FIRST DEGREE

The grand knight is in charge of the First Degree which shall be conferred during a regular meeting. The conferring officers need not be current chair officers. They serve at the pleasure of the grand knight of the council. They must be able to deliver their respective charges in an inspiring manner, AND FROM MEMORY. It is preferable that the conferring officers leave their stations to deliver their charge in front of the candidates. Conferring officers shall robe for this degree. (Until such time that a council can obtain robes, business suits are permissible provided designated officers' jewels are worn.)

The work of the admission committee will have been completed so that the practical Catholicity of each applicant has been fully determined. Candidates from other councils cannot be initiated without evidence of their acceptance in that council, duly signed by the grand knight and attested to by the financial secretary.

A First Degree team cannot perform until certified by the district deputy.

For complete details, refer to the First Degree Ceremonial Book.

 

SECOND DEGREE

The district deputy shall be in charge of the Second Degree. He may conduct a Second Degree either separately or in conjunction with the Third Degree. He shall notify the state deputy of his intentions and abide by the decision of the state deputy. In no event can the Second Degree be conducted in con­junction with the First Degree. The rules provide that the district deputy shall open the meeting in the Second Section in accordance with the procedures set forth. The conferring officers serve at the pleasure of the district deputy. They must be able to deliver their respective charges in an inspiring manner, AND FROM MEMORY. It is preferable that the conferring officers leave their stations to deliver their charge in front of the candidates. The conferring officers shall wear robes for this degree.

A team cannot perform until certified by the state ceremonial chairman or his representative.

Candidates from councils other than the host council shall be advanced only at the request of their grand knight and shall produce a current membership card.

 

THIRD DEGREE

The state deputy is in charge of the Third Degree and is himself directly responsible to the board of directors for its proper exemplification.

The host district deputy requests approval of situs and date of degree from the state deputy. The host district deputy may also request assignment of a team of his choice from the state deputy. However, the final decision on all team assignments rests with the state deputy.

It is absolutely forbidden to give the work of any degree to priests except by observation on their part. Priests shall participate in all pledges and the knighting ceremony. They shall stand for the latter.

The bar shall be closed prior to and during the exemplification of all degrees.

GENERAL The warden of the council is responsible for the safe­keeping of the council's ceremonials and ceremonial equipment. The grand knight should check with him at the beginning of the term to make certain that everything needed for ceremonial work is available and in proper condition and should also check with him before every degree exemplification to make certain that all details incident to the exemplification have been looked after.

 

FOURTH DEGREE: THE PATRIOTIC DEGREE

Another degree open to members in the Knights of Columbus is that of the Fourth (or Patriotic) Degree. On Feb. 22, 1900 , the first exemplification of that degree was held in New York City . The ritual added patriotism to the three original principles of the Order:

charity, unity and fraternity. Any Third Degree member in good standing, one year after the anniversary of his First Degree, is eligible for membership in the Fourth Degree.

The primary purpose of the Fourth Degree is to foster the spirit of patriotism by promoting responsible citizenship and a love of and loyalty to the Knights' respective countries through active membership in local Fourth Degree groups called assemblies. Fourth Degree members must retain their membership as Third Degree members in the local council to remain in good standing.

Certain members of the Fourth Degree serve as honor guards at civic and religious functions, an activity which has brought worldwide recognition to the Knights of Columbus organization.