National Civil War Chaplains Museum

Throughout the history of the US Chaplains Corps, 9 chaplains have been awarded the Medal of Honor. One of them was the Catholic Chaplain Lt. Vincent Capodanno.

In 1949, he was accepted to Maryknoll, the seminary of the Catholic Foreign Missions Society, and was ordained as a priest in June 1958. Capodanno was commissioned as a Navy chaplain in 1965. Wanting to serve in a combat zone, he requested to be assigned to a Marine unit in Vietnam. While there, he made every effort to serve on the front with the marines, even joining units that went out on patrol, something unheard of for chaplains to do at the time. This earned him the nickname “Grunt Padre”. In the spring of 1967, ever eager to stay near the front, Capodanno requested and was granted a six-month extension to his tour.

On September 4, 1967, the base Capodanno was stationed at received a frantic radio message that a platoon of the 3rd Battalion in the Que Son Valley was in danger of being overrun by a combined force of the NVA and Viet Cong. Wanting to be there for his men, Capodanno insisted that he go aid the platoon. Once there, Capodanno leaped into action, dragging several wounded marines to safety and running around the battlefield to administer last rites to dying marines and comfort them in their final moments. Even after he was hit by shrapnel in his leg and arm, and losing part of his hand, he continued to perform his duties. He refused medical treatment, insisting the marines be treated first. As he rushed to answer the call for help from an injured corpsman, Capodanno was struck down by an enemy machinegun.

Capodanno was quickly recognized for his bravery on the battlefield. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star and the Medal of Honor. The Marine Chapel in Quantico, Virginia, and the frigate USS Capodanno are named in his honor. He is currently being considered for canonization as a saint. In 2014, his family donated his Medal of Honor to the Capodanno Chapel, where it is on display to this day.

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“Go tell it to the chaplain.” While used sarcastically in the military to mean that no one cares about a soldier’s problems, chaplains continue to provide confidentiality for service members who approach them when they’re struggling.

September is Suicide Prevention Month, a time to bring awareness to individuals struggling with suicidal thoughts, and to reduce the stigma around them. Suicidal thoughts can affect anyone regardless of age, gender, or background, but has been especially affecting service members. Suicide is the second highest leading cause of death in the military. Over the past decade, suicide rates in the military have reached double the American civilian average. Veterans also struggle with a higher rate of suicide. While the military has hotlines for service members and veterans, there is no better way to lower suicidal thoughts than talking to another person, especially a chaplain.

2024 marks eighty years since chaplain confidentiality has been codified into law. In May 1943, a soldier made a poor decision and unlawfully acquired $1,000 but felt guilty and turned it over to Chaplain (Captain) Gerald M. Scanlon. While the chaplain turned the money over to a military investigator, he refused to betray the trust of the soldier and would not reveal his name. Chaplain Scanlon was subsequently charged with insubordination, but the Commanding General for Services and Supply in the Pacific saw the difficult situation and allowed the chaplain to keep the soldiers confidentiality through a general order. Since then, chaplains remain a confidential place for soldiers to talk about their struggles and decisions, including mental health issues, which are often overlooked. Whenever a service member struggles, therefore, they should “Go tell it to the chaplain.”

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Now that we`re open, let us say a big welcome back to our returning staff:

Photo 1:
Meet Benjamin Grist. He’s a graduate student earning his master`s degree in history, with a couple of dreams he’s working towards. He hopes to either work in museums full-time after getting his start with us, or to go on to become a professor, but he wants to be clear that whatever God calls him to do is what he will be doing. He’s most fascinated by the historical work of the YMCA in relation to chaplaincy.

Photo 2:
Meet Michael Slye, a returning student worker who has just started his M.A. of History here at Liberty University! He enjoys studying the military history of the first half of the 20th century and his favorite part of the museum is the exhibit on Chaplain Howell Forgy.

Photo 3:
Meet Nathan Estrada, a history major with a minor in Military History, who is most interested in modern naval history and the First World War. So far, his favorite part of the museum is our “Service on the Battlefield” exhibit because it showcases the courage of chaplains who care for service members regardless of the danger. After serving four years on active duty in the Navy, Nathan is now a reservist. He also volunteers at the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford.

No Photo:
Meet Norm Patterson, a graduate student in History with an emphasis on Native American History, Westward Expansion, and the U.S. Early Republic. His future plans are to write an MA thesis on a revisionist history of the Cherokee Indian Removal during the summer and fall. His favorite exhibit is Miss Melanie`s parlor as he is a retired mortician.

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The summer may be over, but the semester at Liberty University has just begun! A perfect way to start the semester is to stop in at the Chaplains Museum, located on the terrace level of the Jerry Falwell Library.

We open on Friday, August 30 for the semester. We are open from 12:00p-4:30p on weekdays and from 10:00a-2:00p on Saturday. We hope to see you there!

Few would argue with a 1942 poster created by the U.S Government Printing Office, which claimed “Books are weapons in the War of Ideas.” At no time did the U.S. government act on this principle more than under President Franklin Roosevelt, who wanted to contrast Americans with the Nazi Regime as much as possible. To accomplish this, Roosevelt established the Council of Books in Wartime, which distributed 122 million paperbacks to servicemembers between 1943 and 1947. While Nazis were burning books, American servicemembers were receiving free, government-issued pocket editions of both classic and modern texts.

