Staff Report
3/29/19
The Knights of Columbus is a group which serves to help defend the faith and supports the Catholic Church in a variety of ways.
The Knights from Assembly 3094 and Council 14202 of St. Agnes Parish in Naples recently expressed their frustration by sending an open letter to their U.S. Congressional delegation including U.S. Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott, as well as U.S. Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart and Francis Rooney
In the letter, which appeared in the Naples Daily News, they specifically address derogatory remarks against the Knights by three U.S. Senators Mazie Hirona, Hawaii; and Kamala Harris and Diana Feinstein, both of California. The Senators bashed Federal Judicial nominees because they are members of the Knights of Columbus, because the Senators claimed the Knights of Columbus hold extreme positions, particularly on same sex marriage and abortion.
The letter states that: “By condemning the Knights as holding extreme positions and by denigrating the moral teachings of the Catholic Church, these three Senators are attempting to ban members of the Knights from holding public office. They went on to establish a religious test for public office holders, a contravention of Constitutional guarantees.”
The letter goes on to state that the members of the Knights of St. Agnes Parish chose the forum of an open letter so as to inform the Congressional Delegation and their fellow citizens of the Knights’ unequivocal support of the moral teaching of the Catholic Church on the matter of abortion and same sex marriage. They also condemned the recent enactment of a New York law allowing an abortion of a fetus up until the time of birth.
Knight Greg Russo shared the letter with the Naples Daily News and expressed his desire that, on behalf of the 400 members of the Knights St. Agnes Assembly and Council, and the thousands of Knights across Southwest Florida, that the Congressional Delegation condemn the vicious and unwarranted attacks on members of the Knights and moral teachings of the Catholic Church.
Bishop Frank J. Dewane, who was copied on the letter, said he stands with all Knights in highlighting and speaking out and against these attacks.
“The Knights of Columbus have a strong history of defending the moral teachings of the Church,” Bishop Dewane said. “As a Knight, I support this letter and strongly encourage others to speak out against this and other attacks against the Church. If these attacks go uncontested, they threaten to tear down the Religious Freedom upon which this nation was founded.”
