Battle Ready

Nov. 1, 2023

For 20 years, a prayer book published by the Order has fortified the faith of service members worldwide

By Andy Telli

Nov. 1, 2023

U.S. Army Maj. Michael Ricky, holding a copy of Armed with the Faith, stands with other service members outside Baghdad’s Al Faw Palace on Feb. 8, 2004. — U.S. Army Maj. Michael Ricky, holding a copy of Armed with the Faith, stands with other service members outside Baghdad's Al Faw Palace on Feb. 8, 2004. Knights of Columbus Multimedia Archives

In 2005, a 37-year-old major in the Tennessee National Guard was waiting to board a plane for a yearlong deployment to Afghanistan, leaving his wife and two young children at home. Someone offered him a prayer book; once on board, he noticed that it was called Armed with the Faith, published by the Knights of Columbus.

“I carried it in my breast pocket every single day for 368 days and on 26 combat patrols,” recalled Michael McCusker, who later served as state deputy of Tennessee and was elected supreme master earlier this year. “I can only assume now that it was brother Knights passing them out. God put them there to make sure I didn’t go off to war without being armed with prayer.”

This year marks the 20th since the Order first published Armed with the Faith in partnership with the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA. Since 2003, more than 700,000 copies have been distributed to U.S. military personnel at home and abroad. Printed on waterproof, tear-resistant stock to endure rugged conditions, Armed with the Faith contains a wide variety of prayers and devotions, along with sections on Catholic moral and sacramental teachings.

“Around the globe, Catholic priests seek this resource to arm the men and women in uniform with another line of defense to foster growth in the Catholic faith,” said Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, who currently serves as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. “This prayer book, conceived as a resource for Catholics who heroically defend the Constitution and our nation, serves, as well, as a tool for all people of good will who seek a practical resource for reflection and prayer.”

Since the first books were published in 2003, the Order has added a bilingual version for the Canadian Armed Forces, and separate versions for service members in France and Ukraine. In 2006, a “civilian” version, printed on regular paper, was published by the Order’s Catholic Information Service (#364 - Armed with the Faith) to meet the high demand for copies from military families, veterans, Knights and others.

“From 24 years of service on land and sea in the United States Navy, I know firsthand the challenges faced by those serving in the military, especially on deployment, and what a refuge our Catholic faith can be during even the darkest days,” wrote Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly in the foreword to the book’s sixth edition. “Armed with the Faith has already proven to be a valuable spiritual resource for hundreds of thousands of Catholics in the military, and the Knights of Columbus is pleased that this copy has found its way into your hands and heart.”

‘A SOURCE OF STRENGTH AND GRACE’

College Knights and K of C leaders from the Washington, D.C., area gather to prepare boxes of Armed with the Faith for shipment to U.S. military personnel stationed around the world in 2010. — College Knights and K of C leaders from the Washington, D.C., area gather to prepare boxes of *Armed with the Faith* for shipment to U.S. military personnel stationed around the world in 2010. *Photo by John Whitman*

The idea to publish a prayer book for military personnel arose after 9/11, as the tensions in the Middle East pointed toward the possibility of armed conflict. Specifically, it originated with Franklin Woodbury, a member of James Cardinal Hickey Assembly 2534 in Washington, D.C.

“Frank was a Korean War vet in my assembly who had this beat-up prayer book from his years in the service,” recalled retired Marine Corps Col. Charles Gallina, the Order’s advisor for military and veterans affairs. It seemed that no one had published a prayer book specifically for members of the military since then.

“So Frank mailed his copy to Supreme Knight Carl Anderson, asking if the Knights could develop a prayer book,” Col. Gallina continued. “And the supreme knight said, ‘Absolutely, we can do this, and we will do this.’”

Jesuit Father Daniel Sweeney, at the time a military chaplain with the Air Force Reserve and a member of Georgetown University Council 6375 in Washington, was asked to lead the project as editor. Father Sweeney in turn brought the proposal to Archbishop (now Cardinal) Edwin O’Brien, who was then serving as ordinary of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA.

