On Virtue Of Charity, Faith Rewards Hope

Pope John Paul II has awarded papal knighthood to comedian Bob Hope, news magnate Rupert Murdoch and entertainment executive Roy Disney - all non-Catholics.

Among the Catholics named were actor Ricardo Montalban and hotel executive Barron Hilton.

Cardinal Roger M. Mahony will induct the men and women into the Pontifical Order of St. Gregory the Great in a ceremony Jan. 11 at St. Francis de Sales Church in the Los Angeles area.

The pope bestows the titles on people of “unblemished character,” including non-Catholics, who have “promoted the interests of society, the (Catholic) Church and the Holy See (Vatican),” said the Rev. Gregory Coiro, spokesman for the Los Angeles Catholic Archdiocese.

Hope, Murdoch and Disney all have Catholic wives, who were named Dames of St. Gregory, the female equivalent of a knighthood.

All three have contributed heavily to church institutions, though no figures were made public.

The titles are honorary.

In addition to big donors and celebrities, the titles of Knight Commander or Dame of St. Gregory are being given to Catholics who have donated time and talent to church work among Korean, Filipino, Vietnamese, black and other ethnic communities.