Editing Knights of Columbus

{{Short description|Catholic fraternal service organization founded in 1882}}
{{Distinguish|Knights of St Columba}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = Knights of Columbus
| image = KoC Logotype1.png
| alt = The Knights of Columbus emblem consists of a shield mounted on a formée cross. Mounted on the shield are a fasces, an anchor and a dagger.
| size = 
| caption = 
| abbreviation = K of C
| formation = {{Start date and age|1882|03|29}}
| founder = [[Michael J. McGivney]]
| founding_location = [[New Haven, Connecticut]], U.S.
| type = [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] [[Fraternal and service organizations|fraternal]] [[Volunteering|service]] order
| headquarters = [[Knights of Columbus Building (New Haven, Connecticut)|Knights of Columbus Building]], [[New Haven, Connecticut]], U.S.
<!-- | coords = {{coord|41|18|9.92|N|72|55|39.94|W|type:landmark_scale:1000_region:US|display=inline,title}} -->| leader_title = Supreme Knight
| leader_name = [[Patrick E. Kelly]]
| leader_title2 = Supreme Chaplain
| leader_name2 = [[William E. Lori]]
| affiliations = {{unbulleted list | [[International Alliance of Catholic Knights]] | [[Columbian Squires]] |[[Squire Roses]]|[[Columbiettes]]}}
| website = {{URL|https://www.kofc.org}}
}}

The '''Knights of Columbus''' ('''K of C''') is a global [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] [[Fraternal and service organizations|fraternal service order]] founded by [[Michael J. McGivney|Blessed Michael J. McGivney]]. Membership is limited to practicing [[Catholic]] men. It is led by [[Patrick E. Kelly]], the order's 14th Supreme Knight.

The organization was founded on March 29, 1882, as a [[Friendly society|mutual benefit society]] for working-class and immigrant Catholics in the United States. In addition to providing an insurance system for its members, it has grown to support refugee relief, [[Catholic school|Catholic education]], local parishes and dioceses, and global Catholic social causes. The Knights of Columbus have [[Political activity of the Knights of Columbus|played an active role in politics]] ever since its formation, and promote the [[Catholic social teaching|Catholic view on public policy issues]] around the world.

The organization also provides certain financial services to the individual and institutional Catholic market. Its wholly owned insurance company, a [[Fortune 1000]] company based on its annual revenue, underwrites more than two{{nbsp}}million insurance contracts, totaling more than $121{{nbsp}}billion of [[life insurance]] in force as of 2023. The order also owns the Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors, a [[money management]] firm which invests in accordance with [[Catholic social teaching]]s.

As of 2024, the Knights reported having over 2.1{{nbsp}}million members around the world. Women may participate in K of C through the [[Columbiettes]] and other female auxiliaries, and boys may join the [[Columbian Squires]]. The Order comprises four different "degrees", each one of which exemplifies one of the core principles of the order. There are more than 17,000 local Knights of Columbus councils around the world, including over 400 on college campuses.

== History ==
{{main|History of the Knights of Columbus}}
{{see also|History of the Knights of Columbus and Catholic University of America}}
[[File:Father McGivney 300.jpg|thumb|alt=A painting of the Michael J. McGivney.|[[Michael J. McGivney]], founder of the Knights of Columbus]]

=== Early years ===
American Catholic priest [[Michael J. McGivney]] founded the Knights of Columbus at [[St. Mary's Church (New Haven, Connecticut)|St. Mary's Church]] in 1882 as a [[Mutual-benefit nonprofit corporation|mutual benefit society]] for Catholic immigrants in [[New Haven, Connecticut]].{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=18}}<ref name="glenn" />{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=13–14}}{{sfn|Brinkley|Fenster|2006|p=51}} As a parish priest in an immigrant community, McGivney saw what could happen to a family when the main income earner died. This was before most government support programs were established.{{sfn|Brinkley|Fenster|2006|p=51}} Because of religious and ethnic discrimination, Catholics in the late 19th century were regularly excluded from labor unions, popular fraternal organizations, and other organized groups that provided such social services.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=8–9}}

Although its first councils were all in Connecticut, the Order spread throughout [[New England]] and the United States in subsequent years.{{sfn|Koehlinger|2004}} As the order expanded outside of Connecticut, structural changes in the late 1880s and 1890s were instituted to give the Knights a federalist system with local, state, and national levels of government.{{sfn|Skocpol|Ganz|Munson|2000|p=532}} This allowed them to coordinate activities across states and localities.{{sfn|Skocpol|Ganz|Munson|2000|p=533}}

=== 20th century ===
[[File:See him through--Help us to help the boys.jpg|thumb|upright|Poster showing a man in Knights of Columbus uniform gesturing toward soldiers in battle]]

During [[World War I]], the Knights established soldiers' welfare centers in the U.S. and abroad.{{sfn|Flanagan|2017}} After the war, the Knights participated in education, occupational training, and employment programs for veterans.{{sfn|Kauffman|1995}}

The [[Oregon Compulsory Education Act]] of 1922 would have disallowed [[parochial school]]s, including Catholic schools, in that state.<ref name="pierce" /><ref name="oregon" />{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=282}} The Knights of Columbus challenged the law in court with the ACLU,{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=283}} and, in a landmark 1925 ruling (''[[Pierce v. Society of Sisters]]''), the U.S. Supreme Court struck it down.{{sfn|Alley|1999|pp=41–44}}

To combat the animus targeted at racial and religious minorities, including Catholics, the Order formed a historical commission which published a series of books in the 1920s on their contributions, among other activities.<ref name="Queen" />{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=269–270}}{{sfn|Dumenil|1991|p=31}} The "Knights of Columbus Racial Contributions Series" of books included three titles: ''[[s:The Gift of Black Folk: The Negroes in the Making of America|The Gift of Black Folk: The Negroes in the Making of America]]'', by [[W. E. B. Du Bois]], ''The Jews in the Making of America'' by George Cohen, and ''The Germans in the Making of America'' by Frederick Schrader.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=269–270}}{{sfn|Dumenil|1991|p=31}}

The Knights of Columbus "was the only American fraternal society which did not, by its constitution, prohibit Negro [sic] membership", according to historian Christopher Kauffman.<ref name="columbia racial equality" /> During [[World War I]], the Knights were designated as the official agency for supporting Catholic troops, and its support facilities were the only racially integrated facilities open to troops. [[Emmett Jay Scott]] wrote, "Unlike the other social welfare organizations operating in the war, it never drew the color line."<ref name="columbia racial equality" />

As the Knights grew and expanded, some councils in the United States were integrated, and others were not. An example of an integrated council was Sheridan Council 119 in [[Southborough, Massachusetts]]. Samuel F. Williams, a black man, was a member and among other activities, spoke on the stage of the 1896 Knights of Columbus Massachusetts State Convention to an audience that included two future [[Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus|Supreme Knights]].<ref name="columbia racial equality" /> The path to individual membership in a local Knights council did not explicitly exclude [[African Americans]]. Each local council voted in new members, and as few as four or five negative votes against a prospective candidate (no matter the size of the council) was enough to deny someone entry. Joseph Bertrand, who graduated from the [[University of Notre Dame]] in 1954, was blackballed from joining a Chicago-area Knights council in 1963 after being nominated by Gene Liner. Liner said that as the vote was announced, "I just watched his face. There were five black balls." Liner then resigned his office in the Knights chapter along with five other council leaders.<ref name="Native" />

Meanwhile, Church officials and organizations increasingly encouraged integration. By the end of the 1950s, KoC Supreme Knight [[Luke E. Hart]] was actively encouraging councils to accept black candidates.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=396}} In 1963, Hart attended a special meeting at the White House hosted by President [[John F. Kennedy]] to discuss [[civil rights]] with other religious leaders. After the rejection of Joseph Bertrand's membership application in Chicago, Hart declared that the process for membership would be revised at the next Supreme Convention so that membership rejections would require a majority vote of local council members. The change occurred but Hart died before he could see it take place.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=397}}<ref name="Native" /><ref name="time1958" /><ref name="Queen" />

Around 1915, during the [[nadir of American race relations]], the [[Ku Klux Klan]] began promoting a [[conspiracy theory]] claiming that Fourth Degree Knights swore an oath to exterminate [[Freemasonry|Freemasons]] and [[Protestantism|Protestants]].<ref name="unjust-charges" />{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=171}}{{sfn|Fry|1922 |pp=109–116}}{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=176}}{{sfn|Mecklin|2013}} The Knights of Columbus vehemently denied the existence of any such oath, calling the rumors libel.<ref name="refuting" /> In 1923, the Knights of Columbus offered $25,000 to any person with proof that the fake oath attributed to the fourth-degree membership was part of any authentic ceremony.<ref name="Reward" /> The Knights began suing distributors for [[libel]] in an effort to stop this,<ref name="Kaceys" /> and the KKK ended its publication of the false oath.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=277}}

=== Recent history ===
[[File:Knights of Columbus headquarters straightened.jpg|thumb|upright|Knights of Columbus headquarters]]

As the Order and its charitable works grew, so did its prominence within the Church.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=419}} [[Pope John Paul I]]'s first audience with a layman was with [[Virgil C. Dechant|Supreme Knight Virgil Dechant]], and [[Pope John Paul II]] met with Supreme Knight Dechant three days after his installation.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=419}} During the pope's 1979 visit to the United States, the Supreme Officers and Board were the only lay organization to receive an audience.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=420}}

[[Richard Nixon]] addressed the Supreme Convention in 1971.{{sfn|Lapomarda|1992|p=105}} [[Ronald Reagan]] spoke in 1982{{sfn|Lapomarda|1992|p=127}} and 1986<ref name="presidents" /> and [[George W. Bush]] spoke in 2004.<ref name="presidents" /> [[George H. W. Bush]] spoke as vice US president in 1984 and then again as president in 1992.<ref name="presidents" /> [[Bill Clinton]] sent a videotaped message to the 111th Supreme Convention saying the Order's "contributions to the Catholic Church and to your communities merit our applause."<ref name="presidents" />

