Detroit — Five members of the Knights of Peter Claver were busy the afternoon of Feb. 15 at the annex of St. Peter Claver Church in Detroit, working diligently to set up for an initiation ceremony.

Tables were set up for approximately two dozen members who would witness a special occasion — the making of new members of the meritorious Fourth Degree, the highest honor the knights could bestow, based on the member’s service, character and faithfulness to the Church. Accordingly, reporters were not allowed to witness the fraternal event.

The Fourth Degree knights are the most visible arm of the Knights of Peter Claver, as the only members allowed to wear the colorful regalia of the knights’ honor guard, consisting of the black tuxedo, baldric, chapeau, cape, sword and white gloves.

“The Fourth Degree is a meritorious degree. You’re invited in to be a member of it,” explained Gerald Mays, a past grand knight of Sacred Heart Parish Council No. 71 and a member of the Knights of Peter Claver since 1977.

The Knights could be considered similar to the better-known Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal organization dedicated to serving the Church through loyalty to the pope and the local bishop, as well as charitable works of various kinds. The order is named for St. Peter Claver, a 17th century Spanish Jesuit priest who ministered to African slaves in South America. Founded in Alabama in 1909, the Knights’ membership was largely African-American, but while that’s still the case, it’s not a requirement, said Harold Moore.

“Anyone who wants to join can join,” said Moore, area deputy and a member of St. Peter Claver Parish Council No. 299, citing councils in largely Hispanic areas and in other countries.

There are six divisions of the Knights of Peter Claver, including a Ladies Auxiliary, Junior Knights and Junior Daughters. The Meritorious Fourth Degree also has a women’s division, the Ladies of Grace. In order to be a member of the fourth degree, a person must be “somebody who’s been active in the third degree and faithful to the Church and mankind and to the Lord,” Moore said.

While the Knights are a worldwide organization, there are six U.S. districts, Moore said. Each district is represented by a deputy and other conference officers, who oversee various councils, of which there are seven in the Detroit area.

Like the Knights of Columbus, works of Christian charity are a large part of the mission of the Knights’ mission. Recently, several Knights in Detroit banded together to open and furnish apartments for the homeless on Oakland Boulevard, Moore said.

“Each council has its own way of thinking, but it’s based on the same thing,” Moore said. “(Service to the community) might be done three different ways, but it all comes together.”

Even the Junior Knights and Daughters serve the community, said Bill Tidwell, grand knight of Council No. 299, which is part of what makes the Knights a “family organization,” he said. Projects for junior members might include visiting senior citizens or conducting fundraising drives, he added.

While membership in the Knights of Peter Claver has waned in recent decades, Moore said part of the difficulty is in attracting a younger demographic.

“Quite a few elders have died, and as you know in all churches now, it’s hard to get our youngsters in there,” Moore said. “Not just Catholic, but in any organization.”

Part of the problem, he acknowledged, is the rough condition of life in inner cities such as Detroit. While it’s difficult to get young people to formally join anything, many times teens are just trying to get by, he said.

“I’ve been to a lot of the rescue missions and shelters, and if you hear the youngsters describe why they don’t want to go home again, it’s hard to visualize. These kids, a lot of times, they just want to go to school,” he said.

Asked whether the brotherhood and fraternal aspects of the Knights could be a catalyst in helping the city and encouraging more membership, Moore said it went beyond that. Members aren’t just bonded to each other, but “if you’re a Christian you’re bonded automatically to God through Jesus Christ,” he said. “It’s one word: Christianity.”

 

About the Knights

To learn more about the Knights of Peter Claver, visit www.kofpc.org.