WASHINGTON — The Knights of Columbus will acquire the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington, D.C., providing a course correction for an institution that has struggled to stabilize its finances and become a destination for tourists in the nation’s capital.
Carl Anderson, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus, presiding over the opening of the Catholic men’s fraternal organization’s annual convention in Denver, Aug. 2, announced the acquisition and his plans to transform the center into a shrine for Blessed John Paul II and a Catholic heritage museum.
“True to Pope John Paul II’s vision, and using the story of his life as an inspiration, the shrine will be an opportunity to evangelize and spread the Good News of the Gospel through a New Evangelization,” Anderson said in a public statement.
“Because of his tireless evangelization efforts, an entire generation of Catholics has become known as the ‘John Paul Generation,’ and, certainly, we are honored to continue to spread his profound and powerful message of hope for our country, our continent and our world.”
Archbishop Allen Vigneron of Detroit confirmed that the Knights will provide a $20 million cash payment to the Detroit Archdiocese, which had poured $54 million into the cultural center, a project marked by cost overruns that continued to require large-interest payments from the Detroit Archdiocese.
The center opened in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York and Washington and failed to attract a sufficient number of annual visitors. Cardinal Adam Maida, then archbishop of Detroit, was criticized by many Detroit Catholics, who questioned the use of local funds for a Washington-based initiative that seemed poorly conceived.
18-Month Search
In his public statement, Archbishop Vigneron expressed both “relief” and “gratitude to the Knights for stepping forward to make this transaction a reality.” Over the years, the Knights also have provided funds for other Catholics institutions in the capital, including The Catholic University of America, the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception and the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family.
The archbishop confirmed that the sale would be “finalized within the next 60 days and will involve the Cultural Center Foundation, The Catholic University of America (CUA) and the Archdiocese of Detroit. The Knights will pay $22.7 million to the foundation for the building and land, of which $2.7 million will go to CUA, which has a secured interest on the land. After closing costs, the Archdiocese of Detroit will receive approximately $20 million from the foundation for the sale.”
He acknowledged that the Knights’ cash payment fell short of “the $54 million in loans the archdiocese invested in the Cultural Center’s design, construction and maintenance; the sale will enable us to recoup some of what we invested and will end archdiocesan outlays averaging $65,000 per month to maintain the building and grounds. The $20 million in cash we receive will help stabilize archdiocesan finances.”
The deal ends the Detroit Archdiocese’s 18 month-effort to locate a buyer for the Cultural Center building and land.
In 2010, the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, based in Ann Arbor, Michigan signaled its interest in the property as a desirable location for a house of studies, but the plan fell through.
Archbishop Vigneron noted that while several offers “were clustered in the $20 million range; the Knights presented the best offer and terms of sale. The building was designed and constructed at the peak of the pre-9/11 financial and real-estate markets, which have changed dramatically.”
The archbishop’s statement sought to tamp down criticism regarding the initial project. He noted that the plans had been conceived “in a vastly different environment, at a time when resources were readily available and the economy was strong.”
The Pope’s Skis
Cardinal Donald Wuerl of Washington, who replaced Cardinal Maida as chairman of the board of the John Paul II Cultural Foundation after the latter’s retirement, outlined his plans to incorporate the center’s future programs into the mainstream of the Archdiocese of Washington.
“The foundation will be working very closely with the Knights,” said the cardinal, who has, by decree, erected the center and the chapel as an archdiocesan shrine.
“We will have a place for pilgrims to come and pray. And I look forward to our collaboration, because it is practically next door to our new John Paul II Seminary. Our priests and seminarians will be available for devotions at the shine and the celebration of Mass,” he said, leaving the Knights’ convention to speak for a telephone interview.
The cultural center’s most popular exhibit has been the Pope John Paul II heritage room, which features skis used by the late pontiff, as well as his vestments and writings. But the center has also attracted scholars and hosted academic events inspired by his legacy..
