‘Blessed’ Cardinal Newman?

April 23, 2008 — Reports, which began circulating the Internet today, indicate that the beatification of Cardinal John Henry Newman may be imminent, likely in 2008. The Vatican has not yet issued a public statement on the matter.

Societies, clubs, and centers named in honor of Newman are scattered at university and college campuses around the world, including St. Paul's Newman Center at the University of Wyoming, home to Council 10773.

With beatification, the pope bestows the title "Blessed" on an individual, following Vatican confirmation of a miracle attributed to his or her intercession. An additional miracle is required before canonization, which comes with the title "Saint."

Update — April 30, 2008 — Unconfirmed reports of a scheduled beatification continue to circulate, but no statement on the topic has been issued by the Vatican. The earliest mention of the matter appears in the April 21 issue of the Birmingham Mail, a British newspaper, which does not cite its source.

Catch Pat Korten’s latest podcast

Listen to the latest official Knights of Columbus podcast, below, or check out some of the recently archived ones that you may have missed. Programs like these are produced about once a week by Pat Korten, right, the Supreme Council's vice president for communications. (Send him feedback.) Each episode typically runs about 5 minutes.

His latest podcast:
► Fourth Degree Knights welcome pope

Recently archived:
► Soldier-Knights’ deeds showcased
► Anderson explains new book
► AIDS relief bill hijacked

If you subscribe to the Kii feed, then you will receive Korten's future podcasts within a revised version of this article. If you want to automatically download only the MP3 files (without the article), subscribe to them here.

Pope Benedict visits the United States

April 15–20, 2008 — For continuous coverage of the pope's current visit to America, go to www.papaltrip.org, a site sponsored by the Knights of Columbus.

Pope addresses U.S. believers and nonbelievers

April 8, 2008 — During a Vatican press conference this morning, Pope Benedict XVI addressed the American people by video. His remarks, which were delivered mainly in English and partially in Spanish, are transcribed below.

Dear brothers and sisters in the United States of America: The grace and peace of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you! In just a few days from now, I shall begin my apostolic visit to your beloved country. Before setting off, I would like to offer you a heartfelt greeting and an invitation to prayer. Read more»

Kii Points | “Local” council news from everywhere

Culled by Knights in Interaction from thousands of online sources — Here's a sampling of some recent and upcoming Knights of Columbus activities. These are typical of the work done by councils everywhere, including the one in your area. Roll your mouse pointer over the text to pause the scrolling.
Note: New activities are posted regularly, but subscription updates will be sent only after all of the content has changed.

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[Resend when Boston, Massachusetts (O'Malley) comes off bottom of list.]

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Michigan City, Indiana — Councils 7524 and 12951 sell candy during the first weekend of May each year and donate the proceeds to local charities. Last year, they collected more than $10,200. (Source)

Toronto, Ontario, Canada — Councils 9296 and 13811 are preparing for a June 14 charity golf tournament. Let's see if they can top the $7,400 they raised for local charities during last year's event. (Source)

South Bend, Indiana — Knights at the University of Notre Dame provided a picnic lunch to those who participated in the Fourth Annual Eucharistic Procession, which was held on campus April 20. (Source)

Stephenville, Newfoundland & Labrador, Canada — Natasha Stapleton is headed for a provincial public-speaking championship after winning a recent local contest sponsored by area Fourth Degree Knights. (Source)

Providence, Rhode Island — A blogger at a political and cultural site took exception to the "violence and harassment" — which includes (gasp) singing religious hymns and the like — done twice weekly by members of Providence College Council 5787 outside area abortion clinics. (Source)

San Diego, California — The Garden of Innocence, an organization that provides burial services for abandoned children, expresses appreciation for the regular participation of local Fourth Degree Knights: "These wonderful gentlemen ... add dignity to every memorial service ... escorting a small casket, containing a child that no one else wanted." (Source)

Fort Frances, Ontario, Canada — Council 2766 donated the proceeds from its recent benefit dinner and silent auction to Michael Brady, a high-school student who plans to attend World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia, this summer. (Source)

Mobile, Alabama — St. Mary’s Catholic School will benefit from the Knights of Columbus’ annual all-you-can-stand Crawfish and Bluegrass Extravaganza, with scheduled appearances by the Fabulous Bagasse Boys, the Coosa River Broadcasters, Delta Reign, the Dog River Boys, and Fat Man Squeeze. (Source)

Tallahassee, Florida — Fourth Degree Knights, carrying an American flag and a council/assembly banner, marched in the 40th Springtime Tallahassee Parade. (Source)

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada — The members of a new Polish-speaking council recently received their charter before an audience of 150, including Coadjutor Archbishop J. Michael Miller, CSB, and State Deputy Dan O'Hara. The council is led by Grand Knight Wojtek Szuminski and has been named for Pope John Paul II. (Source)

Boston, Massachusetts — Cardinal Seán O'Malley, a Knight of Columbus himself, was at St. John’s Seminary to congratulate seminarians and faculty upon completing the First Degree. In turn, the Knights of Columbus presented the cardinal with checks totaling $60,000, earmarked for programs to educate people about marriage. (Source)

