John W. McDevitt (December 28, 1906 – December 6, 1994) was the eleventh

Supreme Knight The Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus (more simply referred to as the Supreme Knight) is the title of the chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the Knights of Columbus. The organization comprises approximately 1.9 m ...

of the Knights of Columbus from 1964 to 1977.

Early life and education

Born in

Malden, Massachusetts Malden is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 66,263 people. History Malden, a hilly woodland area north of the Mystic River, was settled by Puritans in 1640 on la ...

on December 27, 1906, McDevitt was the son of John F. McDevitt and Margaret Agnes ( Sullivan). He attended Immaculate Conception School and then Boston College High School. He earned both a bachelor's and a master's degree from

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

in 1928 and 1929, respectively.

Career

Educator

McDevitt taught history at Lincoln Junior High School in Malden, and was then made principal on December 17, 1935. Shortly thereafter, elections were held and a new School Committee was elected. The new Committee rescinded his appointment on January 26, 1936. McDevitt sued, and the case was dismissed by the Supreme Judicial Court in 1937. On August 22, 1942, he was made superintendent of Waltham Public Schools. He served in this position until December 7, 1961, when he resigned to focus on his work as Deputy Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus. The School Street Middle School was named after him in Waltham. He was nominated to the state Board of Education in 1951 and served for nine years. He served on that board with fellow State Deputy

Frank W. Tomasello Frank W. Tomasello (March 7, 1900 – March 12, 1986) was an American judge. Personal life Tomasello was born to Italian immigrants Antonio and Rosario Bonnano. His father started a successful contracting firm and Tomasello was the only son not to ...

Knights of Columbus

In 1932, McDevitt joined the Santa Maria Council of the Knights of Columbus in Malden. He held several positions, including serving as grand knight twice. He then rose through the chairs of the state council and was made State Deputy of Massachusetts on May 11, 1948. McDevitt was largely responsible for getting a law passed by the Great and General Court of Massachusetts allowing fraternal societies such as the Knights of Columbus to sell insurance in the Commonwealth. It was signed by Governor

Paul A. Dever Paul Andrew Dever (January 15, 1903April 11, 1958) was an American Democratic politician from Boston, Massachusetts. He served as the 58th Governor of Massachusetts and was its youngest-ever Attorney General. Among his notable accomplishments ...

, a past grand knight from the Mt. Pleasant Council in

West Roxbury West Roxbury is a neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts bordered by Roslindale and Jamaica Plain to the northeast, the town of Brookline to the north, the cities and towns of Newton and Needham to the northwest and the town of Dedham to the ...

. McDevitt also played a role in the defeat of the legalization of birth control in the 1948 referendum. He was made Master of the Fourth Degree in Massachusetts in 1952 and a Supreme Director in 1955. On October 21, 1960, he was elected Deputy Supreme Knight and on February 22, 1964, he became the 11th

. As Supreme Knight, he ended discrimination against black people in 1964 and asked the Supreme Council to consider admitting women in 1969. By 1970, some states had legalized abortion. McDevitt responded to this trend at the 1970 convention, defining the Knights as an

anti-abortion Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...

organization. He said, "We, the knights of today, likewise must serve in the role of protectors...we must be the knights who hold up the banner of life. We must be for life." In 1973, after the ''

Roe v. Wade ''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973),. was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States conferred the right to have an abortion. The decision struck down many federal and st ...

'' ruling, the Supreme Convention passed a resolution supporting an

constitutional amendment. McDevitt denounced ''Roe v. Wade'' as "shocking and unfortunate", and urged councils to take local action to "offset the harmful effects of this lamentable decision." In 1975, the Knights donated $50,000 to the US bishops in support of

efforts.

Honors

In 1971, McDevitt was honored by Pope Paul VI with the Order of Pius IX, the highest papal honor which can be conferred on a Catholic layman who is not a head of state. Pope Paul also placed McDevitt on the advisory board for Vatican City and gave him several other honors. He also won the 1966 Brotherhood Award from B'Nai B'rith. McDevitt held honorary degrees from Saint Michael's College, The Catholic University of America, and

Personal life

With his wife Mary Cecilia Kelley McDevitt, he had two sons, John Kelley McDevitt and William Paul McDevitt. John Kelley became assistant Supreme Advocate in 1975. In 1998, after his death, the delegates at the Supreme Council meeting established a scholarship fund in his name.

References

Works cited

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McDevitt, John W. Knights of the Order of Pope Pius IX 1906 births 1994 deaths People from Waltham, Massachusetts Supreme Knights of the Knights of Columbus Deputy Supreme Knights of the Knights of Columbus Catholics from Massachusetts Massachusetts State Deputies of the Knights of Columbus