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Saint Isaac Jogues Assembly is proud to announce that SK Richard L. Tabler, has been selected as the new Master of Ohio District 2. Congratulation Richard !!!
St. Isaac Jogues Assembly #801 at P.O. Box 53386, Cincinnati, OH 45253-0386 US - St Isaac Jogues Assembly #801
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St Isaac Jogues Assembly #801
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The inspirational efforts of Fr. McGivney let the General Assembly of the State of Connecticut to Charter the “Knight of Columbus of New Haven” on March 29th, 1882. The sole purpose of the original insurance society was to render mutual aid and assistance to the members of said society and to their families. A Legislative amendment on April 5th, 1889, gave the Order its present name of “Knights of Columbus”. By that and subsequent amendments, the purpose of the Order were expanded. The original Order has three degrees representing Charity, Unity, and Fraternity. These three principles were deemed adequate to induce Catholic men to become members and, indeed, the Order grew rapidly. The basic appeal of the principles and the beauty and dignity of the ceremonials resulted in broad growth through New England, New York, and other nearby states. The broadening purpose led to including non-insurance applicants, initially knows as “Associate Members”. Along with this growth came increasing requests for additional degrees. These were resisted by the Board of Directors until early 1899, when a committee was formed to consider a Fourth Degree. By then it was believed that an additional degree would provide even greater stimulus to growth. A new degree was established based on the principles of Patriotism – patriotism enlightened and refined by sound religious beliefs. The primary purpose of the new degree was to inculcate a love of country and to emphasize the duties of citizenship. The patriotic principle embodied a strong emotional appeal. It was also a very practical choice in that it provided a significant philosophical impact against certain non-catholic under currents, which had grossly distorted the “allegiance to Rome” theme. The new degree carried with “honor the most persevering members of the Order”. The third degree retained its major status. Any member attaining the third degree was a Knight of Columbus in the fullest sense, eligible and entitled to enjoy the Offices, honors, privileges, and responsibilities attached thereto. Once the new degree was identified, a new ceremonial was prepared. This beautiful and meaningful ceremony, whose essential format has been retained to this day, was composed by Charles Webber, chairman of the 1899 committee, John Delany, and the Rt. Rev. Joseph Conroy, Vicar General (later Bishop) of Ogdensburg, New York. The first exemplification was held in New York City and was deliberately scheduled for Washington ‘s Birthday, February 22, 1900. There were 1100 candidates! Finding a facility capable of handling such a crowd was a bit of a problem at first but a stroke of good fortune came along. The Lenox Lyceum was a huge, imposing building of octagonal shape, which had been planned to house an immense panorama of the Battle of Gettysburg became available when that project went defunct. In spite of the fact that a regiment-sized group had to be shuffled through examination of credentials, distribution of paraphernalia, and execution of the ceremony, the event was a Hugh success. Charles Webber took the role of Master of the Fourth Degree and thus became the first Master of the Fourth Degree in the United States. The establishment of the Fourth Degree on Washington’s Birthday is credited with helping to supply some of the impetus for the expansion of the Order into the Midwest and West. The next ten years saw rapid growth of the order accompanied by development of Fourth Degree Assemblies. A problem arose, however, because the assemblies tended to be isolated, disjoined organizations. They properly adhered to the principles of the Degree but the operated on their own by-laws as separate entities. There was no over-all cohesive organization to unify the pursuit of the desired objective. Corrective steps were begun in November of 1908 with a letter circulated by the Board of Directors to all officers and members asking for recommendation and suggestions for the “perfecting of the Organization,” the responses to this letter and further committee work eventually led to the reorganization of the Degree. On July 1, 1910, the document “Constitution and Laws Governing the Fourth Degree” was published. The Board of Directors re-established the Fourth Degree under this constitution by a resolution on October 17, 1910. The new constitution provided a unifying framework, which eliminated the scattered and segregated complexion of the initial build-up. Its language enhanced the basic principles of the Fourth Degree while offering guidelines and challenges. All members were exhorted to: Stand firm for the preservation and perpetuation of our beloved republican form of government and our democratic institutions. Resist to the utmost all attempts to overthrow these by force or by violent or unlawful methods. Oppose the spread of socialistic, communistic, and any other pernicious doctrines, which are so at variance with our American conceptions of human rights, human liberties, and the pursuit of happiness. Heady words, these! Compelling and challenging, language, which was bound to stir the blood and fire the emotions of all who subscribed to them. They were especially noteworthy, given the temper of the times. This, then, was the environment in which St. Isaac Jogues Assembly was born. As the new group grappled with the pangs of initial formation, they also had to respond to the thrusts imposed by the national organization. One such thrust then current was a free lecture plan initiated and financed by the Supreme Council during the Boston Convention of 1913. The objective was to provide Catholic orators, free of charge, to address various social and political forums in the local areas. Their topics included speaking our on the dangers of socialism, radicalism, communism, and other philosophies which were perilous to the Republic and explaining the views and attitudes of the Catholic Church on the great social problems which concerned civil society. World War I brought on a new set of activities. By