The Grunt Padre: Father Vincent Robert Capodanno Vietnam 1966-1967

On September 4, 1967, Father Vincent Robert Capodanno was killed in battle while ministering to a dying Marine trapped in enemy fire during a fierce battle where American troops were pinned down with little hope for relief. Surviving a forced helicopter landing at the outset, Fr. Capodanno had been severely wounded already twice that day, but he continued to scramble from man to man through heavy fire. Most troops, even the ones who knew him only by reputation, can recall the very moment when news of the beloved padre's death spread from one mud-caked radio to another. Among the troops listening on edge to the progress of the ambush in Operation Swift, a hush spread instantaneously down the miles of encampments strung along the Southeast Asian peninsula. One officer, remarking how after receiving three Purple Hearts a soldier is usually sent home, pointed out that, on that single day alone, Fr. Capodanno had received three wounds qualifying for the Purple Heart ... and that he had, indeed, gone home. To be sure, Fr. Capodanno's story is full of contradictions and puzzles. The struggles and the setbacks he faced cast him in reassuringly human terms for any reader with burden in heart or spiritual growth in mind. The years leading Fr. Capodanno to this ultimate sacrifice of life reflect the sometimes tumultuous -- and always mysterious dynamic of the interior search which, as in so many lives, leads one humble soul to an act of singular fidelity with profound impact.