Tim Moriarty, BC ’08 & ’11, visited Boston College on September 10 to give an advance screening of A Field Afar, the film he produced and directed alongside Jake Ehlrich. The documentary follows the life of Fr. Vincent Capodanno, M.M., an American priest and Vietnam war hero who was killed while ministering to soldiers on the battlefield.
The screening, held in McGuinn Hall, was attended by Boston College students, members of the community, priests, religious, and seminarians from around the Archdiocese. The movie itself, which will be released later this fall, runs approximately one hour and provides a history of Fr. Vincent’s life, along with interviews with his family, friends, and the Marines with whom he served.
In a Q&A session following the screening, Moriarty explained that he was inspired to begin the documentary while filming segments on New York Saints for the Diocese of Brooklyn. This project brought him to Staten Island, Capodanno’s hometown, where he was struck by the devotion that members of the community have to Capodanno, and their admiration for the his heroism.
Fr. Robert Keane, S.J., rector of the Jesuit Community in St. Mary’s Hall and a Retired Naval Chaplain himself, served in Gaeta, Italy, where Capodanno’s family comes from. He remarked that the locals there have a deep devotion to Capodanno as well.
Vincent Capodanno was born in Staten Island, NY, in 1929 as the youngest of 10 children. He entered the Maryknoll order, an American-based order of priests, brothers, sisters, and lay missionaries sometimes known as “the Marines of the Catholic Church.” Maryknollers are known for sending priests and religious to distant lands to save souls by converting locals to Catholicsm and improving their daily lives. The name of the movie, A Field Afar, comes from the previous title of Maryknoll’s magazine, which brought stories of their work back to Catholics in the United States.
After his ordination to the priesthood in 1958, Capodanno served in rural Taiwan before being moved to Hong Kong. Longing to return to a life of adventure that he didn’t find in industrialized Hong Kong, he became a U.S. Navy Chaplain. In 1966, he shipped off to Vietnam to serve as a chaplain in the Marine Corps.
While serving as chaplain, Capodanno became known for his ministry of presence. His fellow soldiers remarked that he always accompanied them on their missions, even dangerous ones on which an unarmed chaplain would usually not be sent. In total, he joined them on eight combat missions. His fellow marines called him the “Grunt Padre” because of his ministry to “the grunts” and because of his bravery and fearlessness. He was known for his zeal in hearing confessions, reassuring the men, and distributing St. Christopher medals. After a one-month leave following the completion of his tour, Capodanno returned to Vietnam in June of 1967 for a voluntary half-year extension.
On September 4 of that year, the Marines found and fought approximately 2,500 North Vietnamese soldiers while carrying out Operation Swift. Hearing that men from his outnumbered battalion were wounded and dying, Capodanno set out to give his men last rites. Though he himself was shot in the hand, arms, and legs, he refused medical evacuation in order to help three soldiers who were near an enemy machine gun. He was killed while administering Last Rites to one of the Marines.
Fr. Capodanno was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in in 1969 for his bravery and selflessness. In 2002, the Vatican opened his cause for canonization as a saint. In 2006, he was declared a Servant of God by the Archbishop of the Archdiocese for the Military Services. The Vatican’s investigation into Capodanno for potential sainthood continues.
A Field Afar, a production of Castlehouse Media, will air in November on CatholicTV. Additionally, it was chosen to be syndicated to local ABC television channels, where it will air from November 17th until the end of December. Moriarty has further upcoming projects related to the Catholic faith, including a history of the relationship between the Church and Native Americans.
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