“He was very supportive, and that support has continued under Archbishop Broglio,” recalled Father Sweeney.

Father Sweeney began by consulting other prayer books, friends in the military, and other priests, as well as drawing on his own experience as a military chaplain. In selecting spiritual content, he focused on prayers that would benefit military personnel, especially those deployed.

The military archdiocese began sending shipments to hot spots in the Middle East and elsewhere, and almost immediately, it began making a profound impact.

“There is no way I can adequately describe how much these books are appreciated,” U.S. Navy and Marine Corps chaplain Father William Devine wrote in a letter to Archbishop O’Brien from Iraq after receiving a large shipment of Armed with the Faith during the First Battle of Fallujah in spring 2004. “Every Marine took the prayer book. They came up to me and asked me to bless their scapulars, medals, rosaries and the book. Their large hands dirtied by war held these objects of grace. A number used the book to go to confession. Others asked me to explain how to pray the rosary. This book is and will be a source of strength and God’s grace long after I leave.”

HOLDING ONTO FAITH AND HOPE

Supreme Master Michael McCusker shows the copy of Armed with the Faith he carried with him throughout his 2005-2006 deployment to Iraq with the Tennessee National Guard. — Supreme Master Michael McCusker shows the copy of *Armed with the Faith* he carried with him throughout his 2005-2006 deployment to Iraq with the Tennessee National Guard. *Photo by Paul Haring*

A bilingual version for the Canadian Armed Forces, titled Armour of Faith/Armure de Foi, was added in 2009. Similar prayer books, inspired by Armed with the Faith, were published for the military in France (2016) and Ukraine (2018). The Knights published a sixth edition of Armed with the Faith in 2021.

The prayer book has proven to be popular not only with Catholics serving in the military, but also with service members in other faith traditions.

“Faith is important for all of us,” said Father Sweeney, a former state chaplain of Washington, D.C., who currently teaches history and international studies at the University of Scranton. “But when you’re going through that dark valley, you are more aware of your faith and core values.”

Supreme Master McCusker used Armed with the Faith every day he was in Afghanistan.

“After morning chow, I would say a rosary, I would pray from that book, and read three chapters of the Bible,” he said. “Every day, I would flip through Armed with the Faith and look for something that appealed to me that day.”

Jesuit Father Brian Reedy, a Navy chaplain and Knight who recently returned from a deployment to Djibouti, East Africa, finds that the prayer book is a popular resource among military personnel.

“Service members really like Armed with the Faith because it contains a lot of really good spiritual resources in a concise way and a transportable way,” said Father Reedy, who is currently assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Pendleton, California. “People take them, pray with them, use them.”

When military chaplains request copies of Armed with the Faith, Jo Ann Redmond, the director of administration for the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, is the one who answers that call.

“They feel like it’s a really good resource, especially for the Catholic soldiers who can feel some sort of comfort from home, even though they’re not at home,” Redmond said. “In a combat situation, faith becomes even more important. They have to have something to hang onto, some kind of hope.”

Col. Gallina, the Order’s liaison with the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, agreed.

“In times of real confusion and the chaos of combat, sometimes the only thing you have going for you is your faith,” said Col. Gallina, who served four tours of duty in Vietnam. “It provides the moral courage to continue forward and the spiritual connection to carry on.”

Noting that he would have been “most blessed” to have carried a copy of Armed with the Faith with him in Vietnam, he is grateful that so many service members in the last 20 years have been able to do so.

“Armed with the Faith is one of the greatest things the Knights of Columbus has ever done for the spiritual growth for our men and women in the military,” Col. Gallina affirmed. “It is a sacred treasury for our warriors.”

*****

ANDY TELLI recently retired as the longtime managing editor of the Tennessee Register; he is a member of Bishop Alphonse J. Smith Council 3763 in Madison, Tenn.

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Battle Ready

‘A SOURCE OF STRENGTH AND GRACE’

HOLDING ONTO FAITH AND HOPE

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