Church historian [[Massimo Faggioli]] believes the scope of the Knights' philanthropy can "create influence through money, especially in important places like Rome or Washington, D.C."<ref name="financial" />

== Organization and principles ==
{{see also|Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus}}
{| class="wikitable floatright"
!style="background:#efefef|Council
!style="background:#efefef|Assembly
!style="background:#efefef|Circle
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Grand Knight
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Faithful Navigator
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Chief Squire
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Chaplain*
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Faithful Friar*
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Father Prior
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Deputy Grand Knight
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Faithful Captain
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Deputy Chief Squire
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Chancellor
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Faithful Admiral***
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Marshal Squire
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Recorder
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Faithful Scribe
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Notary Squire
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Financial Secretary**
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Faithful Comptroller
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Bursar Squire
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Treasurer
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Faithful Purser
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Bursar Squire
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Lecturer*
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| ''nonexistent''
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| ''nonexistent''
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Advocate
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| ''nonexistent''
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| ''nonexistent''
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Warden
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Faithful Pilot
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Marshal Squire
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Inside Guard
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Inner Sentinel
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Sentry
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Outside Guard
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Outer Sentinel
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Sentry
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Trustee (3 Year)
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Trustee (3 Year)
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| ''nonexistent''
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Trustee (2 Year)
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Trustee (2 Year)
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| ''nonexistent''
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Trustee (1 Year)
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Trustee (1 Year)
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| ''nonexistent''
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| ''nonexistent''
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Color Corp Commander*
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| ''nonexistent''
|-
|}
The order is dedicated to the principles of charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism.<ref name="Knestout" /> Membership is restricted to men, at least 18 years of age, who are practicing Catholics in union with the [[Holy See]] and are in good standing with the Church.<ref name="jean" /> {{As of|2024|08}}, there were over 2.1 million Knights of Columbus worldwide, with the majority in North America.<ref name="columbia_2024report">{{cite journal |last=Kelly |first=Patrick |title=2024 Annual Report of the Supreme Knight |journal=Columbia |date=October 2024 |volume=104 |issue=8 |pages=16–21 |url=https://issuu.com/columbia-magazine/docs/columbiaoct24en/18 |access-date=November 12, 2024}}</ref><ref name="mares" /><ref name="remembered" /><ref name="detr" />

After his induction and completion of the Exemplification of Charity, a new member becomes a First Degree Knight. He then progresses through the Second and Third Degrees after completing the subsequent Exemplifications of Unity and Fraternity. A Third Degree Knight is considered to have attained full "Knighthood" status. Privileges of Third Degree membership include the ability to serve as a local council officer, and admission to state and Supreme Council business meetings.

A Third Degree Knight in good standing is eligible to complete the Exemplification of Patriotism and progress to the Fourth Degree. This is an optional degree, but represents the highest ideals of the order. A Knight who has attained this level is addressed as "Sir Knight".

Each member belongs to one of more than 17,000 '''local councils''' around the world.<ref name="columbia_2024report" /><ref name="hadro" /> Most are based in Catholic parishes, though some have their own council hall within a community. Each local council works to assist with the needs of its community consistent with the principles of the order.

The '''college councils''' program, started at [[Catholic University of America]] in 1898, was created to promote the moral, intellectual and spiritual development of college men on campuses throughout the world.<ref name="Pike" /> The oldest continuously running college council is the [[University of Notre Dame]] Council #1477, chartered in 1910.<ref name="urges" /> Councils at seminaries ("seminarian councils") are classified as college councils. {{As of|2024}}, there are more than 340 college councils worldwide.<ref name="califon" /><ref name="ash" />

Throughout most of its history, the Knights of Columbus has provided active support to members of the armed forces and their families. {{As of|2024}}, there are more than 50 '''military councils''' in military bases throughout North America and around the world.

A Knight who has attained the Fourth Degree also belongs to a '''Fourth Degree assembly'''. Fourth Degree Knights are men who have chosen to embrace the order's fourth principle of patriotism. Fourth Degree assemblies get their members from multiple councils within a local geographical area. They lead the efforts to reach out to veterans and active military and to embody the fact that one can be a faithful Catholic and also be a faithful citizen.<ref>{{cite web| last=Butler |first=Andrew |title=Who Are the Fourth Degree Knights? |url=https://www.kofc.org/en/news-room/articles/who-are-the-4th-degree-knights.html |website=kofc.org|date=November 8, 2019|access-date=November 12, 2024}}</ref> {{As of|2024}}, there are more than 3,600 Fourth Degree assemblies worldwide.

Fourth Degree assemblies may form '''Color Corps''', an elective division of the Fourth Degree, whose distinctive presence in parades, wreath-laying ceremonies, Confirmations and other Catholic functions are a visible reminder of the Knights' service to their communities. Fourth Degree Color Corps are often the most visible arm of the Knights.<ref name="Borowski" /><ref name="First"/>

The Supreme Council is the governing body of the order. It elects insurance members to serve three-year terms on a 24-member [[Board of Directors]].{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=375–376}}<ref name="et" /> Leaders' salaries are set by the board of directors and ratified by the delegates to the Supreme Convention.<ref name="pay" /> The seven-figure salaries of senior K of C officers have been criticized as excessive.<ref name="pay" /><ref name="tablet9719" />

In 1969, the Knights opened a 23-story headquarters building in New Haven.{{sfn|Hubbard|Hubbard |2019|p=76–77}}<ref name="clark" />

(*''Appointed annually by each council's Grand Knight or Faithful Navigator'')
<br />(**''Appointed for a three-year term by the Supreme Knight'')
<br />(**''Appointed by the Past Faithful Navigators of the Assembly and Faithful Navigator'')
{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; margin-left:1em; font-size:smaller;"
! Year
! Membership
! Councils
|-
|2024<ref name="columbia_2024report" />
|2,100,000+
|17,000+
|-
|2023{{r|PJS}}
|2,000,000+
|
|-
| 1982{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=xv}}
| 1,300,000
| <7,000
|-
|1964{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=397}}
|1,000,000+
|
|-
|1957{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=388}}
|1,000,000
|
|-
|1938{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=335}}
|500,000
|
|-
|1931{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=320}}
|
|2,600
|-
|1923{{sfn|Sweany|1923|p=1}}
|774,189
|2,290
|-
| 1917{{sfn|Sweany|1923|p=2}}{{sfn|Egan|Kennedy|p=v|1920}}
| 400,000
|
|-
| 1914{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=152}}
| 300,000+
| 
|-
| 1909<ref name="Diverse" />
| 230,000
| 1300
|-
| 1899{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=152}}<ref name="Diverse" />
| 40,267
| 300
|-
| 1897{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=127}}
| 16,651
| 195
|-
| 1892{{sfn|Koehlinger|2004}}
| 6,500
| 
|-
| 1886{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=127}}
| 2,700
| 27
|-
| 1884{{sfn|Brinkley|Fenster|2006|p=171}} 
| 459
| 5
|}

== Charitable giving ==
{{main|Charitable activities of the Knights of Columbus}}

Charity is the foremost important principle of the Knights of Columbus.<ref name="LeRouxFeeney2014" /><ref name="McGrath2010" /> At their 2024 convention in August, 2024, Supreme Knight [[Patrick E. Kelly|Patrick Kelly]] said that the organization had donated $190{{nbsp}}million and 47{{nbsp}}million volunteer-hours toward charity projects in 2023.<ref name="columbia_2024report" /> Charitable activities include support for refugees, aid for victims of natural disasters, and advocating [[Catholic ethics]], such as [[Catholic Church and same-sex marriage|opposition to same-sex marriage]] and [[Catholic Church and abortion|opposition to abortion]].

Beginning in 1897, the National Council encouraged local councils to establish funds to support members affected by the [[Panic of 1893|1890s depression]].{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=127}} Councils also offered employment agency services and provided aid to the poor and sick.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=166-7, 428, 320}} Aid has also been dispensed to assist victims of natural and man-made disasters, starting with a flood in Kansas in 1903.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=161}}<ref name="tampa" /> In 2015 alone, the order donated hundreds of thousands of US dollars to victims of typhoons and other natural disasters.<ref name="financial" />

During times of war, the Order supports aid to refugees. Between 2014 and 2018, the Knights gave more than $2{{nbsp}}million to provide food, shelter, clothing, and medical care to persecuted [[Christianity in the Middle East|Christians]] and [[Religion in the Middle East#Non-Abrahamic monotheistic faith|other religious minorities]] in the Middle East.<ref name="ceo" /><ref name="financial" /> The Knights donated $250,000 in 2018 to help refugees crossing over the [[Mexico–United States border]] who were seeking asylum in the United States and later expanded the program.<ref name="garcia" /> Within days of the [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]], the 2,000 Knights of Columbus in the country worked to help those impacted.<ref name="telli" /> They began by providing food and clothing to those at train and bus stations in Lviv who were fleeing into Poland.<ref name="telli" /> They then began organizing busses to take people the Polish border.<ref name="telli" /> In the first three months of the war, the Knights in Poland helped more than 300,000 people, or 10% of those who fled to that country.<ref name="telli" /> Since the start of the war, the Knights of Columbus have delivered more than 8.5 million pounds of relief supplies and provided more than $17{{nbsp}}million for humanitarian relief in Ukraine.<ref name="columbia_2024report" />

The Knights of Columbus has donated more than $600 million to those with intellectual and physical disabilities.<ref name="so" /> One of the largest recipients of aid in this area has been the [[Special Olympics]], where the Knights have been involved since the first games in 1968.<ref name="so" /> In 2023, the Knights donated more than $4 million to Special Olympics and helped organize and run nearly 4,000 competitions.<ref name="columbia_2024report" />

