On Saturday, 31 October 2020 at 11 am, the Hartford Cathedral of Saint Joseph will be home to the celebration of the Beatification Mass of the late Hartford priest, Fr. Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus (KOC) and Hartford parish priest who died at the age of 38 during the pandemic of 1898-1890. At the time of his death, the average life span of a Catholic parish priest was 38 years of age, as most Catholic priests worked with immigrants and many people who lived in poor conditions, where disease and illnesses were ever-present.

Fr. McGivney not only founded the KOC but also worked with the Catholic laity in the parish desiring to build a community of sister and brotherly love—charity—which called each person to care for the other, seeking the excellence of the other. Sounds like Fr. McGivney would be at home in our world today! His faith is timeless!

You may watch the entire Beatification Mass on WCCT-TV (CW20) and WCTX-TV (MyTV9) locally through the Archdiocese of Hartford’s Office of Radio and Television as well as on your EWTN channel.

Once beatified, Fr. Michael McGivney will be the first American parish priest beatified and on his way to canonization, which would make him a Saint in the Roman Catholic Church—one more miracle is required for the process to be completed and for the Pope to elevate Fr. McGivney to sainthood.

“Born in Waterbury, Connecticut, in 1852, Michael Joseph McGivney was the eldest of thirteen children raised in a poor, working-class Catholic family. From a young age he was asked to help in supporting his brothers and sisters, stepping into the hard labor of the city’s brass mills. At the age of 16, the strong faith that he had known throughout his childhood led him to the seminary, and in 1877, he was ordained as a priest of the Diocese of Hartford. He would be assigned to Saint Mary’s Church in New Haven, Connecticut, where his understanding of the difficulties of the poor and his desire to help all people, Catholic and non-Catholic alike, led him to assist the underserved of his parish and to found the Knights of Columbus. This charitable instinct would guide Fr. McGivney throughout his time in New Haven and continue when he was named the Pastor of Saint Thomas Church in Thomaston, Connecticut, in 1884. Following six years of ministry in Thomaston, he would die of pneumonia at the young age of 38, caused by the global pandemic of that time.

Known for his pastoral zeal and tireless work ethic, Fr. McGivney would be beloved both during and after his death, leading to a growing devotion from members of the Knights of Columbus, people of the Archdiocese of Hartford, and many others. This devotion assisted greatly in the push toward recognition of Fr. McGivney’s saintly life, and through the official channels of the Catholic Church, a miracle was recognized and the call for him to be named among the “Blessed” approved. This will take place during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and Rite of Beatification on October 31, 2020, an event that will be broadcast around the world.”
Source: website of the Archdiocese of Hartford, archdioceseofhartford.org

For more information on Fr. Michael McGivney’s life, and to watch the Beatification Mass or to learn of a special Novena, go to archdioceseofHartford.org.