus. Herod would be proud.

The Senator from Hawaii has decided that the Catholic views on abortion and same-sex marriage held by the Knights of Columbus are “extreme.” The Senator from California depicted the Knights as “an all-male society” and asked the judicial nominee if he was aware that the Knights of Columbus “opposed a woman’s right to choose” and were against “marriage equality.” In the new democratic party approving of abortion and same ex-marriage seems to be the litmus test as to whether or not you are “good or bad.”

Those two senators are not the only two trashing the judicial candidate for being Catholic and a member of the Knights of Columbus. Most of those who call themselves “Democrat” are too. These people seem to think that the desire to honor and protect life and traditional marriage (you know, between a man and a woman) makes you an ‘extremist."

Why even the incoming Speaker of the House, a “devout” Catholic, proudly teaches that abortion is a woman’s “sacred right.”  This flies into the very core of Catholic teaching and is an abomination created for political gain. What has happened to truth, honor,  and integrity?

Here is the thing; I am a member of the Knights of Columbus and have been a member since 1964. I also have another 1.9 million men around the world whom I call “Brother.” You see, we Knights are all Brothers and proud of it.

We proudly proclaim our core principles of Charity, Unity, Fraternity, and Patriotism without shame or hesitation.   We respect and defend life all over the world. We (the Knights of Columbus) donated over $185 million and  K of C Service hours valued at $1.9 billion in 2017.

Our charitable activities include the Christian Refugee Relief Fund, Disaster Relief, the Ultrasound Initiative, Coats for Kids, Special Olympics, the Global Wheelchair Mission, and Habitat for Humanity. Plus so much more at the local levels by so many K of C Councils spread from coast to coast and around the world.

So you see, when these very important people decide they do not like our principles and beliefs and think they are picking on only one person (Re: Brett Kavanaugh) they are not. They are trashing millions of people and 1.9 million of them are members of the Knights of Columbus.

One final thought, the senator from California, suggested that the Knights of Columbus is  “an all-male society. She might do a bit more research. because she obviously has never heard of the Columbiettes. They are the women's' branch of the Knights of Columbus and this year they celebrate their 80^th anniversary.  Yes, we Knights work hand in hand with our Columbiette Sisters and together, we do great things for others.

From Venerable Fulton J Sheen:   There is no word more "dangerous" than liberalism, because to oppose it is the new "unforgivable sin."

©Larry Peterson 2018

A Bit of History for the Younger Folks on Veteran’s Day; The Introduction of “God Bless America”

IT MAKES SENSE TO ME

by Larry Peterson

Back in 1940, there were no televisions or laptops or iPads. The United States was on the brink of being brought into World War II.  The word “cyber” was not even invented. But there was the radio and that was how the nation received its evening entertainment. Newspapers were trusted and that was the primary news source.

Frank Sinatra was the heartthrob of the teenage girls of the day and many of the young folk listened to him. Well, when Frank heard Miss Kate Smith sing the song, “God Bless America” for the first time on the radio he declared that Kate Smith was, without a doubt, the best singer of her time. In fact, it is said that when the song was heard for the first time most of the men in America were wiping tears from their eyes.

America was still in the throes of The Great Depression, Hitler had conquered Poland and was seemingly about to conquer all of Europe. Most Americans were afraid our boys would soon be fighting in that war. The nation was worried and financially struggling. After supper, the family would gather around the radio set and tune in their favorite serial or variety show. At that time no one was a bigger star than Kate Smith.

Kate was a patriotic woman as were most Americans of that time. She had a desire to do something to bolster the mood of the country. She turned to her friend, one of the great American songwriters of all time, Irving Berlin, and asked him if he could write a song to help “cheer the country up”. Mr. Berlin (so the story goes) smiled at her, went to his files and pulled out a song he had written 22 years earlier, in 1917. He handed it to her and said, “I have waited all these years for the right moment to release this. This is that moment.”

Both Kate and Irving Berlin had no idea how the song would be received but decided that if any money was made it would be given to the Boy Scouts of America. Over the years millions of dollars in royalties have gone to the Boy Scouts.

Anyway, what follows is the actual presentation of Kate Smith introducing the great American song, “God Bless America”. This song still arouses patriotic feelings and pride about our country when we hear it. “Here is the link to the video of Kate Smith introducing for the very first time “God Bless America”  (click on the highlighted words)

“God Bless America”

                                        copyright©Larry Peterson 2017

The Knights of Columbus---On Veteran’s Day all Knights Proudly Count Among their Brothers these Medal of Honor Recipients

IT MAKES SENSE TO ME

By Larry Peterson

The Knights of Columbus officially became a fraternal Catholic society on March 29, 1882. Founded by Father Michael McGivney and some of the parishioners at St. Mary’s Church in New Haven, Connecticut, the organization was started for the purpose of providing aid, both spiritual and corporal, to members and their families. Most of them at the time were poor immigrants.

Today the Knights of Columbus has grown from a few members, who had their first meeting in the basement of St. Mary’s, to an organization that is the largest Catholic fraternal order in the world with 15,342 councils and almost 2 million members spread around the planet.