Father Steven Boguslawski, executive director of the cultural foundation, and director of its inter-cultural forum, established as a think tank to encourage an intellectual dialogue on faith and culture, welcomed the transfer of ownership.
“The foundation will continue. It retains ownership of all the papal memorabilia and artifacts. We have a 10-year history of promoting the legacy of the pope. It’s wonderful that the Knights will bring a new vibrancy to the center and its work of intellectual engagement,” he said.
Father Boguslawski noted that late pontiff’s 1999 document Ecclesia in America called for a “new evangelization of culture and society in North, Central and South America,” offering a road map for the future.
“What’s important about the Knights assuming primary responsibility for this is that it brings together an intellectual outreach, a devotional aspect that was not in existence, while preserving the papal artifacts and memorabilia. It’s the living legacy of Blessed John Paul II,” he said..
Church leaders applauded the Knights of Columbus’ decision to give the cultural center a new direction.
Bishop David Zubik of Pittsburgh, who recently returned from a pilgrimage to John Paul’s homeland, expressed gratitude to the Knights: “The decision is something we should all celebrate. It preserves the intent of the center’s original mission — to serve as a tribute to Blessed John Paul II.”
Register senior editor Joan Frawley Desmond writes from Chevy Chase, Maryland.
Benjamin Wiker: The Tale of Two Benedicts
Tom Hoopes: The Two Threats to Christmas
Comments
Post a Comment
I hope that the Knights keep abreast of some of the non-Catholic shenanigans going on at the CUA. I hate to think that my premium payments help contribute to organizations that are not cleaving to the magisterium.
That is an extremely ugly building. It’s as if the architect and builders were angry at the people who’d use it. Add on to that the recent statue of JPII unveiled in Rome and I wonder if JPII will ever have an attractive monument.
Really good news. I was there a couple of years ago and frankly found it disappointing. Hopefully the Knights can turn the place around.
Whats the point of joining if this organization won’t kick out the politicians who support gay marriage and abortion, especially the politicians who are members? It’s a scandal.
Yes yes, we all heard the response. Unless the BIshops excommunicate them per se, they won’t be kicked out of the organization even if they support homosexual marriage and abortion.
You can’t help the general public to think that they just want those politicians to stay on the organization because of their money contributions.
NO INTEGRITY at all. All the charitable good works that Knights of Columbus does is heavily tainted by the HYPOCRISY of allowing its contradictory members. FALSE.
John and Lloyd, Christian aren’t you? Gay men and women deserve to marry in CIVIL marriage…the Catholic church has nothing to do with it. A woman has a right to do with her body whatever she feels the need to. Seperation of Church & State…I think you would do better in more evangical religion. Need I remind you two of the most powerful people in the country are CATHOLICS, Vice President Biden and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (oh and she graduated from nearby Trinity College).
Social Justice- Biden & Pelosi can call themselves the Queen of Norway but it doesn’t make it true.
Talk about throwing good money after bad. K of C better be careful or this white elephant is going to put them into bankruptcy. But they’ll have one heck of a place for a pancake breakfast!!!
I found the center to be a great inspiration each time that I visited when I lived in the WDC area. I went on a yearly retreat just a few building up from it. The children that were there seemed to be deeply interested in learning and paid great attention to information that was provided to them. Some of the comments made by others makes me wonder who the people are? What they know of their faith? In addition citing of individuals who do not practice there faith makes me wonder about the rest of the statement made. I believe the Knights will continue to support the church and help others to grow in the faith.
very interesting
Social Jusctice;
I am concerned about marriage as a sacrament - and I have every right to advocate for that. If I had my way, all secular matches would be civil unions and the term marriage would be reserved for churches. I am compassionate towards people afflicted with homosexuality - and according to nature and the Catechism, it is an affliction. I include the pertinent articles of the CCC to substantiate the legitimacy and authority backing my position:
2357 Homosexuality refers to relations between men or between women who experience an exclusive or predominant sexual attraction toward persons of the same sex. It has taken a great variety of forms through the centuries and in different cultures. Its psychological genesis remains largely unexplained. Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity,141 tradition has always declared that “homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered.“142 They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.
