The start of Holy Week also marks the beginning of an online novena for the advancement of the canonization cause of Servant of God Father Vincent Capodanno, a Navy chaplain killed in Vietnam in 1967.
The Father Capodanno Guild, the official organization promoting his cause, is inviting the faithful to participate in the novena, which is being led by Father Daniel Mode, navy chaplain and author of The Grunt Padre, a biography of Fr. Capodanno.
Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, “has approved the novena and asks believers to pray,” the guild stated in an emailed press release.
The request comes at a key moment in the beatification investigation process for Fr. Capodanno. In 2022 the Vatican Dicastery for the Causes for the Saints requested additional information about the priest’s life and recommended a suspension in the cause, as Zeale News reported. After several years of work to meet this request, the historical commission for his cause recently submitted its responses to the Rome-based Theological Consultants, which is representing the dicastery. The consultants will review the submission in May, and afterward the dicastery will announce a decision on whether to move forward with the beatification process.
The novena is being prayed from March 30 through April 7, and the guild notes that the timing coincides with when Fr. Capodanno arrived in Vietnam during Holy Week of 1966. He was killed in combat in September of 1967 while spiritually ministering to wounded Marines, “earning him the Nation's highest military decoration, the Medal of Honor,” the guild adds.
Though novenas often have a specific start and end time around a significant date, individuals can begin a novena at any time. The guild is asking faithful to join as available and noted that the prayer video will remain posted until the dicastery’s decision is announced. The prayers can be accessed here.