International Alliance of Catholic Knights

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International Alliance of Catholic Knights
AbbreviationIACK
Formation12 October 1979 (1979-10-12)
FounderLeaders of six fraternal societies, convened on the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee of the Knights of Saint Columba
Founded at Glasgow, Scotland
Location
Website www.iack.org

The International Alliance of Catholic Knights (IACK) is a non-governmental organization made up of fifteen Roman Catholic fraternal orders from 27 countries on six continents. The IACK was founded in Glasgow on 12 October 1979 at a meeting of the leaders of six fraternal societies, convened on the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee of the Knights of Saint Columba. [1] The organization is headquartered in Hampshire, U.K. [1]

Contents

The IACK is currently an associate member of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life. The Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life is a dicastery of the Roman Curia. Pope Francis announced its creation on 15 August 2016, effective 1 September 2016. It took over the functions and responsibilities of the Pontifical Council for the Laity and the Pontifical Council for the Family. It has responsibility "for the promotion of the life and apostolate of the lay faithful, for the pastoral care of the family and its mission according to God's plan and for the protection and support of human life."[1]

Member organizations

OrderFoundedJoined IACK [2] Region(s)
Knights of Saint Columba 19191979 Great Britain
Knights of Columbus 18821979 United States, Canada, Mexico, Philippines, Guam, Saipan, Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, South Korea, France
Knights of Saint Columbanus 19151979 Ireland
Knights of the Southern Cross 19191979 Australia
Knights of the Southern Cross (New Zealand) 19221979 New Zealand
Knights of Da Gama 19431980 [3] South Africa
Knights of Marshall 19261983 [4] Ghana, Liberia, Benin, and Togo
Knights of Saint Mulumba 19531986 Onitsha, Anambra State, Nigeria
Knights of Peter Claver 19091987 United States, Colombia
Knights of Saint Virgil 1992 Austria
Fraternal Order of Saints Peter and Paul 1992 The Gambia
Knights of Saint Gabriel 1997 United Nations
Knights of Saint Thomas the Apostle 1998 Pakistan
The Order of Our Lady Queen of Peace 2000 Mauritius
Knights of Saint Thomas More [5] 20012001 Belgium

Mission statement

During the constitutional meeting, it was resolved that these Fraternal Orders would found an International Alliance for the purpose of working together for the mutual advantage of the individual Member Orders and the extension of Catholic Knighthood throughout the world. Furthermore, the IACK holds its members to:

The IACK was approved as a Catholic international organization by the Holy See in 1981. By a decree dated 14 April 1992 the International Alliance of Catholic Knights was given official recognition by the Vatican as an International Catholic Association of the Faithful, in accordance with Canons 298–311 and 321–329 of the Code of Canon Law.

Leadership

It was agreed that the Supreme Knight or National President of each Member Order would form an International Council which would meet annually (now biennially) and be responsible for the organization and development of the Alliance and would provide a forum in which the leaders of the Orders could discuss matters of common concern. The Leaders present at this historic gathering are recognized as the Founders of the International Alliance of Catholic Knights.[ citation needed ]

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References

  1. 1 2 Asociaiones Internacionales de Fieles (Spanish) (2004), Pontifical Council for the Laity, Roman Curia, Vatican City; url accessed 1 June 2006
  2. Formation and Development Archived 27 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine , IACK, url accessed 1 June 2006
  3. http://www.ksc.org.uk/iack.htm Archived 2 May 2006 at the Wayback Machine International Alliance of Catholic Knights, Knights of St. Columba, url accessed 1 June 2006
  4. http://www.marshallan.org/ Knights and Ladies of Marshall
  5. Knights of Saint Thomas More, url accessed 24 July 2009