Defense of the Faith

The Federal Association's Defense of the Faith Program assists knights and dames to carry out the promise they make at Investiture and daily in the Prayer of the Order: “Be it mine to practice and defend the Catholic, the Apostolic, the Roman faith against the enemies of religion."

Defense of the Faith, Tuitio Fidei, has been one of the two charisms of the Order of Malta from its beginning 900 years ago when members of the Order wielded swords in defense of the Catholic faith in the Holy Land. Today knights and dames are called to defend the faith using more modern means. As His Holiness, Pope John Paul II, said in addressing the Order in 1997, “Today the defense of the faith means above all the witness to the truth of Christianity by what one says and what one does….”
Guided by two of the Order’s great thinkers, who have said, “faith seeks understanding” and “tuitio fidei is a journey of faith,” the Federal Association tries to educate members about the Catholic faith and to inform them about contemporary challenges to it. In this way knights and dames are strengthened in their ability and resolve to give individual personal witness by their example, actions, and words - within the context of their own lives. Education adheres to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church and the teachings of the United States Catholic Bishops, so that members of the association may be empowered to think with the Church (sentire cum Ecclesia).

On Friday, October 19, there was a presentation on the Association’s fledgling prison ministry program, followed by the third annual Defense of the Faith Forum. Archbishop Lori was the principal speaker and his topic -- Challenges Facing Catholics in America Today – was very timely and elicited many questions from the audience of over 250. Listen to a podcast of the presentation below.

On October 21 over 250 members of the Federal Association attended the third annual Defense of the Faith Forum as a part of the Investiture Weekend. The topic “Passing the Faith to a Younger Generation” was of great interest to many of our members whose children may have, at some point, questioned or strayed from their faith.
The distinguished panel included Rev. Thomas Gaunt, executive director of the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate who gave a statistical overview comparing the beliefs and faith practices of older generations with those of present young adults; Joseph Cupo and Kathleen Teixeira, a young husband and wife who discussed their personal faith journey back to the Church after years away; Rev. Gregory Shaffer, Catholic chaplain at The George Washington University; and Helen Osman, the Director of Communications for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops who described what the Church is doing to attract young adults to Mass and the Sacraments by utilizing social media and other means which appeal especially to the young.

Click here to download/listen to the podcast.

How Catholics can respond to the denigration of faith in today’s society was the topic of The Erosion of Religious Liberty in America, the third annual program of the Defense of the Faith Committee. The panel included our principal chaplain, Cardinal-Designate Wuerl and three other presenters including Constitutional lawyer Kevin T. Baine, K.M., of Washington, DC; bioethicist Dr. Marie Hilliard, D.M., of Philadelphia; and Catholic lobbyist Richard J. Dowling of Bethesda. The program took place during the 2010 Investiture Weekend.
All of the presentations were professionally recorded are now available. Please click here to listen to the podcast.
Supplemental written materials for further reading are available by emailing Kathryn Abell, chair of the Defense of the Faith Committee.