The four tenets of the Knights of Columbus are Charity, Unity, Fraternity, and Patriotism. Since it is Veteran’s Day in America, this article will focus on Patriotism. Members of the Knights call each other “Brother”. We are all Brother Knights (myself included) and the following Brother Knights exemplified their Patriotism above and beyond the call of duty. They were all recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Congressional Medal(s) of Honor

Marine Sergeant; Daniel Joseph Daly:  1873-1937 Awarded the Medal of Honor TWICE;  In 1900 he received his first Medal of Honor during the Boxer rebellion. He single-handedly repelled repeated attacks on his position while inflicting close to two hundred casualties on the enemy. His second Medal of Honor came during the Battle of Fort Dipite in Haiti as he led 35 of his men against a force of 400 rebels managing to get his men and himself to a nearby fort. Sergeant Daly was a member of  Knights of Columbus Council #472 in Middle Village (Queens), N.Y.

 Sgt. Daniel Joseph Daly*

Major Charles Watters*

Father (Major) Charles J. Watters: 1927-1967  On November 19, 1967, during a battle near Dak To in Viet Nam, Chaplain Watters, unarmed and without regard to his own life, tended to the wounded and dying while in close combat with the enemy. He persevered in his mission until he lost his own life in the battle. Major Watters was a member of Knights of 

Columbus Council #1638 in Rutherford, N.J. 

Major General Patrick Brady*

Major General Patrick Brady: 1936—age 81   General Brady did two tours of duty in Viet Nam. The first was from 1964 thru 1965 when he piloted a Medical Helicopter Ambulance. During his second tour, from 1967 to 1968, Brady was second in command of the 54^th Medical detachment. It was during this time that he was awarded the Medal of Honor. Into thick fog and heavy enemy gunfire, Major Brady flew four separate times into the area to rescue seriously wounded men.  He wound up using three different helicopters during the course of the day and rescued fifty-one wounded men many who would have died without medical attention.  He retired as a Major General in 1993...The General is a member of Knights of Columbus Council #11948 in Tacoma, Washington.

Captain Gary Michael Rose*

Captain Gary Michel Rose: 1947—age 70   Captain Rose (at the time Sergeant Rose) was a member of the 5^th Special Forces Group (Airborne). On September 11, 1970, Sergeant Rose and a company of soldiers were sent behind enemy lines in Laos. The men moved deeper into enemy territory and came under intense fire. Sergeant Rose, crawled from man to man treating the wounded and dying without regard for his own safety. Hit by shrapnel in his back legs and feet he continued on using a stick as a crutch while treating the wounded. Captain Gary Rose is a member of Knights of Columbus Council # 11672, Huntsville, Alabama.

Captain Emil Kapaun: 1916-1951 Emil Joseph Kapaun, was a Catholic priest who served as a chaplain in World War II and in Korea.  He was declared a Servant of God by Pope St. John Paul II in 1993.   He was awarded the Medal of Honor for action in Korea in 1950. 

During the Battle of Unsan in 1950, Chinese troops entered the war and overwhelmed the 3^rd Battalion, 8^th Cavalry. The prisoners (including Father Kapaun), were marched 87 miles to a makeshift prison camp. He was the unifier and morale keeper at the camp. He would dig latrines, give away his meager rations, and talk to and counsel the prisoners doing his best to keep their spirits intact. He was also the one who insisted on ‘stealing’ tea and other scraps of food so the others would not get caught and executed.  He even smuggled medicines to the doctor among them, Sidney Esensten.

Father Kapaun offering Mass in Korea, 1950

Captain Chaplain Emil Kapaun was a member of Knights of Columbus Council,#3423 in Pilsen, Kansas.  In addition, Knights of Columbus Council # 14218 in Fort Riley, Kansas is named in his honor. Emil Kapaun;  Knights of Columbus Assembly 2711 in Katy, Texas is also named after him as is Fourth Degree Assembly 3260 in Vail, Arizona.

 Father Michael McGivney--Founder of the Knights of Columbus

Father McGivney died at the age of 38 when the K of C was only eight-years-old. In 1996 he was declared a Servant of God and his cause for sainthood was sent to Rome. In March of 2008, Pope Benedict XVI, declared Father McGivney, “Venerable”, in recognition of his “heroic virtue”. The next step in the process will be Beatification

To Brother Knight, Venerable Michael McGivney, please pray for us all.

To Brother Knight, Servant of God, Emil Kapaun,  please pray for us also.

*All photos from Wikipedia commons.org

                                       Copyright©Larry Peterson 2017

Common Decency & Respect for Others should overshadow "Personal" Rights

IT MAKES SENSE TO ME

By Larry Peterson

Football season 2017 has been ruined by the pompous, over-inflated, spoiled millionaires who obviously know nothing about their own country. And PLEASE don't tell me "it is their right to protest". There is a Natural Law that speaks to a higher authority--Common decency and respect for each other never had to be written into the Constitution. People used to understand that. I guess those days are gone. It is very sad