Most Rev. Jean-Louis Plouffe Provincial Chaplain of the Ontario Knights of Columbus, a Catholic lay order, said in an exclusive interview with The Interim that he agrees with recent advice that new members should be admitted to the Order even if they are not practicing the Catholic faith at the moment. But they should indicate that they intend to resume practicing the Catholic faith, he said.
Bishop Plouffe said that this new position has been adopted by Knight headquarters in New Haven, Conn., and that a group of Knights of Columbus chaplains had been informed about it at the Ontario State Convention recently in Toronto. He saw it as an “evangelizing effort.” It comes at a time, he said, when only roughly 50 per cent of Catholics are attending Mass.
The Bishop did not see the new policy as a watering-down of the requirements of the Order, but rather, as an opportunity to bring back Catholic men to the Faith. He wanted the Order to evolve from just “catering to the already converted.”
Meanwhile, the U.S. Knights have made a $3 million commitment to a new pro-life public information and education program being launched by the National (American) Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB).
The K of C magazine, Columbia (June 1990), reports that at its last meeting the Board of Directors also voted to spend an additional $1 million on its own pro-life efforts, including distribution of pro-life information and educational materials to members.
