February - St. Augustine Catholic

experience in military life, Michael still
occasionally has doubts about reconciling
the business of war with his faith — the
same faith that calls for an abolition of
capital punishment under most
circumstances. The pilot recently sat down
with his pastor, Father Joseph
Meehan, pastor of St. John the
Baptist Parish at Atlantic Beach.
“He was asking the church’s
take on capital punishment, and
he asked how can we then
support war at the same time,”
Bridget said, and Father Joe said
every country has a right to
protect itself; you can protect with
equal force being used against
you.”
The Catechism of the Catholic
Church (2307) states “governments
cannot be denied the right of
lawful self-defense, once all peace
efforts have failed.”
Back in 1993, long before 9/11,
the United States Conference of
Catholic Bishops issued a
statement defining just what a
“just war” was. It contains this
sentence: “The just-war tradition
begins with a strong presumption
against the use of force and then
establishes the conditions when
this presumption may be
overridden for the sake of
preserving the kind of peace
which protects human dignity and
human rights.”
St. John the Baptist Parish,
which is located just one mile
from Mayport Naval Station, has a
considerable number of military
personnel and their families among its
ranks. It’s here, and at the military
chapels, that the hard business of
counseling – or comforting – military
personnel takes place during wartime.
“At times like this we are watching
and waiting, like Advent,” said Father
Meehan, who mentions he hasn’t yet
spoken about war with Iraq from the
pulpit; he wanted the Christmas season
to be complete first.
Pope John Paul II did speak out,
saying, “Christmas is a mystery of peace!
From the cave of Bethlehem there rises
today an urgent appeal to the world not
to yield to mistrust, suspicion and
discouragement, even though the tragic
reality of terrorism feeds uncertainties
and fears. Believers of all religions,
together with men and women of good
will, by outlawing all forms of
intolerance and discrimination, are called
to build peace: in the Holy Land, above
PHOTOGRAPHER'S MATE AIRMAN CASEY JONES
all, to put an end once and for all to the
senseless spiral of blind violence, and in
the Middle East, to extinguish the
ominous smoldering of a conflict which,
with the joint efforts of all, can be
avoided.”
A recent CBS poll shows that only 29
percent of the Americans polled believe
the United States should take military
action and 63 percent believe the United
States should find a diplomatic solution.
However, 74 percent of the Americans
polled believe that the United States will
fight against Iraq.
Father Michael Zuffoletto, a military
chaplain for 19 years and a priest of the
Diocese of Buffalo, N.Y., now stationed at
Mayport, points out that the vast
majority of chaplains say U.S. policy is
the terrain of “higher ups.”
But when the “rubber hits the road”
and you are dealing with individual
sailors, he tries to respond to whatever
concern they have; though so far he said
he has not encountered anyone who has
voiced a concern.
“Based upon what happened with
Desert Storm, people see this as a follow
up, a way to wrap up the loose ends
that should have been taken care of
then,” Zuffoletto said. It can be assumed
that many of the ships at Mayport would
deploy to battle if and when military
action begins in Iraq, he added.
“The possibility of going to war is not
something that individuals are having
problems with, the concern is
family separation and the effects
of being gone so long on the
family.”
In general, Father Zuffoletto
said he has, over the years, come
across conscientious objectors who
had a difficulty not so much with
a specific theatre of concern but of
military action overall based on
their philosophical or religious
beliefs. Father Zuffoletto
encourages such individuals to
think through their position.
“I don’t want to get them to
change their view, but to ask:
Why can’t you be in the military,
in order to get them to clarify
their own thinking – but not to
dissuade them. They should have
a thought-out answer.”
Servicemen who want to opt
out of the military as
conscientious objectors ultimately
have to bring their plea to their
commanding officer. “Nobody
wants to go to war, and we are
all working and praying that it
doesn’t become a reality, but if it
does we are convinced that we
can do the job we are called upon
to do,” Father Zuffoletto added.
Msgr. Simon Peter Ignacio,
recently retired as chaplain of St.
Edward Chapel at Jacksonville Naval
Air Station, said he has been praying
publicly for a diplomatic solution to
Iraq. He assists at several local parishes.
“At the same time, we need to make
people aware not to be too complacent
and realize … there will be grieving
regardless of whether you are American
or Iraqi.”
During times of deployment, Father
Ignacio encourages the family of the
serviceman to light a lamp before the
Good Shepherd of the Sea. The lamp
represents both the absence and presence
of that person. “It is a symbolic thing,
along with the special intentions we add
during the prayers of the faithful,” the
priest said. “Each chaplain has his own
way of evoking that presence. But
obviously invoking the persons name at
Mass is good.”
Tom Tracy is a freelance writer based in
Palm Beach, Fla.
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