What is Evangelization & Faith Formation

Blessed Michael McGivney as priest and pastor of souls, placed evangelization and faith formation at the heart of the vision for the Knights of Columbus. He recognized the immediate need to form men in their faith and provide the opportunity and means to keep them faithful and active within the Church.

“If we get the man right, we get everything right – the marriage, the family, the parish, the community. We need men who will say ‘yes ’to their God-given vocation.” -Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly

Men today are hungry for faith centered content and fraternity that help them grow in faith and become better Catholic men, husbands and fathers. We know that our Catholic parishes and families need men who are faith-filled leaders who strive to grow in holiness, knowledge and to disciple others toward the Kingdom of Heaven.

The aim of the Evangelization and Faith Formation (EFF) initiative is to provide all Catholic men the opportunity to encounter Jesus Christ and to grow in our Catholic faith as our first priority. Through the KofC EFF initiative, men will grow in their Baptismal call to holiness, an understanding of our Catholic faith so to better guide their family, and encounter Jesus Christ so to share the Good News of His Life, Death, Resurrection and Ascension with those in their daily lives.

Therefore Evangelization and Discipleship MUST permeate ALL aspects of council life and membership engagement.

The purpose of the EFF initiative is three fold; Encounter, Strengthen, and Commission. Alife of faith begins with an encounter with Jesus Christ that calls us to repentance and a radical reorientation of our lives because of His immense love poured out upon the Cross. We then, strengthen our relationship with God through our personal prayer, study of our Catholic faith and virtue, and share in a fraternal brotherhood that holds us accountable. Lastly, we respond and accept Christ's commission as in Mark 16:14-16 and Matthew 28:18-20; to be sent out as disciple makers to share Jesus Christ with others so they may encounter God and his radical life giving love.

Evangelization definitions:

“Bringing the Good News of Jesus into every human situation and seeking to convert individuals and society by the divine power of the Gospel itself” (Pope Paul VI Evangelii Nuntiandi)

“The proclamation of Christ and his Gospel by word and the testimony of life, in fulfillment of Christ’s command” (Catechism of the Catholic Church 905; cf. 861).