I attended my second Organizational Meeting, as the Assistant to the State Chaplain (Bishop Michael Mulvey, Diocese of Corpus Christi), this past weekend (July 11-13, 2025) at the Embassy Suites in Denton, TX.
It took the day off and, after returning from Mass in the morning, we loaded up the car and left for Denton. Of course, we stopped at the Buc-ee's in Temple for gas and snacks. After that, I drove straight to Denton, TX. Traffic was not bad at all because Google Maps had me take the toll road through Fort Worth. When we arrived at the Embassy Suites to check in, the front desk clerk asked which floor we want to be on. I said the 10th floor. As you can see, we got a sweet suite with a great view!
That evening, we had dinner at the Knights of Columbus Hall Council 4771 and they were a fantastic host! The pull pork and chicken dinner was delicious! We sat with fellow Knights and wives from our Council 1033, along with our Diocesan Deputy and his wife, and had a great time catching up - lots of fun and laughter! Of course, we had a training session for the Diocesan and District Deputies, which I always find so informative. Thank you, Council 4771, for hosting us! Your hall is awesome!
We had an early start the next morning, with the State Deputy, Ron Alonzo, welcoming everyone and our State Chaplain, Bishop Mulvey, leading us in the opening prayer. The State Deputy then delivered an inspiring and motivational speech, including introducing the State Officers and Directors for the 2025-2026 fraternal year (https://tkofc.org/State-Council/State-Officers).
Not only did we get to hear from the State Deputy but also his wife, Margo, whose projects as the First Lady benefits and supports ASAP (Aid and Support After Pregnancy https://www.kofc.org/en/what-we-do/faith-in-action-programs/life/aid-suppport-after-pregnancy.html), which is near and dear to her heart. Follow the link to learn more about ASAP and how you can help.
Also, we had the first class relic of Blessed Michael J. McGivney (founder of the Knights of Columbus https://www.kofc.org/en/index.html) and the holy icon of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (blessed by Pope Francis) present at all our meetings. It was a powerful reminder to all of us why we do what we do as Knights of Columbus with charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism always on our minds and in our hearts.
Click here to learn more about the holy icon: https://www.kofc.org/en/what-we-do/faith-in-action-programs/faith/pilgrim-icon.html.
During lunch, we got to hear from Mr. Christopher Lewis (https://amwheelchair.org/people/), the son of Jerry Lewis, and watch a video about the partnership between the Knights of Columbus (https://www.kofc.org/en/what-we-do/faith-in-action-programs/community/global-wheelchair-mission.html) and the American Wheelchair Mission (https://amwheelchair.org/knights-of-columbus/) to provide wheelchairs for those most in need.
Our State Chaplain celebrated Mass and led us in a Holy Hour as we prayed for those affected by the recent flooding in West and Central Texas, most especially in Kerr County. Bishop Mulvey gave a beautiful homily on Jesus' commandment for us to love God and love our neighbor in the way that the Good Samaritan did in Jesus' parable on the priest, the Levite, and the Samaritan (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/071325.cfm).
Not only did I get to serve with our State Chaplain, but also with Fr. Mark and Deacon Frankie, both are District Deputies. I cannot thank our Liturgy family, the Tydings, for setting up for Mass and Holy Hour. Their sons - Eddie and Liam - are fantastic altar servers. Also, many thanks to Greg Brown for organizing the choir and putting together the hymns for the Mass and Holy Hour. Finally, I am blessed to have my wife there doing what she does best - serve at the Mass in any way that she can.
After Mass and Holy Hour, I had the blessed opportunity to do the invocation for the banquet. Here is what I shared and prayed:
Your Excellency, Reverend Father, brother deacon, ladies and gentleman:
It is said that Pope Saint John Paul II was the soul of the Church, that Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI was the mind of the Church, that Pope Francis was the heart of the Church, and now, Pope Leo XIV is the memory of the Church.
In his message for the 5th World Day for Grandparents and the Elderlies, Pope Leo XIV said: "[as] Pope Francis wrote during his last hospitalization, “our bodies are weak, but even so, nothing can prevent us from loving, praying, giving ourselves, being there for one another, in faith, as shining signs of hope” (Angelus, 16 March 2025). We possess a freedom that no difficulty can rob us of: it is the freedom to love and to pray. Everyone, always, can love and pray."