After the Knights had donated more than 1,000 ultrasound machines to [[crisis pregnancy center]]s from 2009 to 2019, Anderson said, "Our ultrasound initiative is now the greatest humanitarian achievement in the history of the Knights of Columbus. ... We can, and I am confident that we will, save millions of unborn lives."<ref name="Klemond" /> Following the United States Supreme Court decision in ''[[Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization]]'', Supreme Knight [[Patrick E. Kelly]] called on the order to increase their support for women facing unplanned and crisis pregnancies with the Aid and Support After Pregnancy (ASAP) initiative.<ref name="top" />

The Global Wheelchair Mission is an alliance of independent international organizations working to deliver wheelchairs and mobility assistance to people worldwide. In 2023, the Knights provided more than 11,000 wheelchairs to the Global Wheelchair Mission.<ref>{{cite web| title=Global Wheelchair Mission |url=https://www.kofc.org/en/what-we-do/faith-in-action-programs/community/global-wheelchair-mission.html |website=kofc.org|access-date=November 12, 2024}}</ref><ref name="columbia_2024report" />

The Knights also donate to the institutional church, including being a major donor to the [[United States Conference of Catholic Bishops]]<ref name="financial" /> and the [[Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops]].{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=421}} {{As of|2017}}, the Knights' ''Vicarius Christi'' fund has contributed more than $57 million to the charitable efforts of the pope.<ref name="meets" /> The Knights have supported the Vatican's news operation for decades.<ref name="financial" />

In the field of education, the Knights of Columbus have a number of scholarships and other programs for seminarians, veterans{{sfn|Sweany|1923|p=3}} and students at the [[Catholic University of America]],<ref name="Pike" />{{sfn|Sweany|1923|p=1}} and at other Catholic colleges. Especially during [[World War I]] and [[World War II]], the Order operated a number of "huts" to support troops serving in combat, regardless of race or religion.{{sfn|Sweany|1923|p=3}}<ref name="scott" />{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=343}}

==Insurance program==
===Early years===
{| class="wikitable floatright"
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Year
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Insurance in force
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Assets
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1957{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=388}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $690 million
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $124 million
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1956<ref name="eunice" />{{efn|The $88{{nbsp}}million increase during 1956 was the greatest single increase in the Order's history.<ref name="eunice" />}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $650{{nbsp}}million
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1955<ref name="eunice" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $562{{nbsp}}million
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1953{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=388}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $420 million
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1932<ref name="tampa" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $300{{nbsp}}million
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|1919<ref name="Siedenburg" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|$140{{nbsp}}million
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1897<ref name="globe1897" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $42,282
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1896{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=126}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $12,000
|}
The original insurance system devised by McGivney gave a deceased Knight's widow a $1,000 death benefit. Each member was assessed $1 upon a death, and when the number of Knights grew beyond 1,000, the assessment decreased according to the rate of increase.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=22}} Each member, regardless of age, was assessed equally. As a result, younger, healthier members could expect to pay more over the course of their lifetimes than those men who joined when they were older.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=36–37}} There was also a Sick Benefit Deposit for members who fell ill and could not work. Each sick Knight was entitled to draw up to $5 a week for 13 weeks (roughly equivalent to $155 in 2022 dollars). If he remained sick after that, the council to which he belonged determined the sum of money given to him.{{sfn|Brinkley|Fenster|2006|p=123}}

The need for a reserve fund for times of epidemic was seen from the earliest days, but it was rejected several times before finally being established in 1892.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=63, 66, 75–76, 78}} It had $12,000 in assets in 1896.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=126}}  By 1897, the method of funding the program changed.  Each member was assessed five cents a month for 100 months, so that he would contribute $5.<ref name="globe1897" />

Since its first loan to St. Rose Church in [[Meriden, Connecticut]], in the late 1890s, the Knights of Columbus have made loans to parishes, dioceses, and other Catholic institutions.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=378}}  By 1954, over $300&nbsp;million had been loaned and the program "never lost one cent of principal or interest."{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=378}}

In the post–[[World War II]] era, the interest rates on long-term bonds dipped below levels at which the order's insurance program could sustain itself, and Supreme Knight Hart moved the order into a more aggressive program of investing in real estate.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=377}} Under his leadership, the order established a lease-back investment program in which the order would buy a piece of property and then lease it back to the original owner "upon terms generally that would bring to our Order a net rental equal to the normal mortgage interest rate."{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=377}} Between 1952 and 1962, 18 pieces of land were purchased for a total of $29{{nbsp}}million.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=378}} Late in 1953 the order purchased the land beneath [[Yankee Stadium]] for $2.5{{nbsp}}million.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=378}}<ref name="Yankees" /> In 1971, the [[New York City|City of New York]] took the land by [[eminent domain]].{{sfn|Sullivan|2001}}

Between 1952 and 1962, 18 pieces of land were purchased as part of the lease-back program for a total of $29&nbsp;million. During this time, the amount of money invested in common stock also increased.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=378}}

===Modern program===
{| class="wikitable floatright"
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Year
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Insurance in force<br />(billions)
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| Assets<br />(billions)
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2023{{r|PJS}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $121
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2021<ref name="next" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $114
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $26
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2020<ref name="cavan" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $110+
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $20+
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|2019<ref name="Klemond" /><ref name="jean" /><ref name="distefano" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|$109+
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|$26+
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2018<ref name="smith" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $109
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $26
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2017<ref name="bennett" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $109
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|2015<ref name="financial" /><ref name="sturdevant" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|$99
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|2014<ref name="frackville" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|$100
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|$24
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|2013<ref name="kamal" /><ref name="et" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|$90
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"|$19.8
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2012<ref name="Buchta" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $88.4
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $19.4
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2011<ref name="ramon" /><ref name="ripple" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $83.5
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $18.0
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2010<ref name="product" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $79.0
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $16.9
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2009<ref name="product" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $74.3
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $15.5
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2008<ref name="product" /><ref name="fortune" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $70.0
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $14
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2007<ref name="product" /><ref name="clark" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $66.0
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $13
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2006<ref name="product" /><ref name="cnn06" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $61.9
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $12.2
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2005<ref name="product" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $57.7
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2004<ref name="product" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $53.3
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2003<ref name="product" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $49.1
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2002<ref name="product" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $45.6
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2001<ref name="product" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $42.9
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 2000<ref name="product" /><ref name="kamal" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $40.4
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1999<ref name="product" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $38
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1997<ref name="mission" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $30
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1992<ref name="pay" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $20
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1990<ref name="chief" />
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $14
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $3.6
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1981{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=428–429}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $6.4
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $1
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1976{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=428–429}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $3.6
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $656 million
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1975{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=413}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $3
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1971{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=413}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $2
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1964{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=397}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $1+
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|-
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 1960{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=413}}
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| $1
|style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| 
|}
The order offers a modern, professional insurance operation with more than $121&nbsp;billion of life insurance policies in force and $26&nbsp;billion in assets {{as of|2023|06|lc=y}}.<ref name="annualreport" /><ref name="next" /> This places the Order on the [[Fortune 1000]] list<ref name="bennett" /> and it is large enough to rank 49th on the [[A.&nbsp;M. Best]] list of all life insurance companies in North America.<ref name="fortune" />

Products include [[permanent life insurance|permanent]] and [[term life insurance]], as well as [[Annuity (US financial products)|annuities]], [[long term care insurance]], and [[disability insurance]].<ref name="kamal" /><ref name="ripple" /><ref name="sturdevant" /> The insurance program is not a separate business offered by the order to others, but is exclusively for the benefit of members and their families. All agents are members of the order.<ref name="agents" />

The order's insurance program is the most highly rated program in North America. For more than 40 consecutive years, the order has received A.&nbsp;M. Best's highest rating, A++.<ref name="100b" /><ref name="38 years" /><ref name="kamal" /><ref name="distefano" />{{efn|Standard & Poor's downgraded the insurance program's financial strength/credit rating from AAA to AA+ in August 2011 not due to the order's financial strength, but due to its lowering of the long-term sovereign credit rating of the United States to AA+.<ref name="Moody" /><ref name="snpdown" /> Other US insurance groups also downgraded by S&P from AAA to AA+ were [[New York Life Insurance Company|New York Life]], [[Northwestern Mutual]], [[TIAA-CREF|TIAA]], and [[USAA]] as, like the Knights of Columbus, their assets are highly concentrated in the US and they have significant holdings in US Treasury and agency securities.}} ''[[Forbes]]'' publishes an annual list of what it refers to as "America's Best Insurance Companies", and it has included the Knights of Columbus insurance program on this list since 2022.<ref name="Schwarz"/>

The order maintains a two-prong investment strategy: a company must first be a sound investment before stock in it is purchased, and secondly the company's activities must not conflict with [[Catholic social teaching]].<ref name="comtois" /><ref name="sturdevant" /> The guidelines include protecting human life, promoting human dignity, reducing arms production, pursuing economic justice, protecting the environment, and encouraging corporate responsibility.{{efn|The full guidelines are published on the episcopal conference's website.<ref name="sri" />}}<ref name="comtois" /> As of 2017, it had been named a "World's Most Ethical Company" by Ethisphere Institute for five consecutive years.<ref name="bennett" /> Citing the awards they have won, the order calls themselves "champions of ethical investing".<ref name="financial" />

In 2017, over $965 million was awarded in benefits.<ref name="bennett" /> Since the founding of the order, $3.5&nbsp;billion in death benefits have been paid.<ref name="2012SC" />  Additionally, the insurance program has a low 3.5 percent lapse rate of the 1.9&nbsp;million members and their families who are insured.<ref name="kamal" />