Limoilou, Quebec, Canada — Council 4494 raised more than $44,000 for three organizations that work with the needy: La Bouchée Généreuse, L’Évasion St-Pie X and the Missionaries of Charity. (Source)

Sahuayo, Michoacan, Mexico — Once a week, members of Council 4637 serve food to patients outside the hospital in their community. (Source)

La Crescent, Wisconsin — Knights and others hosted a pancake breakfast to raise funds for the construction of an 18-acre community park. The project, which includes construction of a playground accessible to people with disabilities, will be completed in several phases over the next five years. (Source)

Marine City, Michigan — Dave Schweihofer and his brother Knights serve an all-you-can-eat breakfast at their council home every Sunday, raising funds for their charitable and fraternal activities. (Source)

Houston, Texas — Every Friday morning, college-council Knights at the University of St. Thomas join members of a local Episcopal church in serving food to about 300 homeless people. (Source)

Monterrey, Mexico — Members of Council 2312 accompanied the Silver Rose on the final 125-mile leg of the run to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Each year, the Rose travels from Canada, through the United States, and into Mexico as a show of the Order’s support for pro-life issues. (Source)

St. Césaire, Quebec, Canada — Council 2172 held a canned food drive that netted $3,500 in funds and $4,000 in nonperishable food items. All of the donations were presented to the Volunteer Action Center. (Source)

Brooklyn, New York — Seven days a week, Knights here collect food, clothing, and toys — all in good condition — to distribute to the less fortunate. (Source)

Akron, Ohio — Elizabeth Luckenbaugh, a sophomore at Our Lady of the Elms, was one of 40 students from around the state to receive a scholarship from the Ohio State Council of the Knights of Columbus. (Source)

Hornell, New York — The council recently hosted its 35th annual fund raiser for Special Olympics and local youth activities. Hundreds were on hand to see Laken Snowden awarded the title of Special Olympian of the Year and to meet five past and present professional athletes. (Source)

Somewhere in Colorado — From Catholic blogger Tienne: "After the Mass of the Lord's Supper Thursday night they had adoration of the Blessed Eucharist until midnight. ... The Host had an honor guard of Knights of Columbus (I love those guys. They're so great.) that changed every 15 minutes and lent an air of formality and ceremony that made the experience that much better." (Source)

Enid, Oklahoma — Local Knights hosted an all-you-can-eat barbecue dinner to raise funds for these area charities: Center of Family Love, St. Joseph’s School, Our Daily Bread, and YMCA. (Source)

Chambersburg, Pennsylvania — Knights and others helped serve a dinner to raise funds for the Franklin County Therapeutic Riding Center, which serves people with mental, physical, and emotional disabilities. (Source)

Union City, California — The members of Council 8627 held a bowling tournament to raise funds for the purchase of wheelchairs. (Source)

Daphne, Alabama — Boy Scout Troop 87, sponsored by their local Knights of Columbus council, had to come up with less than $4,000 for their new $60,000 scout lodge. Some of the building materials were donated by area businesses, and others were scavenged from the wreckage of Hurricane Katrina. The meeting area was built on Knights of Columbus property, with labor and materials provided by the Scouts and their fathers. (Source)

Gardner, Massachusetts — Following the posting of a $1000 reward by Council 396, a man was arrested for vandalizing several area churches, including Sacred Heart Catholic Church. (Source)

Stillwater, Minnesota — When the weather for their annual Easter egg hunt ended up lousy, members of Fr. Solanus Casey Council 1632 moved the event and hundreds of children out of the drizzle and icy mud and into their council hall. (Source)

These items will repeat from the top in a moment.

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Kii unveils yet another high-tech feature

April 1, 2008 — Knights in Interaction, the publication perhaps best known for overextending itself technologically, announced today the Beta release of Kii Lime Pie, the first in a line of food items that the interactive newsletter will make available over the Internet in coming months.

"It's something we stumbled upon last month as the result of a St. Patrick's Day flyer accident," a member of the product development team at Kii explained on condition of anonymity. "Someone spilled some green punch on the printer, and then this just kind of came out of that experience."

The new technology requires end-users to replace the contents of their color ink cartridges with the four ingredients needed for the product output. To make Kii Lime Pie, for example, the black cartridge is filled with lime juice, and the yellow gets a couple of beaten egg yolks. The other ingredients, according to another unidentified team member, are "sweetened condensed milk in the magenta cartridge, and then a mixture of equal parts of graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter for the cyan."

The product file is generated using Kii's patented Fast-Food Press application, which instructs the printer to lay down the correct proportion of pixels from each ingredient cartridge to produce a fairly accurate flavor representation at output. To prevent an overly dry product, the developer recommends loading the printer's manual feed tray with pastry sheets instead of regular paper.

"It's a bit greasy and chemically," said one Beta taster, "but no worse than what you'd get at a convenience store."

"I think Kii Lime Pie is another foolish example of the editor going to extremes to work the word Kii into the name of yet another service," said April Fülsdeigh, who identified herself as the wife of a member of the Knights of Columbus council that produces the online publication.

Print one 8½" x 11" pie now • Download as MP3 to snack on later