Fr. (Captain) Emil Kapaun: Serving God and Country
Those on the way to sainthood are often placed in the stereotypical box of praying all day
and staying around the Church. However, an important aspect of Catholicism and ultimately Christianity is going out into the world and helping those who suffer greatly and are in need. A prime example of this mission is Father Emil Kapaun, who served in the US Army Chaplain Corps and died in a prison in the North Korean Mountains after tirelessly helping fellow prisoners of war.
Kapaun was born on April 20, 1916, to a German-Bohemian immigrant family in rural Kansas. Kapaun grew up in a hard working yet a pious family that would raise him in the Catholic Faith. As a result of this upbringing, he entered the seminary, became a deacon, then a priest in June of 1940.
Kapaun’s path towards military chaplaincy began when the bishop sent him to Herington Army Airfield in Kansas, where he would stay for 18 months. After this, the priest wanted to join the U.S. Army Chaplain Corps. After making several requests to the Bishop, Kapaun’s commission was finally granted. He graduated from the U.S. Army Chaplain School at Fort Devens, and was sent to India and Burma until the end of WWII. From this service he was promoted to the rank of Captain.
After being released from the U.S. Army for a short time, Kapaun was recommissioned and sent to Japan to be a part of the 8th Cavalry Regiment of the 1st Cavalry Division. When the Korean War began, he and his unit were some of the first sent to Korea. Kapaun served on the front lines administering to wounded soldiers with Last Rites and Confession. His fearlessness raised the morale of his troops no matter the mission. When he did Mass, he would set up the

altar on the front of a Jeep. He comforted families at home by writing to tell them that he administered Last Rites to soldiers who died on the battlefield.
One day, after he and the medic of the unit refused to fall back in order to tend wounded soldiers, they were captured by the Chinese troops. The survivors were placed in a reeducation prison. Now, picture a place surrounded by barbed wire in the middle of the mountains. You are surrounded by guns and everyone hates you. They want you to give up and die. Kapaun, realizing this, tends to prisoners after beatings, holds secret masses, says prayers with soldiers to raise their morale, and even prays for the enemies that they turn away from communism. The soldiers are taught to hate America, but the priest refutes every argument with a little sense of humor.
In 1951, Kapaun fell ill and developed pneumonia and a blood clot in his leg. The Chinese moved him to a place to die alone without his men. Despite this, he forgave his captors and soon died.
The courage of Kapaun to assist his men under torture and his actions in the battlefield led to him being posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on March 11, 2013. Before this he received the title “Servant of God” from Pope John Paul II, the first step towards canonization.