The Knights’ plan to spread the Gospel

Mike Langlois is the Grand Knight of St. Augustine Knights of Columbus Council 7273 in Peru, N.Y. He is also the Upstate Conference Coordinator for Evangelization and Faith Formation for the New York State Knights of Columbus. (Courtesy photo of JASON WYSONG)

Recently, I wrote a column on the importance of Cor, a Knights of Columbus men’s faith-based initiative that is steadily growing worldwide. Now, I want to explain the history of the organization and its strategy to infuse evangelism into its ranks.

The Knights of Columbus came from a humble origin. In 1882, the K of C was formed in New Haven, Conn., by Father Michael J. McGivney, assistant pastor at St. Mary’s Church, to provide a mutual benefit society for Catholic men. The purpose was to offer insurance for families of deceased members (dangerous factory working conditions left many families fatherless) and to counter the anti-Catholic discrimination of the time. The newly formed Christian organization also offered Catholic men an alternative to joining secret societies. Pope Francis beatified the now Blessed Michael McGivney on Oct. 31, 2020.

The K of C and the Catholic Church, though closely linked, are separate organizations. While the Church is a religious institution, the K of C is a distinct lay organization with its own structure, membership and mission. The 143-year-old organization, like any long-running charitable entity, has had to adjust its mission focus. Today, the K of C supports the Church by funding educational and social programs and promoting Catholic values in public policy. In addition, the group has a wide range of programs focused on charity, civic involvement, faith, family and participates in food drives and disaster relief. As of 2024, there were 2.1 million K of C members worldwide and nearly 17,000 councils, including over 400 on college campuses.

Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly, in his annual report to the 141st Supreme Convention in Orlando, Fla., on Aug. 2, 2023, officially launched the K of C’s Cor program to refocus Catholic men to their faith. Father Michael McGivney started the Knights of Columbus with the mission to follow Jesus Christ, said Kelly. “In this new era, forming Catholic men must be our top priority,” he said. “If we get the man right, we get everything right — the marriage, the family, the parish, the community. We need men who say ‘yes’ to their God-given vocation.”

In March 2025, Kelly gave a video update about the Knights of Columbus’ Cor program that was published on social media. He said that in less than two years, more than 650 councils have started Cor and nearly 4,000 have plans to start the initiative in the coming year. In July, the New York State Council of K of C recorded 55 of the state’s 500 active councils (11 percent) as having started Cor. The goal, said Gary Leonardo, the K of C State Deputy and the group’s highest elected position, is to double that number by June 2026. That is the end of the organization’s fraternal year. “We are committed to 100 active Cor programs by that date,” he said.

Statistics aside, Leonardo said Cor is critical for Catholic men, and the Church, in these challenging times. “We are missing a generation of those that attend Mass or get involved,” he said. “With the Cor program it will bring men back to the church, which will bring families back to the church. It will also bring them back to taking part in other aspects of our religion.”

The Cor meetings are working at the local council and parish level too, said Robert Romano, Cor Director for K of C Council 1662, in Staten Island. The council is associated with the Archdiocese of New York’s St. Clare Parish in that New York City borough. “We actually get a decent turnout with between 25 and 30 men,” he said. “We decided early on to get a consensus from everyone (on potential meeting topics).” In May 2024 at the council’s first meeting, they started “Into the Breach,” a 12-part video series produced by the K of C and inspired by Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted’s apostolic exhortation. The aim is to provide Catholic men with a guide to developing authentic masculinity and living out their faith exploring prayer, suffering, fatherhood and spiritual warfare through personal stories and the insights of Catholic figures.

Romano admitted that it can be hard for men to discuss personal beliefs due to societal expectations to be stoic and self-reliant. “The Cor meetings are a great platform to allow you and your brothers to open up and discuss your faith,” Romano said. “It gives you the ability to ask those (faith) questions and to speak to people who you feel are your brothers.” The informality of the meetings, often with food, drink and jovial banter, can go a long way in making for a non-threatening atmosphere, he said.

In the March 2025 video, Kelly said that the Cor program aims to provide brotherhood, strength­en faith, and build virtue and leadership. “The church’s work of evangelization continues in all countries, but we know that to change the world we must first be changed ourselves,” he said. “Cor is meant to transform us by drawing us closer to Christ, and to each other, and as men grow together in faith and fraternity.”

K of C councils interested in starting a Cor program can contact Mike Langlois at [email protected].