Brother Knights, this is a combined report from the September 28, 2026 Chapter Meeting at St. Catherine of Siena and the October 26, 2026 Chapter Meeting hosted by JPII Life Center.
September 28th
Chaplain Report
In Fr. Charlie's report, he thanked the Knights for their support of the seminarians, particularly those from the Diocese of Austin. He believes that if a seminarian has a strong support system, then they will persevere in their discernment of the priesthood and their studies.
Fr. Charlie then talked about the Archangels - St. Michael, St. Raphael, and St. Gabriel, whose feast day is on September 29th. With respect to St. Michael, he shared briefly about devotions such as the St. Michael's Lent and the Chaplet of St. Michael.
Spiritual Director Report
In my Spiritual Director's Report, I spoke about Cor and invited the EFF Director for the Texas State Council, Ed Tydings, to talk about the EFF/Cor requirements for Star Council.
October 26th
Chaplain Report
In Fr. Charlie's report, he thanked the Knights for their support of the seminarians, especially when he sees that seminarians receive mail from the Knights of Columbus, because he knows that the seminarians are thought of and prayed for by the Knights.
Fr. Charlie also encouraged all Knights to pray for our nation as we prepare for Election Day on November 3, 2026. Specifically, he encouraged intercessory prayers for our nation and our leaders. he said: "Don't get riled up, but get prayed up." Pray the Holy Rosary, which is the "sword" of a Knight that we received when we first joined the Order, rather than get "stirred" up. Moreover, Fr. Charlie encouraged us to pray before voting and invite God into the process. He encouraged us to read about the candidates and where they stand on the issues. Furthermore, as part of the process, he invites us to read "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship" that was published by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). This way, we put our faith before politics.
Finally, Fr. Charlie encouraged all Knights to pray the Holy Rosary on October 31st to combat against evil that is unleashed on that night.
[Additionally, here is a "Catholic Teachings by the Deacons" episode in which I presented on "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship".]
Spiritual Director Report
In my Spiritual Director's Report, I share these excerpts from Supreme Chaplain Archbishop Lori’s homily at the Memorial Mass on the Feast of the Transfiguration (Supreme Convention, 8/6/2026, Columbia, page 14)
- IF WE WANT to answer the Lord’s call to holiness — to pursue the only goal worthy of our human dignity — we have only to climb Mount Tabor with Peter, James and John, and there behold the Lord Jesus in his transfigured glory.
- . . .unless we are leading a transfigured life capable of amazing the world, unless we are manifesting the glory of God in Christ Jesus, we are not aiming high enough — for we are called, chosen, to be the beloved sons and daughters of our heavenly Father.
- [the Mexican Martyrs, priests and laymen] didn’t look down, they didn’t look back, or side to side. No, they looked up. They looked up at the glory of God on the face of Christ.
I then led the Knights present through a "mini" Cor meeting with prayer, formation, and fraternity. I gave them this Gospel passage from the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Matthew 22:34-40When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees,they gathered together, and one of them,a scholar of the law tested him by asking,"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?"He said to him,"You shall love the Lord, your God,with all your heart,with all your soul,and with all your mind.This is the greatest and the first commandment.The second is like it:You shall love your neighbor as yourself.The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments."
I read this passage out loud and then invited the Knights (and wives) to get into groups of 2-3 people. They spent 2 minutes reflecting on the Gospel passage and write down their thoughts on this prompt.
CALL TO ACTIONWrite down for yourself ONE concrete way that you are going to apply this Scripture passage to your life.
I then ask them to share in their groups for 3-4 minutes. This is a "mini" Cor session to demonstration how easy it is for Councils to adapt Cor in their meetings (particularly with the Lecturer part); however, it is better to have Cor separate from a regular KC Business meeting so that the focus is on prayer, formation, and fraternity.
[Additionally, here is my homily on these readings.]
Please contact the State Council EFF Chair Ed Tydings or Diocesan EFF Coordinator Mike McLaughlin if you have any questions about Cor and how to implement it at your parish/council. I am also available to assist.
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