Its insurance operation invests in loans to various churches, schools, and other Catholic institutions.<ref name="carey" /><ref name="short" /> {{As of|2008}}, over $500{{nbsp}}million had been loaned through the ChurchLoan program.<ref name="carey" /> At the outset of the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], the Order established a $100 million fund to provide short-term loans to help dioceses weather the economic storm.<ref name="short" /> Each diocese was eligible to obtain a $1 million secured line of credit.<ref name="short" />

== Promotion of the Catholic faith ==
=== Efforts against religious discrimination ===
{{further|History of the Knights of Columbus and Catholic University of America#Chair of American History}}
[[File:Knights of Columbus check presentation to The Catholic University of America.jpg|thumb|The Knights of Columbus presented a check to [[Catholic University of America]] on the steps of the university's McMahon Hall in 1904 to establish a Chair of American History]]
Since its earliest days, the Knights of Columbus has been a "Catholic anti-defamation society".{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=153}} In 1914, it established a Commission on Religious Prejudices.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=153}} As part of the effort, the order distributed pamphlets, and lecturers toured the country speaking on how Catholics could love and be loyal to America.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=185}}

The creation of the 4th Degree, with its emphasis on patriotism, performed an anti-defamation function as well as asserting claims to Americanism.{{sfn|Salvaterra|2002}}{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=138–143}} In response to a defamatory "bogus oath" circulated by the KKK,{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=169–175}} in 1914 the Knights set up a framework for a lecture series and educational programs to combat anti-Catholic sentiment.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=178}}

=== New evangelization ===

The Knights have been urged to take a prominent role in the [[new evangelization]].<ref name="Bauman" /> The CIS published a series on the new evangelization in 2011,<ref name="Series" /> and donations to other Catholic mass communication services represent one of the Knights' major expenditures.<ref name="Roberts" /> The Knights have also established councils in both secular and Catholic universities.<ref name="Wuerl" />

==Awards==

The order sponsors a number of international awards. The first, the ''Gaudium et Spes Award'', is named after the [[Gaudium et spes|document from the Second Vatican Council]], and is the highest honor bestowed by the order. It "is awarded only in special circumstances and only to individuals of exceptional merit" and comes with an [[honorarium]] of $100,000.<ref name="Maryknoll" /> In the first 25 years after its institution in 1992, it was only awarded twelve times.<ref name="Maryknoll" /> The award "recognizes individuals for their exemplary contributions to the realization of the message of faith and service in the spirit of Christ as articulated in the document for which it is named".{{r|uca}}

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin-left:1em"
|-
! colspan="2" | ''Gaudium et Spes Award''
|-
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| '''Year'''
!style="background:#efefef; font-size:smaller"| '''Awardee'''
|-
|2023
|[[Sisters of Life|Mother Agnes Mary Donovan]]{{r|PJS}}
|-
|2016
|[[Little Sisters of the Poor]]{{r|nhr}}
|-
|2015
|Cardinal [[Francis George]]{{r|bauman}}
|-
|2005
|[[Jean Vanier]]{{r|vanier}}
|-
|2002
|Archbishop [[Michael Sabbah]]
|-
|2001
|Cardinal [[William Wakefield Baum|William Baum]]
|-
|2000
|Cardinal [[James Aloysius Hickey|James Hickey]]
|-
|1994
|Cardinal [[John O'Connor (cardinal)|John O'Connor]]
|-
|1992
|[[Mother Teresa]]{{r|nhr}}
|}

The second international award, also only given when merited, is the ''Caritas Award''.{{r|bee}} Named for the [[Charity (virtue)|theological virtue]] alternatively translated as either charity or love, it recognizes "extraordinary works of charity and service" and was established in 2013.{{r|bee}} It was first awarded to Monsignor Robert Weiss, pastor of St Rose of Lima in [[Newtown, Connecticut]].{{r|bee}} The second was awarded to St. Virgilius Knights of Columbus Council 185.{{r|bee}} Both received the honor, and the $100,000 honorarium, for their actions following the [[Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting]].{{r|bee}}

The ''Saint Michael Award'' was established in conjunction with the ''Caritas Award'' to recognize members of the order who have exemplified a lifetime of service on behalf of the Knights of Columbus. Additionally, at its annual convention each year, the order recognizes other individuals and councils with awards. These include the Family of the Year award, and prizes for the best activities in the categories of church, community, council, [[culture of life]], family, and youth. Additionally, top selling general and field insurance agents are recognized, as are top recruiting individuals and councils.

The order established the Grand Cross of the Knights of Columbus, but awarded it only to [[Cristóbal Colón, 14th Duke of Veragua|Cristobal Colón y de La Cerda]], [[Duke of Veragua]] and descendant of Columbus, when he visited the US in 1893.{{sfn|Egan|Kennedy|1920|p=117}}

== Political activity ==
{{main|Political activity of the Knights of Columbus}}

While the Knights were politically active from an early date, in the years following the [[Second Vatican Council]], as the "Catholic anti-defamation character" of the order began to diminish as Catholics gained more acceptance, the leadership began to use its financial resources to directly influence the direction of the church.<ref name="financial" /> That led to the creation of a "variety of new programs reflecting the proliferation of the new social ministries of the church."{{sfn|Kauffman|1982}}<ref name="financial" />

At times, the leadership of the order has been both [[Liberalism|liberal]] and [[Conservatism|conservative]]. [[Martin H. Carmody]] and [[Luke E. Hart]] were both political conservatives, but [[John J. Phelan]] was a [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] politician prior to becoming Supreme Knight,{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=62}} [[John E. Swift|John Swift]]'s "strong support for economic democracy and social-welfare legislation marks him as a fairly representative New Deal anti-communist,"{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=367}} and [[Francis P. Matthews]] was a civil rights official and member of [[Harry Truman]]'s cabinet. Anderson previously served in the [[Office of Public Liaison]] under [[Presidency of Ronald Reagan|Ronald Reagan]].<ref name="Nancy" />

The Knights of Columbus is classified as a [[501(c) organization#501(c)(8)|501(c)(8)]] fraternal [[benefit society]] by the IRS. Unlike the more common [[501(c)(3) organization|501(c)(3)]] nonprofits, 501(c)(8)s are allowed to engage in limited direct political activity without jeopardizing their tax exemptions.<ref name="IRS" /> However, Anderson has said "One of our most important traditions throughout our 125-year history is that we do not, as an organization, become involved in partisan politics."<ref name="issues" />

The Knights of Columbus supports political awareness and activity among its members and local councils. Public policy activity is limited to issue-specific campaigns, typically dealing with Catholic family and sanctity of life issues.<ref name="policy" /><ref name="jean" /> They state that
<blockquote>In addition to performing charitable works, the Knights of Columbus encourages its members to meet their responsibilities as Catholic citizens and to become active in the political life of their local communities, to vote and to speak out on the public issues of the day.{{nbsp}}... In the political realm, this means opening our public policy efforts and deliberations to the life of Christ and the teachings of the Church. In accord with our Bishops, the Knights of Columbus has consistently maintained positions that take these concerns into account. The order supports and promotes the [[Catholic social teaching|social doctrine of the Church]], including a robust vision of religious liberty that embraces religion's proper role in the private and public spheres.<ref name="policy" /></blockquote>

The order opposed the [[Anti-clericalism in Mexico|persecution of Catholics in Mexico]] during the [[Cristero War]],{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=302}} and [[anti-communism|opposed communism]].{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=364–365}}<ref name="Ceplair" /> During the 20th century, the order also established the Commission on Religious Prejudices and the Knights of Columbus Historical Commission, organizations which fought against [[racism]].{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=366–367}} It was also supportive of [[trade unionism]], and published the works "of the broad array of intellectuals", including [[George Ernest Schuster|George Schuster]], [[Samuel Flagg Bemis]], [[Allan Nevins]], and [[W.&nbsp;E.&nbsp;B. DuBois]].{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=366–367}}

During the [[Cold War]], the order had a history of waging [[Criticism of socialism|anti-socialist]], [[Anti-communism|anti-communist]] and [[Anti-anarchism|anti-anarchist]] crusades.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=366}} They lobbied for the addition of the words "under God" to the [[Pledge of Allegiance]], as a religious response to [[State atheism#Soviet Union|Soviet atheism]].<ref name="Bremer" /><ref name="Greenberg" /> The Knights have actively opposed the legalization of [[same-sex marriage]] and in terms of funding, they have also been a key contributor to local measures against same-sex marriage.<ref name="McElwee" /> The Knights have donated over {{Currency|1 million||passthrough=yes|linked=no}} to the [[Susan B. Anthony Foundation]] and other anti-[[abortion]] and anti-[[Birth control|contraception]] organizations.<ref name="financial" /><ref name="bankroll" />

== Subsidiaries ==
=== Museum ===

[[File:Saint Peter's Facade at Dusk.jpg|thumb|alt=A photograph of the façade of St. Peter's Basilica|The cross from the façade of [[St. Peter's Basilica]] now resides in the Knights' museum.<ref name="Rome" />]]

On March 10, 2001, the order opened a museum in New Haven dedicated to their history.<ref name="newhaven" /><ref name="clark" /> The 77,000 square foot building cost {{Currency|10 million||passthrough=yes|linked=no}} to renovate.<ref name="newhaven" /> It holds mosaics on loan from the Vatican and gifts from Popes, the membership application from [[John F. Kennedy]], and a number of other items related to the history of the Knights.<ref name="newhaven" /> Near the entrance is the [[St. Peter's Basilica#Maderno's facade|cross held by Jesus Christ]] on the facade of [[St. Peter's Basilica]]<ref name="newhaven" /> before undergoing a Knights-financed renovation.<ref name="Rome" /><ref name="newhaven" />

=== Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors ===

In 2015,<ref name="adviserinfo" /> the order launched Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors, a [[money management]] firm which invests money in accordance with [[Catholic social teaching]].<ref name="comtois" /><ref name="sturdevant" /> As of early 2023, the firm had $25.8 billion in [[assets under management]].<ref name="AUM13F" />

The firm uses the [[Socially Responsible Investment]] Guidelines published by the [[United States Conference of Catholic Bishops]] to guide their investment decisions.<ref name="comtois" /><ref name="sturdevant" /> The guidelines include protecting human life, promoting human dignity, reducing arms production, pursuing economic justice, protecting the environment, and encouraging corporate responsibility.{{efn|The full guidelines are published on the episcopal conference's website.<ref name="sri" />}}<ref name="comtois" />

In addition to the wholly owned subsidiary, it also purchased 20% of Boston Advisors, a boutique [[List of asset management firms|investment management firm]], managing assets for institutional and high-net-worth investors.<ref name="comtois" /><ref name="pionline" /> Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors manages the fixed-income strategies for their funds while Boston Advisors sub-advises on the equity strategies.<ref name="comtois" /><ref name="pionline" /> Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors also offers model portfolio, outsourced [[Chief investment officer|CIO]] services, a bank loan strategy, and other alternative investment strategies.<ref name="comtois" /> In 2019, the Knights purchased the institutional management business of Boston Advisors.<ref name="pionline" />

=== Saint John Paul II National Shrine ===

{{main|Saint John Paul II National Shrine}}

The order owns and operates the [[Saint John Paul II National Shrine]] in Washington D.C.<ref name="financial" /> In 2011, the Order purchased the 130,000-square-foot John Paul II Cultural Center.<ref name="purchase" /><ref name="cultural" /><ref name="financial" /> The mission as a cultural center ended in 2009<ref name="explore" /> and the Knights rebranded it as a shrine to [[Pope John Paul II]].<ref name="purchase" /><ref name="cultural" /> Soon after the pope was canonized, the [[United States Conference of Catholic Bishops]] named the building a national shrine.<ref name="explore" />

Each year 64,000 pilgrims visit the shrine, which features video content, interactive displays, and personal effects from John Paul.<ref name="explore" /> There is also a [[Relic#Classifications and prohibitions in the Catholic Church|first class relic]] of the pope's blood on display for veneration.<ref name="explore" /> It also serves as a base for the Order in Washington, D.C.<ref name="center" />

== Notable Knights ==

{{main|List of Knights of Columbus}}
[[File:John F. Kennedy - NARA - 518134.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=A photograph of President John F. Kennedy|President John F. Kennedy was a Fourth Degree member of Bunker Hill Council No.{{nbsp}}62.{{sfn|Singular|2005|p=60}}]]

Some of the most notable American members include [[John F. Kennedy]]; [[Ted Kennedy]];{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=393–394}} [[Al Smith]];{{sfn|Singular|2005|p=38}} [[Sargent Shriver]];{{sfn|Singular|2005|p=94}} [[Samuel Alito]]; [[Conrad Hilton]];<ref name="Humanities" /> [[John Boehner]];<ref name="Boehner" /> [[Raymond Flynn|Ray Flynn]];{{sfn|Singular|2005|p=114}} [[Jeb Bush]];<ref name="jeb" /> film maker [[John Ford]];<ref name="Movie" /> and Sergeant Major [[Daniel Daly]],<ref name="famous" /> a two-time [[Medal of Honor]] recipient.<ref name="iconic" />

In the world of sports, [[Vince Lombardi]], the famed former coach of the Green Bay Packers;{{sfn|Singular|2005|p=64}} [[James Connolly (athlete born 1868)|James Connolly]], the first Olympic gold medal champion in modern times;{{sfn|Singular|2005|p=4}} [[Floyd Patterson]], former heavyweight boxing champion;<ref name="Patterson" /> and baseball legend [[Babe Ruth]]{{sfn|Singular|2005|p=30}} were all knights.

On October 15, 2006, Bishop [[Rafael Guízar y Valencia]] (1878–1938) was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in Rome. In 2000, six other Knights, who were killed in the violence following the [[Mexican Revolution]], were declared saints by [[Pope John Paul II]].<ref name="canonized" />

== Emblem of the order ==

The emblem of the order was designed by Past Supreme Knight James T. Mullen and adopted at the second Supreme Council meeting on May 12, 1883.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=34–35}} Shields used by medieval knights served as the inspiration. The emblem consists of a shield mounted on a [[Cross pattée|Formée cross]], which is an artistic representation of the cross of Christ. This represents the Catholic identity of the order.<ref name="emblem" />{{sfn|Walther|Walther|2020|p=21}}

[[File:KofC emblem 145px.png|thumb|right|The K of C Emblem of the Order]]
Mounted on the shield are three objects: the [[fasces]], an anchor, and a sword. In [[ancient Rome]], the fasces was carried before [[Roman magistrate|magistrates]] as an emblem of authority. The order uses it as "symbolic of authority which must exist in any tightly bonded and efficiently operating organization."<ref name="emblem" />{{sfn|Walther|Walther|2020|p=21}} The anchor represents [[Christopher Columbus]], admiral under the orders of the [[kings of Spain]] and patron of this partnership, here a symbol of the Catholic contribution to America.<ref name="Atlantic" /> The short sword, or dagger, was a weapon used by medieval knights. The shield as a whole, with the letters "K of C", represents "Catholic Knighthood in organized merciful action."<ref name="emblem" />{{sfn|Walther|Walther|2020|p=21}}

===Triad Emblem of the Fourth Degree===
Fourth Degree assemblies are separate from councils. They have their own officers and a separate emblem. This optional, patriotic degree was instituted in 1900.

[[File:KofC_4th_degree_emblem_175H.jpg|thumb|right|Triad Emblem of the Fourth Degree]]
The Triad Emblem of the Fourth Degree features a white dove, a red cross and a blue globe. The dove – a classic symbol of the [[Holy Spirit in Christianity|Holy Spirit]] and of peace – is shown hovering over the globe. Both are mounted on a variation of the [[Jerusalem cross|Crusaders' cross]], the cross worn on the tunics and capes of knights of the [[Middle Ages]]. These three items are also representative of the [[Trinity|Blessed Trinity]]:

* The globe represents God the Father, Creator of the Universe.
* The cross represents God the Son, Redeemer of Mankind.
* The dove represents the Holy Spirit, Sanctifier of Humanity.

The red, white and blue colors on the emblem are those of the flag of the United States, where the Knights of Columbus originated. They also help to underscore the value of patriotism that is the foundational principle of the Fourth Degree.{{Sfn|Walther|Walther|2020|p=24,40}}

== Auxiliary groups ==
=== Women's auxiliaries ===

Many councils also have women's auxiliaries. At the turn of the 20th century, two were formed by local councils, each taking the name [[Daughters of Isabella]].{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=125}}<ref name="isabella" /> They expanded and issued charters to other circles but never merged. The newer organization renamed itself the [[Catholic Daughters of the Americas]] in 1921, and both have structures independent of the Knights of Columbus.<ref name="cda" />{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|pp=125–126}} Other groups are known as the [[Columbiettes]].{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=125}} In the Philippines, the ladies' auxiliary is known as the Daughters of Mary Immaculate.<ref name="dmi" />

A proposal in 1896 to establish councils for women did not pass and was never proposed again.{{sfn|Kauffman|1982|p=126}}

=== Columbian Squires ===

{{main|Columbian Squires}}

The Knights' official junior organization is the [[Columbian Squires]]. According to its founder Barnabas McDonald, "The supreme purpose of the Columbian Squires is character building."<ref name="roadrunner" />

It was founded in 1925 in Duluth, Minnesota, by [[Barnabas McDonald]].<ref name="encyclopedia" /><ref name="manhattan" /><ref name="DeLorme" /> The formation of new Squire Circles in the United States and Canada is discouraged, as the Order desires to move youth activities from exclusive clubs into the local parish youth groups.<ref name="DeLorme" />

==Similar Christian organizations==
The Knights of Columbus is a member of the [[International Alliance of Catholic Knights]] (IACK), which includes fifteen fraternal orders such as the [[Knights of Saint Columbanus]] in [[Ireland]], the [[Knights of St Columba]] in [[Great Britain]], the [[Knights of Peter Claver]] in the United States, the [[Knights of the Southern Cross]] in [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]], the [[Knights of Marshall]] in [[Ghana]], the [[Knights of Da Gama]] in [[South Africa]], and the [[Knights of Saint Mulumba]] in [[Nigeria]].<ref name="iack" />

== See also ==

{{div col|colwidth=45em}}
* [[Columbus Fountain]]
* [[Columbus School of Law]]
* [[Father Millet Cross]]
* [[James Cardinal Gibbons Memorial Statue]]
* [[Knights of Columbus Hostel fire]]
* [[List of Knights of Columbus buildings]]
* [[List of Massachusetts State Deputies of the Knights of Columbus]]
* ''[[Manuscripta]]''
* [[Parish Priest (book)|''Parish Priest'' (book)]]
* [[Pope John Paul II Cultural Center]]
{{div col end}}

