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I, too, am a Knight (3rd Degree) - the only Eastern member of a very "Latin-leaning" council. As Peter mentioned, many councils "adopt" seminarians by offering them financial and moral support throughout the years of their studies. Through the grace of God (and my own incessant badgering ), this past year our council was able to provide financial support to both a Latin and a Byzantine seminarian (many of my Brother Knights didn't even have a clue that there were Catholic seminarians who weren't of the Latin persuasion!).

I find my membership in the Knights of Columbus to be an excellent opportunity to evangelize the Catholic East among my Western brothers, many of whom, through no fault of their own, didn't even know that the Catholic East existed! In fact, I'm now looking at putting together a "field trip" so they may experience the riches of our Divine Liturgy firsthand.

If we are to take our recent flurry of activity surrounding evangelization of our Church seriously, I would strongly recommend to my Eastern brethren to seek out and investigate membership in your local Knights of Columbus council. Doubtless, you'll find a ready-made group of Catholic gentlemen (albeit mostly Latin) with which to share your experiences as an Eastern Catholic (admittedly, some more receptive than others... but, hey, you'll find that in any group, right?).

...besides, you're likely to pick up one heckuva fish fry recipe, too!

Al (a pilgrim)

I belong to the K of C. They aren't a secret society. Belonging to a secret society such as the freemasons is reportedly a self excommunication, at least a priest told us while reading it from a letter written by the bishop (at another Catholic organization). My brother said he was going to join the masons and there wasn't anything I could do about it.
We don't even know who Columbus was. Did you see all the tv hype lately? They've pretty much nailed it down to him being from Barcelona. I would never support his cannonization/beatification. I think the reasons are obvious.

You said:

"Interestingly enough, the Kozaks did see themselves as "Eastern Templars" and this is why their Kozak Cross is a Templar Cross - the same as those on the ships sailed by Columbus."


I say:

Okay Alex and all the rest of you, enough is enough. Christopher Columbus was never a Westerner. He is a Paleologus, a Greek prince and related to the Eastern Emporors of Constantinople... as Orthodox as you can get. And that cross is probably a Greek cross.

Check it out...but shhh! Don't tell the Genovese. They have enough problems with the Spanish claiming him.

Zenovia

One of the K of C chapters here has been notorious for years. At one time, they were mostly a group of guys who wanted to get away from their wives and drink beer. Those guys are still around, although much older now. At ceremonial functions, they stand in formation with swords drawn. Those swords vibrate dangerously in very shaky hands. I wouldn't walk under them. Some of the newer members wear leather jackets and insignia so the chapter is now starting to look a bit like a motorcycle gang. They are the sweetest guys you could ever meet, but are also real characters.

Oh, and he also comes from the town of Pirghi in the Aegean island of Chios.

Columbus walked in and out of the Royal courts. Was related to a Paleologus admiral in the French navy. Couldn't speak Italian, and signed his name in Greek.

He is also mentioned in a diary of a Captain Andreas in the town of Vrondados in Chios, and told the captain how he wanted to find a new trade route to the Indi's. The museum on the island has quite a few letters from his sailors.

Christopher also mentioned Chios in his own letters, and I could go on and on. There is a book written by an American writer that investigated his life, and could come up with no other conclusion.

What has been ruled out by those that have checked up on him, (according to a TV documentary), is that he was not Jewish nor Genovese. His only contact with Genoa was that he used a Genovese bank, something that would also link him to Chios since it belonged to Genoa at the time.

Well you can tell now where part of my family tree stems from. The truth is that his information about the size of the world could have only been from Constantinople and it's libraries. Unfortunately he followed Aristotle's reckening of the size of the world...which was wrong. Had he followed another ancient Greeks measurment of the world, Columbus would have known the correct size.

Of course I can't help but wonder if there were any old prophecies connected with his determination to sail the seas. Maybe these prophecies stated that the new 'Empire' would be in the West across the sea. He was not the only Paleologus sailing across the sea. There is one buried I believe on the island of Barbados.

Had his crew not spotted land on the exact day they did, he promised them that he would turn back. Coincidence? I think not!

Zenovia

Please see HORIZONS, Eparchy of Parma June 19, 2005 issue - front page: "Knights of Columbus charter first Byzantine Cctholic council in the Eparchy of Parma". "The members of the new council unanimously voted to call it the Archbishop Nicholas T. Elko Council". There is a council in Donora, PA bearing the name of Archbishop Elko (Donora, his hometown). "The council members have great expectations. Their mission is to be a forceful instrument for evangelization and an ecumenical force for church unity with the Orthodox church."

"The Knights" was founded at St. Mary's Church on Hillhouse Ave. in New Haven, CT. This church is right in the midst of Yale University. If anyone has ever been on the Yale campus, you'd notice a number of very esoteric, Greek or Egyptian temple-style buildings, with few windows and usually only one door. These are the "club-houses" of the secret societies at Yale that the Knights was founded to counteract and keep young, Catholic men away from these societies (dominated by Protestants) and on the 'straight and narrow.' 'Skull and Bones' is one such society, and I believe that both Pres. Bushs' are members.

The Knights paid to have St. Mary's renovated and Fr. McGivney's body exhumed and re-interred in the church. I believe that they are also paying for his canonization.

John, who attended St. Mary's while in college.