Knights of Columbus - Spiritual Reflection

BY BRIAN CAULFIELD, VICE-POSTULATOR FOR THE CANONIZATION CAUSE
In late May 2020, wonderful news came from the Vatican. Pope Francis approved the decree recognizing a miracle through the intercession of Venerable Father Michael McGivney, a priest of Hartford and the founder of the Knights of Columbus. This opened the way for him to move on to beatification, the level just before canonization and sainthood. The beatification Mass will be offered soon in the Archdiocese of Hartford, and Father McGivney will be the first US-born priest, who spent his whole ministry in a parish, to be beatified. What a great honor this is for the worldwide fraternity of the Knights of Columbus. What a great boost for our priests and our Church in America.

Let us be clear about what the approval of this miracle means. The heroic virtue and holy life of our founder has been acknowledged by an act of God, a miracle. Let us also be clear what the nature of this miracle shows us. This is a very Knights of Columbus miracle, involving so many themes that the Order stands for and works for: the sacred life of the unborn, ultrasound as a window to the womb, respect for the dignity of Down syndrome children, the central role of our insurance agents in the mission of the Order, and the beauty of family life and the domestic church.

This is the story of Michelle and Daniel Schachle, a large K of C family from Tennessee. Daniel is a successful general agent for the Order. Through ultrasound, the couple’s 13^th child was diagnosed in the womb with a fatal case of fetal hydrops, when fluid fills the unborn baby’s vital organs. This condition was worsened by Trisomy 21 (Down syndrome) and a heart condition that required surgery. Seeing no hope for the baby to survive, doctors at the prestigious hospital in Nashville offered abortion, which Michelle and Daniel naturally declined. They knew there was hope in God, and in the powerful intercession of Father McGivney, so they told their large network of family and friends to join them in praying for a miraculous healing, If the baby survived, they promised to name him after our founder.

And so it happened. On May 15, 2015, Michael McGivney Schachle was born with no sign of fetal hydrops, the fatal condition. None at all. The attending physician called it a miracle, and her assistant said there was no way to explain, in medical or scientific terms, the reversal of this fatal condition. Little Mikey, as he is lovingly known, is now 5 years old, has Down syndrome, and is a most precious gift to the Schachle family, as his parents and his 12 siblings will tell you.

We rejoice with the family in the life of little Mikey, and thank God for their faith and openness to life.

There is a lesson here for every Knight and his family. Pray to Blessed Michael McGivney. Prayer works, especially the prayers of faithful families united as the domestic church. One more miracle through the intercession of Father McGivney is needed for his canonization as a saint. So everyone is asked to invoke him in needs large and small. Report any favors received to the Father McGivney Guild, at fathermcgivney.org, and spread the word of our founder to everyone in your council and everyone in your parish. Together, with God’s grace, we hope to see Father McGivney beatified soon and then, with a second miracle, raised to the level of sainthood.