== Notes ==

{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist|refs=
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<ref name="distefano">{{cite news | url = https://www.newspapers.com/image/515842939/ | title = Knights: Enough | first = Joseph N. | last = DiStefano | date = August 26, 2019 | access-date = December 4, 2019 | newspaper = The Philadelphia Inquirer | page = E2 | via =Newspapers.com}}{{open access}}</ref>
<ref name="frackville">{{cite news | url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/40243267/frackville_man_serves_in_knights/ | title = Frackville man serves in Knights national office | newspaper = Republican and Herald | location = Pottsville, Pennsylvania | date = October 7, 2014 | page = A5 |access-date = December 7, 2019 | via = newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>
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<ref name="next">{{cite news | url = https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/246387/knights-of-columbus-elect-patrick-kelly-next-supreme-knight | title = Knights of Columbus elect Patrick Kelly next Supreme Knight | publisher = Catholic News Agency | date = February 5, 2021 | access-date = April 23, 2023}}</ref>
<ref name="ceo">{{cite web|url=https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2017/10/30/knights-columbus-ceo-praises-plan-us-aid-persecuted-Christians|title=Knights of Columbus CEO Praises Plan for U.S. Aid to Persecuted Christians|website=America|date=October 30, 2017|access-date=March 18, 2018}}</ref>
<ref name="telli">{{cite news|title = Fraternal order honors Ukrainian Knight for leading war relief efforts | first = Andy | last = Telli | date = August 12, 2022 | page = 10 | newspaper = [[The Pilot (Massachusetts newspaper)|The Pilot]]}}</ref>
<ref name="top">{{cite news|title = Overturning of Roe provides 'chance to win fight for life' says top Knight | first = Andy | last = Telli | date = August 12, 2022 | page = 10 | newspaper = [[The Pilot (Massachusetts newspaper)|The Pilot]]}}</ref>
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<ref name="newhaven">{{cite news | url = https://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-xpm-2001-03-20-0103201325-story.html | title = The Knight of New Haven | first = Frances Grandy | last = Taylor | newspaper = The Hartford Courant | date = March 20, 2001 | access-date = December 8, 2019}}</ref>
<ref name="100b">{{cite news | url = https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/32946/knights-of-columbus-reach-$100-billion-in-life-insurance | title = Knights of Columbus reach $100 billion in life insurance | publisher = Catholic News Agency | date = November 9, 2015 | access-date = January 22, 2018}}</ref>
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<ref name="Ceplair">{{cite book|author=Larry Ceplair|title=Anti-communism in Twentieth-Century America: A Critical History: A Critical History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wrq-fLuyYoUC&pg=PA114|year=2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-4408-0048-1|page=114}}</ref>
<ref name="McElwee">{{cite news |last=McElwee |first=Jason J. |author-link=Joshua J. McElwee |date=October 19, 2012 |title=Knights of Columbus Key Contributor Against Same-Sex Marriage |url=https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/knights-columbus-key-contributor-against-same-sex-marriage |work=National Catholic Reporter |location=Kansas City, Missouri |access-date=August 21, 2018}}</ref>
<ref name="pionline">{{cite news | url = https://www.pionline.com/money-management/knights-columbus-asset-advisors-acquires-boston-advisors-institutional-business | title = Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors acquires Boston Advisors' institutional business | first = James | last = Comtois | date = October 10, 2019 | access-date = December 2, 2019 | publisher = Pensions & Investments}}</ref>
<ref name="remembered">{{cite news | url = https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/41979/at-knights-convention-kendrick-castillo-remembered-honored-as-a-hero | title = At Knights convention, Kendrick Castillo remembered, honored as 'a hero' | first = Matt | last = Hadro | date = August 7, 2019 | publisher = Catholic News Agency | access-date = December 2, 2019}}</ref>
<ref name="tampa">{{cite news | url = https://www.newspapers.com/image/333483270 | title = FIFTY YEARS OLD | newspaper = The Tampa Times | date = March 28, 1932 | page = 4 | access-date = December 2, 2019}}</ref>
<ref name="ash">{{cite news | url = http://msjnews.com/knights-of-columbus-celebrates-milestone-p11541-91.htm | title = Knights of Columbus celebrates milestone | first = Jim | last = Ash | date = September 14, 2018 | access-date = November 30, 2019 | newspaper = Main Street Journal}}</ref>
<ref name="garcia">{{cite news | url = https://www.americamagazine.org/politics-society/2019/08/13/knights-columbus-commit-helping-asylum-seekers-southern-border | title = Knights of Columbus commit to helping asylum seekers at the southern border | first = J.D. | last = Long-Garcia | date = August 13, 2019 | publisher = America | access-date = November 27, 2019 | issue = September 2, 2019}}</ref>
<ref name="mares">{{Cite news | title = Knights of Columbus pledge support for persecuted Christians | first = Courtney | last = Mares | date = August 7, 2018 | publisher = Catholic News Agency | access-date = November 25, 2019 | url = https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/39074/knights-of-columbus-pledge-support-for-persecuted-christians}}</ref>
<ref name="califon">{{Cite news | url = https://thehunterdoncountynews.com/knights-of-columbus-scholarships-awarded-in-califon/ | title = Knights of Columbus Scholarships Awarded in Califon | date = June 19, 2018 | publisher =The Hunterdon County News | access-date = November 24, 2019}}</ref>
<ref name="Boehner">{{cite web | url = http://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/27015/john-boehner#.Ue2J3dK1HxA | title = Representative John Boehner's Biography | publisher = Project Vote Smart | access-date = July 22, 2013}}</ref>
<ref name="Bremer">{{cite book |last1=Bremer |first1=Thomas S. |title=Formed From This Soil: An Introduction to the Diverse History of Religion in America |date=2014 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-1-118-32354-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GE3YBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA357 |language=en}}</ref>
<ref name="canonized">{{cite news |publisher= EWTN News |url=http://www.ewtn.com/vnews/getstory.asp?number=72165 |title= 1st Knight-of-Columbus-Bishop to Be Canonized |date= October 10, 2006 | access-date = June 28, 2013}}</ref>
<ref name="cda">{{cite web |publisher= Catholic Daughters of America |url= http://www.catholicdaughters.org/history.shtml |title= The History of the Catholic Daughters of the Americas |access-date= June 28, 2013 |archive-date= May 22, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130522122927/http://www.catholicdaughters.org/history.shtml |url-status= dead}}</ref>
<ref name="comtois">{{cite news| url = http://www.pionline.com/article/20150227/ONLINE/150229875/knights-of-columbus-forms-money-manager-targets-catholic-institutional-investors | title = Knights of Columbus forms money manager, targets Catholic institutional investors | first = James | last = Comtois | date = February 27, 2016 | publisher = Pensions and Investments | access-date = March 6, 2018}}</ref>
<ref name="dmi">{{cite web |publisher=Daughters of Mary Immaculate International |url=http://dmiinternational.org/about/ |title=Brief History, Daughters of Mary Immaculate International |access-date=June 28, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130718182047/http://dmiinternational.org/about/ |archive-date=July 18, 2013}}</ref>
<ref name="emblem">{{cite web|url=http://www.kofc.org/un/en/resources/service/council/emblems.pdf|title=Official Knights of Columbus Emblems and Council Jewels|publisher= Knights of Columbus| access-date = June 28, 2013}}</ref>
<ref name="Greenberg">{{cite news |last1=Greenberg |first1=David |title=The Pledge of Allegiance: Why we're not one nation 'under God' |url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2002/06/why-we-re-not-one-nation-under-god.html |work=Slate Magazine |date=28 June 2002 |language=en}}</ref>
<ref name="hadro">{{cite news | url = http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/knights-of-columbus-donated-over-185-million-to-charity-in-2018 | title = Knights of Columbus Donated More Than $185 Million to Charity in 2018 | first = Matt | last = Hadro | date = August 5, 2019 | publisher =[[National Catholic Register]] | access-date = November 23, 2019}}</ref>
<ref name="iack">{{cite web |publisher=International Alliance of Catholic Knights |url=http://www.iack.org/members.htm |title=Member Orders |access-date=May 30, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070314234735/http://www.iack.org/members.htm |archive-date=March 14, 2007}}</ref>
<ref name="iconic">{{cite web|url= http://www.usmcmuseum.org/Exhibits_IconicArtifacts.asp|title= Iconic Artifacts|publisher= The National Museum of the Marine Corps|access-date= June 28, 2013|archive-date= May 9, 2013|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130509231729/http://www.usmcmuseum.org/Exhibits_IconicArtifacts.asp|url-status= dead}}</ref>
<ref name="isabella">{{cite web |publisher=Daughters of Isabella |url=http://www.daughtersofisabella.org/aboutus.asp |title=About Us, Daughters of Isabella |access-date=June 28, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130515131128/http://www.daughtersofisabella.org/aboutus.asp |archive-date=May 15, 2013}}</ref>
<ref name="famous">{{cite web|url= http://famous101.com/famous-knights-of-columbus|title= Famous Knights of Columbus|date= July 2012|publisher= Famous101| access-date = June 28, 2013}}</ref>
<ref name="glenn">{{cite web|last1=Glenn|first1=Brian J|title=Rhetoric of Fraternalism: Its Influence on the Development of the Welfare State 1900–1935|url=http://wesscholar.wesleyan.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1074&context=div2facpubs|access-date=December 24, 2015}}</ref>
