“Long before there was a Left Wing and a Right Wing, there was the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” said Carl A. Anderson, best selling author and Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus. Anderson’s keynote speech before a crowd of fellow Knights, state officials, the Catholic Bishops of Pennsylvania and others during a special breakfast event in Harrisburg stressed that our politics and public policy should result from our Faith.
The Pennsylvania State Council of the Knights of Columbus and the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference (PCC) hosted the breakfast to bring the bishops of the Commonwealth’s eight Roman Catholic and two Byzantine Catholic Dioceses and state legislators and other elected officials together.
“Gathering for breakfast gave elected officials and their local bishops a terrific opportunity to have a candid dialogue about their shared concern – the common good of their communities,” said Dr. Robert J. O’Hara, Jr., Executive Director of the PCC. “We are grateful for the generosity of the Knights of Columbus in their sponsorship of this special event.”
Wayne S. Freet, Pennsylvania State Deputy of the Knights of Columbus, said, “By sponsoring the legislative breakfast, the 64,500 plus Knights in Pennsylvania were informing our legislators where we stand on the many culture of life issues facing our state and nation in the days ahead. I was very pleased with the attendance of our Cardinal and Bishops, our brother Knights and most importantly the state legislators for giving of their time to attend.” Freet says the Knights hope to build on this for future events.
The Bishops were in Harrisburg for their annual meeting as the Board of Governors of the PCC. As the public affairs agency for the Church in Pennsylvania, the PCC formulates policy positions on state government programs, legislation, and policies that affect the common good and the interests of the Church. It represents and speaks officially for the Church before all branches of state government and statewide voluntary groups and private organizations. The PCC helps identify the needs of Pennsylvania citizens concerning morality, health, welfare, education, human rights, and seeks the orderly development of resources to meet these needs. It works alone and in cooperation with others to meet these needs, and prevent and eliminate conditions that cause moral, social, educational, and health problems. In this effort, PCC aims to foster a public understanding of the Church’s teaching and concern about these issues.