One of these unique pieces of literature has made its way into the Chaplains Museum. Take a look at our Armed Services Edition of Blessed are the Meek by Zofia Kossak, which outlines the life of St. Francis of Assisi and encourages servicemembers to emulate his sacrificial virtues.

Armed Service Edition books were bound on the shorter end to save money, explaining the odd shape of this text. It was estimated that these economical books could survive about six readings, but servicemembers often got the most bang for their buck by reading different books aloud to each other. The books boosted morale and were a reminder of home, indirectly helping the chaplaincy in its mission to care for the emotional wellbeing of the Armed Forces.

To learn more about how chaplains and their partner organizations work together to stave off boredom and boost morale in times of both war and peace, visit us at the museum!

Photo 1: A digital scan of a WWII propaganda poster, which features a quote from President Franklin D. Roosevelt looming above a group of Nazis who are burning books. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Photo 2: An Armed Services Edition of a religious novel. While not specific to the ministry of the chaplaincy, books like these reflect just how much leaders of the U.S. military valued faith-based texts during World War II.

#chaplains #books #history #fdr #ww2 #museum

Here at the museum, we are privileged to meet unique visitors from all walks of life. From history geeks to wandering travelers, our diverse collection has met quite a few friendly faces!

One unique group of guests blessed us with their visit over the summer: six Roman Catholic fathers from the Washington, D.C., area stopped by to take a tour and check out the collection. They ascribe to the Legionaries of Christ, a Catholic order whose leaders seek to “exercise their leadership at the service of Jesus Christ, who transforms the personal, family, professional and social life of all people.” We enjoyed hearing stories from their personal ministries and talking a little bit about Liberty’s vibrant Catholic community.

The museum features several items pertaining to Catholic chaplains and their historical ministries. Come in and see several Civil War (and modern issue) rosaries, a chaplain’s kit with a crucifix and communion set, and a Bible used by Father Darius Hubert, who served as a chaplain during the Civil War.

#chaplains #catholicism #priests #museum #history

Photo 1: Six Catholic priests visiting the museum over the summer.

Photo 2: This 1859 Bible belonged to Father Darius Hubert (1823-1893), a Jesuit who immigrated from France to Louisiana and preached there until the beginning of the Civil War.

Chaplains must maintain a delicate balance in their work, blending the sensitivity of their ministry with the rigors of military life. In this photo, Navy Chaplain Supple is handing out religious medals to the children of Danang, Vietnam, while sporting an empty holster around his waist.

Taken by a servicemember in the U.S. military, this photo (like many others) had to pass the process of censorship, in which a photo officer reviews an image and approves or denies its release. If you are wondering why this photo officer did not want shots of the holster in any finished print, just remember that chaplains are designated noncombatants. Wearing a holster put Father Supple in direct conflict with Marine Corps policy: “chaplains...shall bear no arms and shall perform no duties relating to combat except those prescribed for chaplains.”

Chaplains regularly navigate contradictions like the one captured in this photo. A chaplain is an officer that seeks to serve enlisted men (who are technically lower in rank). A chaplain is a member of the U.S. Armed Forces, yet they often carry out their ministry to civilians of other nationalities. A chaplain is a commissioned officer that cannot bear arms. These seemingly conflicting obligations highlight just how important and nuanced the job of a chaplain is.

Stop by the museum to learn more about other fighting chaplains and to appreciate the complex role chaplains play in our Armed Forces!

Photo 1: A digital scan of the Father Supple photograph. Courtesy of the National Archives.

Photo 2: Another photograph of Father Supple, this time playing the drums for a Mess Deck service. This photo was taken on the USS Canberra, which was stationed in Danang, Vietnam as a support base and air traffic control center for U.S. Air Force units in Vietnam. Courtesy of the Navy Department Library.

#chaplains #history #vietnamwar #marinecorpschaplain

Yesterday was Purple Heart Day, when we honor the men and women who have been wounded or killed in service to their country.

On August 7, 1782, General George Washington proposed that any servicemember performing a “singularly meritorious action” should earn “the figure of a heart in purple cloth, or silk, edged with narrow lace or binding. Not only instances of unusual gallantry, but also of extraordinary fidelity and essential service in any way shall meet with a due reward.” Only three Revolutionary War soldiers were recorded as receiving the Purple Heart before it fell out of use. With the arrival of WWI, a need arose for U.S. military leaders to encourage their men, and the Purple Heart was reinstated.

Chaplains (and other servicemembers) are still being rewarded for their meritorious service above and beyond the call of duty. Last October, Chaplain (Capt.) Bennet Sandford of the U.S. Navy received a Purple Heart for wounds he sustained from an improvised explosive device (IED) on Aug. 18, 2007, while deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in Fallujah, Iraq.

Stop by the museum to learn more about the Four Chaplains, who set aside their religious differences to save the lives of hundreds of Allied servicemembers on the USS Dorchester. This act of heroism cost them their lives, and they were each posthumously awarded the Purple Heart.

Image 1: The Purple Heart, the oldest active military medal for United States servicemembers. The medal features a side profile of George Washington, who first suggested it. Courtesy of the National WWII Museum.

Image 2: Chaplain (Capt.) Bennet Sandford is awarded the purple heart on October 30, 2023. Courtesy of the U.S. Marine Corps.

#purpleheart #chaplains #museum #purpleheartday