<ref name="jeb">{{cite news |last1=Paulson |first1=Michael |title=Jeb Bush, 20 Years After Conversion, Is Guided by His Catholic Faith |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/18/us/politics/jeb-bush-20-years-after-conversion-is-guided-by-his-catholic-faith.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/18/us/politics/jeb-bush-20-years-after-conversion-is-guided-by-his-catholic-faith.html |archive-date=2022-01-03 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=December 10, 2019 |work=The New York Times |date=March 17, 2015}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
<ref name="oregon">{{cite web| url = https://www.oyez.org/cases/1901-1939/1924/1924_583| title = Pierce v. Society of Sisters| publisher = University of Chicago Kent School of Law| access-date = June 28, 2013}}</ref>
<ref name="Patterson">{{cite web| url = http://www.hudsonrivervalley.org/library/pdfs/floydpatterson.pdf| title = Floyd Patterson| publisher = Hudson River Valley Institute at Marist College| access-date = July 22, 2013| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111230090641/http://www.hudsonrivervalley.org/library/pdfs/floydpatterson.pdf| archive-date = December 30, 2011}}</ref>
<ref name="pierce">{{ussc|268|510|1925}}</ref>
<ref name="policy">{{cite web | url = https://www.kofc.org/un/en/resources/service/community/cath-citizenship-public-policy.pdf | title = Catholic Citizenship And Public Policy | publisher = Knights of Columbus | access-date = January 18, 2018}}</ref>
<ref name="sri">{{cite web | url = http://www.usccb.org/about/financial-reporting/socially-responsible-investment-guidelines.cfm | title = Socially Responsible Investment Guidelines | publisher = United States Conference of Catholic Bishops | access-date = March 6, 2018}}</ref>
<ref name="tablet9719">''The Tablet'', 7 September 2019, pp. 4–5.</ref>
<ref name="Pike">{{Cite journal | title = The Archives Recalls CUA's Relationship with the Knights of Columbus | url = http://archives.lib.cua.edu/res/docs/newsletter0301.pdf | date = Fall 2008 | author = Pike, Robin | journal = ACUA Newsletter | page = 3 | access-date = 2013-07-19 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131203013725/http://archives.lib.cua.edu/res/docs/newsletter0301.pdf | archive-date = 2013-12-03}}</ref>
<ref name="so">{{cite web | url = https://www.soill.org/blog/2016/04/01/the-knights-of-columbus-and-special-olympics-a-bond-forged-years-ago/#:~:text=The%20first%20Special%20Olympics%20Games%20were%20held%20at%20Soldier%20Field,programs%20the%20Order%20donates%20to. | title = The Knights of Columbus and Special Olympics – A Bond Forged Years Ago | first = Steve | last = Cerve | date = April 2016 | access-date = August 21, 2022}}</ref>
<ref name="meets">{{cite news | url = https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2017/02/knights-columbus-leader-meets-pope-presents-1-6-million | title = Knights of Columbus leader meets Pope, presents $1.6 million | date = February 16, 2017 | access-date = August 21, 2022 | publisher = Crux}}</ref>
<ref name="IRS">[https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-tege/eotopicf04.pdf IRC 501(c)(8) Fraternal Benefit Societies]. Accessed 10-29-2020</ref>
<ref name="Atlantic">{{cite web |last1=Appelbaum |first1=Yoni |title=How Columbus Day Fell Victim to Its Own Success |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/10/how-columbus-day-fell-victim-to-its-own-success/261922/ |publisher=The Atlantic |access-date=21 July 2020 |language=en |date=2012-10-08}}</ref>
<ref name="Yankees">[http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1953/12/18/page/61/article/yankees-net-2-700-000-in-park-deals "Yankees Net $2,700,000 In Park Deals"] ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Friday, December 18, 1953</ref>
<ref name="Bauman">{{cite news |last1=Bauman |first1=Michelle |title=Knights of Columbus called to be in front ranks of New Evangelization |url=https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/25442/knights-of-columbus-called-to-be-in-front-ranks-of-new-evangelization |access-date=2019-12-15 |work=Catholic News Agency |date=2012-08-07 |language=en}}</ref>
<ref name="Series">{{cite news |title=Catholic Information Service to Launch Series on the New Evangelization |url=http://www.kofc.org/en/news/releases/new_evangelization.html |access-date=2019-12-15 |work=www.kofc.org |date=2011-11-29}}</ref>
<ref name="Roberts">{{cite news |last1=Roberts |first1=Tom |title=Knights of Columbus' financial forms show wealth, influence |url=https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/knights-columbus-financial-forms-show-wealth-influence |access-date=2019-12-15 |work=National Catholic Reporter |date=2017-05-15 |language=en}}</ref>
<ref name="Wuerl">{{cite book |last1=Wuerl |first1=Cardinal Donald |title=New Evangelization: Passing on the Catholic Faith Today |date=2013 |publisher=Our Sunday Visitor |isbn=978-1-61278-302-4 |page=Preface |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6Gn8CwAAQBAJ&pg=PT7 |access-date=2019-12-15 |language=en|chapter=Preface}}</ref>
<ref name="Nancy">{{Cite web|title=Nancy Reagan Turned Down Rock Hudson's Plea For Help Nine Weeks Before He Died|url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/chrisgeidner/nancy-reagan-turned-down-rock-hudsons-plea-for-help-seven-we|access-date=2021-06-17|website=BuzzFeed News|date=February 3, 2015 |language=en}}</ref>
<ref name="bankroll">{{cite web| url = https://thinkprogress.org/how-one-religious-organization-bankrolls-americas-social-conservative-movement-b2d4a22b9239/| title = How One Religious Organization Bankrolls America's Social Conservative Movement| website = [[ThinkProgress]]| date = December 22, 2014}}</ref>
<ref name="Humanities">{{Cite news|via=National Endowment for the Humanities|title=Albuquerque Morning Journal |location=Albuquerque, N.M. |date=May 20, 1917 |page=9|url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84031081/1917-05-20/ed-1/seq-9/|access-date=2022-01-25|issn=2375-5903}}</ref>
<ref name="Movie">{{cite news |title=Movie Knight |work=Columbia Magazine |issue=June 2022 |publisher=The Knights of Columbus}}</ref>
<ref name="unjust-charges">"[https://www.newspapers.com/image/319404947/ Knights of Columbus Refuting Unjust Charges]." ''Norwich Bulletin'' (Norwich, Connecticut). January 16, 1915. p. 7.</ref>
<ref name="refuting">"[https://www.newspapers.com/image/849482467/ Refuting a Libel]." ''Connecticut Western News'' (Salisbury, Connecticut). February 25, 1915. p. 4.</ref>
<ref name="presidents">{{cite web | url = https://www.kofc.org/en/news/releases/presidents-and-the-knights-of-columbus.html | title = U.S. Presidents and the Knights of Columbus | date = February 15, 2019 | publisher = Knights of Columbus | access-date = April 21, 2019}}</ref>
<ref name="Native">{{Cite web |date=2000-10-01 |title=Native son |url=http://legacy.chicagocatholic.com/archive/cnw2000/1001/native_1001.htm |access-date=2022-10-03 |website=legacy.chicagocatholic.com}}</ref>
<ref name="time1958">{{Cite magazine |date=1958-09-15 |title=Religion: Catholics & Negroes |language=en-US |magazine=Time |url=https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,863819,00.html |access-date=2022-10-03 |issn=0040-781X}}</ref>
<ref name="Queen">{{Cite web |title=Knights of Columbus |url=http://www.thequeenofangels.com/catholic-chivalry/knights-of-columbus/ |access-date=2022-10-03 |website=Queen of Angels Foundation |language=en-US}}</ref>
<ref name="Reward">"[https://www.newspapers.com/image/369545242/ Offer Reward for K. of C. Detractors]." ''Hartford Courant'' (Hartford, Connecticut). January 22, 1923. p. 4.</ref>
<ref name="Kaceys">"[https://www.newspapers.com/image/830449313/ Kaceys to Prosecute]." ''New Britain Herald'' (New Britain, Connecticut). August 22, 1928. p. 14.</ref>
<ref name="annualreport">{{cite web |title=Annual Report (2023) of the Supreme Knight |url=https://www.kofc.org/en/resources/events/supreme-convention/2023/annual-report-of-the-supreme-knight.pdf |website=Knights of Columbus |access-date=November 2, 2023}}</ref>
<ref name="detr">{{cite news |last1=Smith |first1=Peter |title=Knight of Columbus Supreme Knight: Our relationship with Jesus 'will change everything' |url=https://www.detroitcatholic.com/news/knight-of-columbus-supreme-knight-our-relationship-with-jesus-will-change-everything |access-date=November 2, 2023 |publisher=Detroit Catholic |date=August 9, 2023}}</ref>
<ref name="columbia racial equality">{{cite journal |title=The Knights of Columbus and Racial Equality |journal=Columbia |date=May 26, 2024 |issue=July/August 2020 |pages=9–14 |url=https://issuu.com/columbia-magazine/docs/columbiajulyaug20en/10 |access-date=May 26, 2024}}</ref>
<ref name="Diverse">{{cite web| url = http://archives.lib.cua.edu/res/docs/NewCent/knights.htm| title = A Diverse Church| publisher = Catholic University of America Archives| access-date = August 9, 2013| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150422023911/http://archives.lib.cua.edu/res/docs/NewCent/knights.htm| archive-date = April 22, 2015}}</ref>
<ref name="First">{{cite web |last1=Kelly |first1=Patrick |title=First in Faith and Charity |url=https://www.kofc.org/en/resources/events/supreme-convention/2023/annual-report-of-the-supreme-knight.pdf |website=Knights of Columbus |access-date=December 18, 2023}}</ref>
<!-- <ref name="Jesserer">{{cite news |last1=Jesserer Smith |first1=Peter |title=Convention summons Knights of Columbus to discipleship, transformation of world |url=https://www.thebostonpilot.com/article.php?ID=195316 |access-date=March 13, 2024 |publisher=Boston Pilot |date=August 8, 2023}}</ref> -->
<ref name="Schwarz">{{cite web |last1=Schwarz |first1=Alan |title=America's Best Insurance Companies |url=https://www.forbes.com/lists/best-insurance-firms/?sh=685716ee202e |website=Forbes Best Insurance Firms |access-date=December 18, 2023}}</ref>
<ref name="adviserinfo">{{cite web |title=KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS ASSET ADVISORS LLC Investment Adviser Firm Summary |url=https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/174129 |website=SEC.gov |access-date=March 13, 2024}}</ref>
<ref name="AUM13F">{{cite web |title=Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC AUM filing |url=https://aum13f.com/firm/knights-of-columbus-asset-advisors-llc |website=AUM13F.com |access-date=March 13, 2024}}</ref>
}}