In that same spirit of love and prayer, let us lift up our sisters and brothers affected by the flooding in Texas, those who are facing persecution and wars in our world, and those who do not know the love and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, as we pray:
Lord God, Heavenly Father, we humbly invoke Your blessings over the Knights of Columbus Texas State Council, its officers, members, and families.We offer you praise for our State Chaplain, Bishop Mulvey, Associate State Chaplain, Fr. Chen, and the shepherd of this Diocese, Bishop Olson, in gratitude to you for their servant leadership and pastoral care after the Sacred Heart of Jesus.Lord God, we give you thanks for State Deputy, Ron Alonzo, and his wife, Margo, and ask for your blessing upon them and all the officers, their families, their staff, and those who collaborate with them.Guide the officers and members in Your wisdom that may they dedicate themselves to the virtues of Charity, Unity, and Fraternity in all that they do in humble service to the Church and your faithful people.Lord, bless our time together this evening, our conversations, and the food that we are about to receive and the hands that prepared them, as we pray. . .Bless us, O Lord, and + these thy gifts, which we are about to receive from thy bounty, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
We then listened to great talks from a representative from the Supreme Council, who was a former narcotics detective for 40 years, and from our State Chaplain, who encouraged us to love God and love our neighbors in all that we do as Knights of Columbus.
In his remarks, Bishop Mulvey shared with us the art of loving in "5 steps":
- God loves everyone (Luke 6:32-33: "For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same.")
- Be the first to love and initiate love (Romans 5:8: "But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.")
- Be concrete (not only in our words but in our actions) (Matthew 9:11-13; Mark 2:16-17; Luke 5:30-32)
- See Jesus in every person (Matthew 25; 5:24: ". . .go first and be reconciled with your brother. . .)
- Mutual love (the Greatest Commandment; Matthew 12:34-40 & Mark 12:28-24 and "[Love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things (1 Corinthians 13:7).
The following morning, we listened to more great talks from the State Officers and then had a break out sessions. Ours was led by our Worth Diocesan Deputy Victor Medina. He welcomed our newest District Deputies, who were installed after Mass the evening before along with our State Officers. In additional to the usual order of business, he shared that his focus this coming fraternal year will be membership growth and Cor (https://www.kofc.org/en/who-we-are/our-faith/cor.html).
As the request of the mew Chapter President, Ramiro B., I recently accepted to continue as the Spiritual Director for the Austin Chapter of the Knights of Columbus (https://kofcaustin.org/). This will be my 7th year in this position. I started under the term of past-Chapter President Mike M. and then continued under the terms of Leo S. and Victor M. In additional, Victor M. has asked me to continue in my role as Director of Evangelization and Faith Formation (EFF) for the Diocese of Austin, which I have accepted. The Cor initiative is under my purview as EFF.
Here are some blogs that I wrote on Cor. I am sure there are others but there are the ones that I was able to find readily in my Blog:
"7 Things & Cor - A Report of the Spiritual Director (8/28/2023)"
"Cor: A Knights of Columbus Initiative (Part 1)"
"Cor - Leadership (2/22/2024)"
"Reclaiming Faithful Fatherhood" Initiative (inspired by Cor) (UPDATED 6/2/2025)"
As the Diocesan Director for Evangelization and Faith Formation (EFF), I encourage each council to appoint a Knight to be the EFF for the council and then reach out to me if you have any questions regarding the Cor initiative and how to get started or continue doing what you are doing with men's faith-sharing groups but incorporate the elements of Cor - prayer, faith formation, and fraternity - to the men's faith-sharing group meetings. I can be reached at deaconphuc@gmail.com or deaconphuc@saintalbert.org.
After the closing session, I was filled with nothing but gratitude to God for leading me to the Knights of Columbus after my conversion many years ago. As the State Deputy said, we want to increase our membership in the Knights of Columbus because we desire for other men to have what we have: faith firmed rooted in our Lord Jesus Christ, hope that strengthens us to live out charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism that is Christ-centered always, and love of God, our family, our neighbor, the Catholic Church, and the Order. The more our membership grows, the more men encounter our Lord Jesus Christ, the more our families are strengthen, and, as Pope Saint John Paul II said, "as the families go, so go the nations, so goes the world."
After we said our "good-byes", I am filled with gratitude for the State Officers and Directors, the Executive Secretary Carlos G. and his team - Ms. Kari and Ms. Kathleen, and all involved for all they do to make not only this Organization Meeting (but the Convention, Mid-Year Meetings, etc.) such a wonderful, faith-filled experience. Prayers for all the State Officers and Directors, Diocesan Deputies, and District Deputies and our wives. May the Holy Spirit continue to guide us so that everything we do is for the good of the Order and for the greater glory of God. Vivat Jesus!
[P.S. On the way home, we stopped at the Buc-ee's next to the Texas Motor Speedway. We also stopped at Slovacek's in West, TX for yummy kolaches!]
Great Job Deacon! We are Blessed to have you as our Spiritual Director.
ReplyDelete