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As people come together on November 11 to honor all those who have served in the armed services on Veterans Day, we want to focus on the role of military personnel.
Military personnel are called to be spiritual guides and ministers to many members of our Armed Forces. These men and women of all faiths have a difficult task – to ask for strength in the midst of conflict to remember that God is a God of peace, not war.
This is especially true of our Catholic chaplains, who meet the needs of not only the Catholic population in the military every day, but also servicemen of all faiths.
Military chaplains are playing a key role in promoting peaceful resolutions in hostile environments.
While their primary mission in their service branches is to care for the flock—leading religious services, counseling, and offering spiritual guidance—for example, military chaplains sometimes serve as liaisons and bridge builders with local religious leaders overseas.
According to Pope Francis, a priest has a duty to make accusations that the opposing side in war should not be an “enemy to be destroyed” but a person made in the image. and the likeness of Almighty God.
In his address to military priests on October 31, 2019, the Holy Father said: “Respecting human dignity and physical integrity does not really depend on what they do, but it is a moral duty. Every person and every authority is invited to it.
The priest is called to be a “servant of Christ in the military world” and to be a visible witness of the truth that “common human love brings one person closer to another regardless of race, nationality, culture and religion.” .”
Clergy of the Catholic Church serve the Archdiocese of the United States on loan from their home diocese or religious order for Military Service and are exempt for the duration of their military service.
After the priest receives confirmation and subsequent faculties of the military archdiocese, he becomes a commissioned military officer of the United States. The Office of the Chief of Chaplains of each respective branch of the US military issues a chaplain assignment.
Five servicemen, all of them Catholic, have received the Medal of Honor since the Civil War. Two of them – Father Vincent Capodanno and Father Emil Joseph Kapaun, who died in a North Korean prisoner of war camp in 1951 – are on the path to sainthood as their stories of bravery move people around the world.
This Veterans Day, we should all take a moment to pray for all the men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces, as well as for the chaplains around the world who have served or served in the military.
Also, let us all pray for peace throughout the world through the intercession of Our Lady, Queen of Peace.
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