KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS RECEIVE 2001 CHAMPIONS OF PEACE AWARD

VATICAN CITY, NOV 27, 2001 (VIS) - During a concert last evening in New York City, Archbishop Renato Martino, Holy See permanent observer to the United Nations, presented the 2001 Champions of Peace Award to the Knights of Columbus. He also presented the 2001 Servitor Pacis Awards to Msgr. Richard Albert of Jamaica, and Fathers Mark Raper, S.J. of Australia, and Manuel Jimenez Tejerizo of Colombia and Mrs. Alexi Torres-Fleming of New York.

The awards are given annually by the Path to Peace Foundation, which was established in 1991 in collaboration with the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations. The Foundation, whose president is Archbishop Martino, serves as a vehicle to promulgate to the international community the teachings of the Holy Father and of the Universal Church on important questions of morality, development, human rights and peace.

The Knights of Columbus received the award "in recognition of its exceptional service to the good of humanity." In presenting the awards, Archbishop Martino highlighted the "consistent" support given to the Holy Father and Holy See by the Knights of Columbus as well as "their uncompromising defense of the sanctity of human life and the family." The Servitor Pacis recipients were recognized "for their personal witness to the cause of peace through their extraordinary efforts at assisting those most in need."

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