Knights of Peter Claver leaders see growth ahead
Robert Delaney of The Michigan Catholic
Published July 27, 2007
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Robert Delaney | The Michigan Catholic
Supreme Knight Gene Phillips Sr. of Tomball, Texas, and Supreme Lady Geralyn Shelvin of Lafayette, La. |
Dearborn — The top leaders of the Knights of Peter Claver and its ladies auxiliary see growth ahead, as the historically black Catholic fraternal organization reaches out to Hispanics and takes its first steps toward international expansion.
They spoke about the organization's future last Sunday during a break in the agenda of its July 20-23 national convention at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Dearborn.
Gene Phillips Sr., supreme knight of the organization, said the KPC recently formed its first international council in the South American nation of Colombia, and is preparing to launch a membership drive in the United States.
The new council on Colombia's San Andreas Island is just the first of what Phillips said he hopes will become a significant presence in the country where St. Peter Claver evangelized and worked on behalf of African slaves who were brought there in the 17th century.
"The bishop down there heard about our organization, and invited us to become active there," said Phillips of Tomball, Texas, a member of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Houston.
St. Peter Claver
St. Peter Claver (1581-1654), a Jesuit missionary from Spain, ministered to African slaves who had been brought to South America. He fought to improve the conditions in which they lived in the New World, and is patron of Catholic missions among blacks. Not only did an estimated 300,000 embrace the faith in response to St. Peter Claver's message of love, he also enlisted the help of many of his converts to assist in his ministry to their fellow slaves.
| Founded in 1909 as a fraternal organization for black Catholic men at a time when blacks could not join the Knights of Columbus, the KPC added its ladies auxiliary in 1926. But while the KPC's approximately 18,000 membership is still overwhelmingly black, it is now open to Catholics of all races (as is the K of C).
Phillips said he sees some of the KPC's future growth coming from its outreach to Hispanic Catholics in the United States. "We've already had some success, especially in Texas and California. In fact, we have an all-Hispanic council in San Antonio (Texas)," he said.
Geralyn Shelvin, supreme lady of the KPC's ladies auxiliary, said the appeal of KPC membership is the opportunity it provides for people to work with and through their clergy and other Catholics on behalf of the Church and the less fortunate in the community.
"Also, the whole family can get involved, because we have Junior Knights and Junior Ladies," added Shelvin, a member of St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Lafayette, La. The junior auxiliaries are for children who have made their first Communion through age 18.
Besides promoting membership growth, Phillips and Shelvin said the KPC has made promotion of vocations awareness among young people one of its highest priorities.
Cardinal Adam Maida, one of two U.S. cardinals who belong to the KPC, celebrated Mass for conventioneers last Sunday. He pointed to the work of St. Peter Claver, and praised KPC members for honoring his legacy.
"I particularly commend you for your efforts in supporting scholarships for African-American youth through the United Negro College Fund, for maintaining a strong connection with Xavier University in New Orleans, and your many forms of outreach and service to the poor. You can certainly be proud of your distinguished record of service and the impact you continue to make on the Church in our nation," he said.
Later, U.S. Rep. Danny K. Davis, D-Ill., spoke of black Americans' political progress, but said he is concerned about the generation of young blacks.
"We've made a lot of progress, but if we're not careful, that progress is going to slip," he said Sunday evening.
Davis urged his listeners to get more involved with young black boys to teach them they can have fun without being destructive.
And to the older KPC members present, he told them to get directly involved in their grandchildren's moral and spiritual education if their children were ambivalent about it. "Grandparents, don't let your grandkids not go to church," Davis said.
The KPC is active in the Archdiocese of Detroit, with four councils in Detroit and one in Pontiac, as well as several outstate in other Michigan dioceses, said James Evans, navigator of KPC Fourth-degree Assembly 11 and a member of Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament Parish, Detroit.
Having belonged to the KPC since the 1950s, Evans said the best thing about being a knight has been the camaraderie with other knights.
Apryl Lynn Voner, a member of St. Cecilia Parish in Detroit, is active locally as Grand Lady of St. Gregory/Visitation Court of the KPC Ladies Auxiliary and also on a wider stage as president of the auxiliary's Northern States District Conference.
She said lasting friendships are formed as KPC members take part in social activities and work together on charitable projects.
And Voner said junior division members gain important leadership skills as they learn how to run their own meetings and projects.
"But the best thing for me has been all the prayers and messages of love and support I've received at crisis times in my life – when I was cut from Visteon or when I lost my grandmother There is a real bond that is created with other members," she said.
For more information about the Knights of Peter Claver, call James Evans at (313) 925-9034.
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