the time the United States entered the war, the Fourth Degree had accumulated a substantial general fund to support its efforts. Within a week of the American Declaration of war, the Supreme Council sent a telegram to the President on behalf of the Fourth Degree to tender their utmost loyalty and support. The principles of patriotism and the sworn allegiance to Constitution and to flag were emphasized. The text placed the loyal body of the Fourth Degree members into the command of the President and stated their readiness to “Make any sacrifice that may be called for in defense of our common country. so that human liberty and American ideals may endure". War time activities included providing athletic entertainments for soldiers in the various encampments, distribution of the KofC edition of the Catholic Encyclopedia, and producing patriotic celebrations in army and navy camps. Some of our more prominent members served on War Councils and on Draft Boards. At least one name is know in the group, that of Anthony Dunlap, a charter member of St. Isaac Jogues. Others went off to fight the enemy. Post-war efforts went into finding jobs, establishing education, and helping with hospitalization for veterans. As the country settled into peace times, another great national plan was begun by the Fourth Degree. A substantial program was launched to stop the falsification of American History, especially in schools. A trend had developed to obscure or falsify early national events and to erase the significance of the Declaration of independence and the struggle of 1776. Large sums were spent on this patriotic movement to correct historical errors and omissions. This activity evolved into the formation of a K of C Historical Commission in 1921. The commission supported competitive programs with cash prizes for studies on original American History resources. St Isaac Jogues participated in this plan with competitive and non-competitive programs. By 1924, the situation developed into support of essay contests for junior and senior high school students. A broad spectrum of topics was covered including patriotic themes and studies of our government, its constitution, and its problems. The programs lasted for several years and then lapsed. It was revived in the early 80’s because it was perceived as a very worthwhile Fourth Degree venture, being neither a movement in the interest of religion nor in the interest of any political party, but being a solely American movement for boys and girls of our generation.
One further issue arose in the late 20’s, while patriotic and educational works were the main objectives of the Fourth Degree, a campaign was launched to promote Catholic Action. This issue was the subject of a 1929 encyclical of Pope Pius XI. The objective was the marshalling of Catholic laity to work more closely with the clergy and Church hierarchy in the everlasting war against error and irreligion. It translated into Catholicism in motion by engaging in the vitalization of Catholic teachings and principles for the benefit of our fellowman, our country, and for humanity in general. This was to be a worldwide action pressed at all local levels.
We can surmise that the earliest activities of the Assembly followed the thrusts of the Fourth Degree in its formative years. To gain a perspective on the environment into which the newly created Assembly entered. Let us briefly review the history of the Order.
The timing was bad for Americans. The depression affected all phases of activity in this country. St. Isaac Jogues continued to function but like other assemblies in the Southwest District and elsewhere, it was a subdued effort for several years. IN 1935, under the auspices of Master Vincent Ruthemeyer (PFN, St. Isaac Jogues), the first exemplification in eight years was held. He was successful in revitalizing the Fourth Degree in this District as the effects of the depression wore off.
World War II brought on the same round of activities as were carried out in the first war. St. Isaac Jogues members again gave full support to the war effort at all levels. Some served in the various government posts, some entered the Armed Services, and some made the supreme sacrificed of giving their lives for their country. One of the many local actions taken involved cooperation with the USO. Members would give their names to this organization and, when called, would invite servicemen to their homes for dinner and other entertainment. These activities received favorable notice in the newspapers of the community.
Other wars and conflicts induced similar responses. The Korean War and Vietnam War each took their toll on our assembly. We have been blessed with a lengthy period of peace, but many of the issues and pressures persist and the Fourth Degree still stand ready to give whatever support may be needed.
St. Isaac Jogues has been fortunate indeed to weather these years. Our adherence to the basic principles of the Fourth Degree and our social and other programs continue to attract new members. Our Color Corps activities have successfully supported many confirmations, special masses, and a host of other functions. Catholic action has been evidenced, for example, in our presence at Right to Life demonstrations on Fountain Square. Out revived essay contests have produced some very interesting dissertations on the part of our youth. We have amply demonstrated our support of our Archbishops and clergy. For a number of years, we have given special support to our favored charity, St. Rita School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, by financial means and by manning a booth at the annual festival. Our dear departed members are memorialized through honorariums and through worldwide use of chalices and intinctoria.
The Southwest District in which St. Isaac Jogues resides has undergone changes. When the Assembly was first formed, the district encompassed a quarter of the state and included Columbus, Lima, Ironton, and Portsmouth. Eventually, the Ohio districts were restructured along Archdiocesan lines, and the above cities were no longer partners.
As stated before, our records of early years are scanty. We do not know the names of many officers who served the Assembly. We do want to acknowledge the Faithful Friars They have each been steadfast supporters of the Assembly and have offered sage advice on innumerable matters. We are proud of the association with these dedicated priests.