== Works cited ==

{{refbegin|40em|indent=yes}}

* {{cite book|year=1999|editor-last=Alley|editor-first=Robert S.|title=The Constitution & Religion: Leading Supreme Court Cases on Church and State|location=Amherst, New York|publisher=Prometheus Books|isbn=978-1-57392-703-1|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/constitutionreli0000unse}}
* {{cite book|last1=Brinkley|first1=Douglas|author1-link=Douglas Brinkley|last2=Fenster|first2=Julie M.|author2-link=Julie M. Fenster|year=2006|title=Parish Priest: Father Michael McGivney and American Catholicism|location=New York|publisher=William Morrow|isbn=978-0-06-077684-8|title-link=Parish Priest (book)}}
* {{cite book|last=Dodge|first=William Wallace|year=1903|title=The Fraternal and Modern Banquet Orator: An Original Book of Useful Helps at the Social Session and Assembly of Fraternal Orders, College Entertainments, Social Gatherings and All Banquet Occasions|location=Chicago|publisher=Monarch Book Company}}
*{{cite journal | last = Dumenil | first = Lynn | title = The tribal Twenties: "Assimilated" Catholics' response to Anti-Catholicism in the 1920s | journal = Journal of American Ethnic History | volume = 11 | pages = 21–49 | number = 1 | date = Fall 1991 | jstor = 27500903 }}
*{{cite book|last1=Egan|first1=Maurice Francis|last2=Kennedy|first2=John James Bright|year=1920|title=The Knights of Columbus in Peace and War|volume=1|isbn=978-1-142-78398-3}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |title=Knights of Columbus Catholic Recreation Clubs in Great Britain, 1917–1919 |last=Flanagan|first=Luke|editor-last1=Malet |editor-first1=David |editor-last2=Anderson |editor-first2=Miriam J. |encyclopedia=Transnational Actors in War and Peace: Militants, Activists, and Corporations in World Politics |date=2017 |publisher=Georgetown University Press |isbn=978-1-62616-443-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1W_gDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA28 |language=en|pages=24–41}}
* {{cite book|last=Fry|first=Henry P.|year=1922|title=The Modern Ku Klux Klan|url=https://archive.org/details/modernkukluxklan00fryhuoft|location=Boston|publisher=Small, Maynard & Company|access-date=March 29, 2018}}
* {{cite encyclopedia|last=Hearn|first=Edward|author-link=Edward L. Hearn|year=1910|title=Knights of Columbus|editor1-last=Herbermann|editor1-first=Charles G.|editor1-link=Charles George Herbermann|editor2-last=Pace|editor2-first=Edward A.|editor2-link=Edward A. Pace|editor3-last=Pallen|editor3-first=Condé B.|editor3-link=Condé Benoist Pallen|editor4-last=Shahan|editor4-first=Thomas J.|editor4-link=Thomas Joseph Shahan|editor5-last=Wynne|editor5-first=John J.|encyclopedia=[[Catholic Encyclopedia]]|volume=8|location=New York|publisher=Encyclopedia Press|publication-date=1913|pages=670–671|title-link=wikisource:Catholic Encyclopedia (1913)/Knights of Columbus}}
* {{cite book|last1=Hubbard |first1=Robert |last2=Hubbard |first2=Kathleen |title=Hidden History of New Haven|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bvSMDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA76|access-date=30 November 2019|year=2019|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|isbn=978-1-4671-4082-9}}
* {{cite book|last=Kauffman|first=Christopher J.|year=1982|title=Faith and Fraternalism: The History of the Knights of Columbus, 1882–1982|publisher=Harper and Row|isbn=978-0-06-014940-6|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/faithfraternalis00kauf}}
* {{cite encyclopedia|last=Kauffman|first=Christopher J.|author-mask={{long dash}}|year=1995|title=Knights of Columbus|editor1-last=Venzon|editor1-first=Anne Cipriano|editor2-last=Miles|editor2-first=Paul L.|encyclopedia=The United States in the First World War: An Encyclopedia|location=New York|publisher=Garland Publishing|publication-date=2013|pages=321–322|isbn=978-1-135-68453-2}}
* {{cite book|last=Kauffman|first=Christopher J.|author-mask={{long dash}}|year=2001|title=Patriotism and Fraternalism in the Knights of Columbus|location=New York|publisher=Crossroad Publishing Company|isbn=978-0-8245-1885-1}}
* {{cite book|last=Kaufmann|first=Eric P.|author-link=Eric Kaufmann|year=2007|title=The Orange Order: A Contemporary Northern Irish History|location=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-920848-7}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Koehlinger |first1=A. |title="Let Us Live for Those Who Love Us": Faith, Family, and the Contours of Manhood among the Knights of Columbus in Late Nineteenth-Century Connecticut |journal=Journal of Social History |date=1 December 2004 |volume=38 |issue=2 |pages=455–469 |doi=10.1353/jsh.2004.0126|s2cid=144647069 }}
*{{cite book | title = The Knights of Columbus in Massachusetts | first = Vincent A. | last = Lapomarda | publisher = Knights of Columbus Massachusetts State Council | edition = second | year = 1992 | location = Norwood, Massachusetts }}
* {{cite book|last=Marchildon|first=Gregory P.|year=2009|chapter=Introduction|editor-last=Marchildon|editor-first=Gregory P.|title=Immigration and Settlement, 1870–1939|series=History of the Prairie West|volume=2|location=Regina, Saskatchewan|publisher=University of Regina Press|pages=1–9|isbn=978-0-88977-230-4}}
* {{cite book|last=McGowan|first=Mark G. |title=Waning of the Green: Catholics, the Irish, and Identity in Toronto, 1887-1922|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ehDrpqSKK6UC|year=1999|publisher=McGill–Queen's Press—MQUP|isbn=978-0-7735-1789-9}}
* {{cite book|last=Mecklin|first=John|year=2013|orig-date=1924|title=The Ku Klux Klan: A Study of the American Mind|publisher=Read Books|isbn=978-1-4733-8675-4}}
* {{cite book |last=Nuesse |first=C. Joseph |year=1990 |title=The Catholic University of America: A Centennial History |location=Washington |publisher=Catholic University of America Press |isbn=978-0-8132-0736-0 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/catholicuniversi0000nues }}
* {{cite journal|last=Salvaterra|first=David L.|year=2002|title=Review of ''Patriotism and Fraternalism in the Knights of Columbus: A History of the Fourth Degree'' by Christopher J. Kauffman|journal=The Catholic Historical Review|volume=88|issue=1|pages=157–158|doi=10.1353/cat.2002.0048|issn=1534-0708|jstor=25026129|s2cid=162342037}}
* {{cite book|last=Singular|first=Stephen|year=2005|title=By Their Works: Profiles of Men of Faith Who Made a Difference|location=New York
|publisher=HarperCollins|isbn=978-0-06-116145-2}}

*{{cite journal | first1 = Theda |last1 = Skocpol | first2 = Marshall | last2 = Ganz | first3 = Ziad | last3 = Munson | year = 2000 | title = A Nation of Organizers: The Institutional Origins of Civic Voluntarism in the United States | journal = The American Political Science Review | volume = 94 | issue = 3 |pages = 527–546 | doi = 10.2307/2585829 | access-date = August 22, 2018 | url = http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:12641806 |jstor = 2585829 |s2cid = 145598414 }}
* {{cite book|last=Sullivan|first=Neil|year=2001|title=The Diamond in the Bronx: Yankee Stadium and the Politics of New York|url=https://archive.org/details/diamondinbronxya0000sull|url-access=registration|location=New York
|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-535253-5}}
*{{cite book|last1=Walther|first1=Andrew|last2=Walther|first2=Maureen|year=2020|title=The Knights of Columbus: An Illustrated History|publisher=Square One Publishers|isbn=978-0-7570-0308-0}}

{{refend}}

== Further reading ==

{{refbegin|indent=yes}}

* {{cite encyclopedia|year=1922|title=Knights of Columbus|editor-last=Chisholm |editor-first=Hugh|editor-link=Hugh Chisholm|encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]|volume=31|edition=12th|location=London|publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica Company|pages=682–683|title-link=wikisource:1922 Encyclopædia Britannica/Knights of Columbus}}
* {{cite book|last=Bauernschub|first=John P.|year=1949|title=Fifty Years of Columbianism in Maryland|location=Baltimore, Maryland|publisher=Maryland State Council, Knights of Columbus}}{{self-published inline|certain|date=December 2019}}
* {{cite book|last=Bauernschub|first=John P.|author-mask={{long dash}}|year=1965|title=Columbianism in Maryland, 1897–1965|location=Baltimore, Maryland|publisher= Maryland State Council, Knights of Columbus}}{{self-published inline|certain|date=December 2019}}
* {{cite book | title = The Knights of Columbus in Massachusetts | first = Vincent A. | last = Lapomarda, S.J. | publisher = Knights of Columbus Massachusetts State Council | edition = second | year = 1992 | location = Norwood, Massachusetts }}{{self-published inline|certain|date=December 2019}}
* {{Cite book |title=Educational Work of the Knights of Columbus |last=Sweany |first=Mark J. |publisher=Government Printing Office |others=Mark J. Sweaney, Director of the Knights of Columbus Educational Activities |year=1923 |series=Bureau of Education Bulletin |volume=22 |location=Washington |hdl=2346/60378 |hdl-access=free}}

===Archival collections===
*[https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/507 Knights of Columbus and Catholic Daughters of America, Montclair, New Jersey Chapters] (Monsignor Noe Field Archives & Special Collections Center, Seton Hall University)

{{refend}}

== External links ==

{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website}}
* [http://www.fathermcgivney.org/ Father Michael J. McGivney Guild]

{{International Alliance of Catholic Knights}}
{{Lay Cath Spirituality}}
{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knights Of Columbus}}
[[Category:Knights of Columbus| ]]
[[Category:Financial services companies established in 1882]]
[[Category:1882 establishments in Connecticut]]
[[Category:Christian organizations established in 1882]]
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[[Category:Anti-communist organizations in the United States]]
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