2358 The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God’s will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord’s Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.
2359 Homosexual persons are called to chastity. By the virtues of self-mastery that teach them inner freedom, at times by the support of disinterested friendship, by prayer and sacramental grace, they can and should gradually and resolutely approach Christian perfection.
If you don’t choose to agree with this, there are plenty of denominations that accept pretty much anything.
A woman has the responsibility to accept the consequences of her actions. Less than one percent of all pregnancies in the United States are the result of rape or incest. The other 99 percent and change? Bad choices. Catholics believe that life begins at the moment of conception. If you truly embrace social justice, you must oppose murder, ethnic cleansing, and other methods of ending life. Yet you criticize Catholics who speak out to defend human beings in the womb - people that we believe are living individuals possessing a unique soul. That’s not very progressive of you.
In fact, when you look at the percentage of African-American and Latinos who are being aborted, social justice advocates SHOULD be appalled by this obvious campaign of selective eugenics. But once again, ‘progressives’ like the route that requires the least amount of personal effort or sacrifice.
Separation of church and state? I hold multiple degrees in history, with a specialization in American and Constitutional history. There is no such thing. We have an establishment clause. Jefferson - in a private letter - coined this term to assuage a group of important Baptists in Danbury. Activist judges have ignored the language of the First Amendment in favor of this letter and secularists have been running with this every since. Once again, you spout nothing but liberal buzzwords and platitudes.
You do not need to remind me that Biden and Pelosi are Catholics - they are in my Hall of Shame ( http://goo.gl/AjISS ) for openly and obviously violating the Magisterium. Just because someone says they are something does not make it true. Many Catholics are merely ‘Catholics by Culture’ - raised Catholic but really don’t cleave to the discipline of the Faith. Or they are the adherents of the ‘big three’ - “Hatched, matched, and dispatched.” As a former member of a Pre-Cana team, I encountered a lot of people seeking a Catholic wedding whose last Mass was their Confirmation. There is a difference between calling yourself Catholic and being a practical Catholic in Communion with the Holy See. You see, every weekend when you attend Mass, you make an affirmation that you are a Catholic who continues to follow the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Unfortunately, for many, this is just another prayer you mumble through. Unfortunately, there are too few Bishops who have the courage to live up to their responsibilities. Biden, Pelosi, Kerry, and a slew of other Catholics whose actions are clearly placing them outside of communion with the Holy See, should be counseled and - if needed - denied the sacraments or even excommunicated until their behavior is amended. Not only are these public figures sinning, they are leading other Catholics into sins of omission and commission as well. “Well, Joe Courtney supports abortion and I saw him take communion, so it can’t be that big a deal, right?” Wrong. So, we see these bishops endangering not only the souls of these public figures but a number of other members of the flock. We are seeing bishops who are stepping up - and they are being vilified by ‘progressives’.
I am offended by your insinuation that I am in the wrong church. I am an educated Catholic who is constantly reading, studying, and discerning the Catechism, the history, and the philosophical and theological writings of the Doctors of the Church.
I recommend you stop reading Che Guevera tracts, stop lingering on the National Catholic Reporter and Catholic Womanpriest sites, and pick up the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The current ‘social justice’ movements are largely fronts for schismatic groups or groups that seek to pollute Catholicism with a twisted mix of religion and socialism. Remember Lenin’ maxim that the most dangerous threat to the absolute control of the socialist state was religion. Subvert religion and you control the society.
Post a Comment
By submitting this form, you give The National Catholic Register permission to publish this comment. Comments will be published at our discretion, and may be edited for clarity and length. For best formatting, please limit your response to one paragraph and don't hit "enter" to force line breaks.