He Was Our Father

Father Michael J. McGivney (1852-1890) was a saintly Roman Catholic priest from Connecticut. In addition to the exemplary pastoral care that distinguished his devout priesthood, Father McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus—the world’s foremost Catholic fraternal benefit society. Laboring amidst the squalor of America’s Industrial Revolution and under the persecution oppressing so many immigrants of the time, Father McGivney evangelized culture with a visionary zeal. This heroic diocesan priest is hailed today as a true servant of charity, confessor of souls, apostle to the young, and protector of the Christian family. The play He Was Our Father was commissioned by the Knights of Columbus, and premiered at the 2005 Knights of Columbus Supreme Convention in Chicago. The drama traces the priestly life of Father McGivney, highlighting historical events that were to become turning points for the Church and for the world. In 1996, Father McGivney’s cause for canonization was opened, and in 2008 Pope Benedict XVI declared Father McGivney “Venerable.”