CATHOLIC KNIGHTHOOD

 KNIGHTHOOD IN NIGERIA CATHOLIC CHURCH— A MISUNDERSTOOD ORGANIZATION

Rev Fr Utazi Prince Marie Benignus August 9 2021

Catholic Knighthood in Nigeria (I do not know of other countries) has been associated with Secret cult. I told a CWO mother on Monday June 17 2019 that I wanted to write on Catholic knighthood, she said “all of them are secret cult members.” I told her that it is not true. She then said, “some are occultists, and they will go and hide under Knighthood”. It is possible that a member of the Catholic Knight may belong to a secret society and still be a knight. Just as some Christians profess Christ and also belong to secret societies or get involved in pagan worship. Thus, the Catholic Knight as an organization in the Catholic Church has nothing to do with secret society. The problem lies on the individual knight who may misbehave. In cases like this, we would not be surprised to see the presence of secret cult members at such individuals’ burial rites.

Before delving into long text, I want to narrate two or three practical experience with people— either members of knighthood or those outside the Order of Knighthood.

In 2015, a parishioner (we are of the same parish in Aba) invited me to her house. She sounded so desperate. When I honoured the invitation, she gave me a gift in support of my journey to priesthood. She then opened another chapter of what made her to be so desperate and gloomy. She told me that her husband was been approached by his friends to join Knighthood. She expected me to shout in disbelief, but I was happy deep inside me, because I can then to talk to someone about the goodness of Catholic Knighthood, in the Catholic Church. I told her that it is not a bad thing to join Catholic Knighthood. After giving her some glimpses on the reason her husband should join, she brought up the case of one of the Knight members of our mother parish, who was well known in the Church, a professional in medicine and a philanthropist, on how he ended. He was a member of Knight of St John and also an Occultic man. Then I concluded that we raised a prayer point to God— if her husband joining the Knighthood will lead him to Secret cult, may God never allow him to join. At the end, the man did not join. This does not mean that Knighthood is Occultic. I know the sister may give testimony and people may likely see it that Knighthood is Occultic and that is why God did not allow her husband to join.

Too, in Aba, in 2004, I was among those from my Prayer Group CCRN who went to pray for a man. He was a member of KSJI and from Mbano. The man bluntly said that he was in that condition because of his brother knight who insisted that he (the sick) must join his Secret Society and He refused. This said Occultic man had killed his (the sick man) son and was then after the man’s life also.  

In the same vein, last year, 2020, a prominent man in Uli Anambra state was buried. His brother is a priest and the said deceased was a 4th degree Knight of KSJI. Some people from the village where my religious community house is, came back from the burial and were saying that the Catholic Church is devilish and Occultic because of the way the Knights did the burial. They are not far from the consequential truth but they are totally wrong. The people, who complained this, are from a family of Cherubim and some non-church goers. In responding to them, I said: “These are special and noble men in our Church. They are a group. And every group has its own way of doing things, approved by the Church. These people are not common men. Do you want the corpse of the man to be treated as that of a common man? If you think so, you are wrong. In order to show the dignity, you do not need to see everything about the burial.”

Let me tell you this story. In the past, hawk does not eat fowl. One day, the two were together. Fowl asked hawk, “why are you afraid of me?” Hawk replied, “because of the fire on your head.” The Fowl laughed and told hawk that it’s not fire but part of its body. The fowl asked hawk to touch it and confirm. Finally, hawk started eating fowl. Now, you do not expect the knights to tell you everything they are doing if you are not a member. If they do so, the respect is vermused. You cannot be a Catholic and you will be asking me to tell you all the practices and mysteries of Catholic Church. You cannot be a Charismatic member and you will be asking me to tell you the mystery of Charismatic Renewal. Provided it is an organization approved by the Church, it has its goodness to the Church.

I want to say it categorically that Knighthood in the Catholic Church is not Secret Society. I have leaved with many of them: my kinsman who lives in Abuja is a member of KSJI. His bedrooms both in Abuja and at village are open to many of us. Unless he has a charm and hides it in his Shirt or trousers. There is no out-of-bound room (s). Two men from my hometown I do visit are all KSJI. They are prominent people in my hometown. Though I never slept in their houses before, but some Seminarians from my hometown have slept in their houses and entered their bedrooms. No evidence of secret altars. In 2012, I did apostolic Work at Emii Owerri North. I lived with a KSM (Knight of St Mulumba) and their rooms were open to all. I mean all. There are many of the Knights I have encountered. They are not secret cult members.

Therefore, it is very wrong to say that Knighthood in the Catholic Church is a Secret Cult. You can only tell that some members belong to secret Cult, just as some Christians and Pastors belong also to. That a member of KSJI is an Ogboni member does not make KSJI a secret cult.

The Order of Knight in the Catholic Church sacks any of their members found to be member of any secret cult without hesitation as it is against their principles. All members are given opportunity to advance himself or herself spiritually with the spirit of God, so what is the need of belonging to a secret cult group. Cultism is never tolerated in Catholic Knighthood. This is because it is their responsibility to counteract the harm done by secret societies to the church and arrest the influx of enlightened Christian members to those harmful secret groups that totally oppose the catholic faith and morals. Somebody who is a cultist cannot chase a cultist out from church.

It is worth noting that there are banns of Initiation been called in the prospective Knight parish, just like the banns for marriage and ordination. The parishioners are aware that such person will be initiated into such an Order. If they have something against such person, they should report to the parish priest or to the nearby commandery. Personal investigation is also carried out in some orders.  

Finally, note it that the present day Knighthood is modeled in the Spirituality of Monks, even though many of the members are not coping up with it. They are meant to receive formation as the “Religious Order”, pray the Divine office, and be conversant with the Church Doctrine. For example, the prayer of KNIGHTS OF ST JOHN said every morning and night is so edifying.

May God gives us his grace through Christ Our Lord.