Part 5 of 5
by Bob Sullivan
St. John Nepomucene Church was the site of Father Kapaun’s baptism, his ordination and his first Mass, as well as his first assignment as assistant and then as the pastor. The parish was – and remains – predominately Czech, and many of the adults in the parish still spoke Czech as their primary language in 1940. Father Kapaun’s first language was English, but he also spoke Czech.
The church was recently restored, and its high altar and side altars are stunning. It is also a very large church for the small community of Pilsen, which currently has about 65 residents. We arrived on Pentecost, and the pilgrimage’s chaplain, Father Curtis Hecker, served as the main celebrant.
After Mass, we all retired to the church basement for a fantastic home-cooked meal of pulled pork and many side dishes. They also had a large bake sale consisting of nothing but kolaches. What else would you expect in a Czech community? Jimmy and I each bought a plate and shortly after we finished our lunch, the bake sale was just selling out.
Jimmy and I happened to sit right next to the stairway down to the basement, so as the rest of the attendees slowly filtered through the food line, we went over to the Father Kapaun Museum to see some very interesting artifacts, including the Medal of Honor posthumously awarded to Father Kapaun in April 2013, as well as the South Korean equivalent to the Medal of Honor which was awarded posthumously to him in July 2021. If I understood Ray Kapaun correctly, Father Kapaun may be the only non-South Korean to have received the award.
More important than awards – as important as those two are – is the fact that Father Kapaun’s cause for beatification was opened in 2008, and the miracles of Nick Dellasega, Chase Kear, and others are being examined to determine if Father Kapaun should be canonized a saint.
In March 2021, Father Kapaun’s remains were identified from among more than 700 unknown soldiers who were buried around 1956 in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, more commonly known as the Punchbowl. His remains were flown back to Kansas in September 2021. After being taken to Pilsen, his parish and hometown, his remains were then entombed in the east transept of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Wichita, where you can visit.
Father Kapaun’s nephew Ray Kapaun said his uncle would have been embarrassed to be the focal point of such attention, and that he would have always pointed people away from him and toward Christ. If there is one thing about the pilgrimage, it is the consistent attention on Christ, through the daily Mass, opportunities for confessions, frequent prayer both personally and through the Father Kapaun stations, and the general feel of the pilgrimage. While it would be possible to participate in the pilgrimage for reasons other than spiritual reasons, those reasons would be drowned out over the course of the four days. The pilgrimage is one of physical and mental perseverance and endurance, but it is primarily one of spiritual exercise and reflection.
The next pilgrimage is scheduled for June 1-4, 2023. You can find details by visiting frkapaun.org. You can’t register until about March, but then they will send you extremely helpful information on packing and tips on avoiding blisters, dehydration, and other potential pitfalls.
One thing to keep in mind is that the pilgrimage is supposed to be 60 miles, but this year we ended up walking between 70 and 75 miles due to muddy and impassable roads. I recommend that you begin ‘training’ by at least late February. If you can walk 7 miles at 3.5 miles per hour without much difficulty, you will find the pace of the pilgrimage pretty workable. I also found that walking sticks were very helpful, especially near the end of the day and when the road was slick with mud. I think I paid about $27 for my telescoping walking sticks.
Two penances I haven’t mentioned are the fact that they discourage caffeine such as coffee during the pilgrimage, and of course, there is no alcohol waiting for you at your campsite at the end of the day. As a connoisseur of both of these pleasures (actually a glutton), I can tell you that I didn’t miss either one of them. These are not available because both contribute to dehydration. This practice has the double benefit of something to offer up for those of you making the pilgrimage, and protecting your health.
It also helps you appreciate one more fact about Father Kapaun. As I mentioned earlier, he was known for risking his life in sneaking out of the prisoner camp in North Korea to scrounge for food and other things to help keep his fellow prisoners alive. He was known for praying for the intercession of St. Dismas (the Good Thief) before each such mission. He was skilled at finding enough food so that the American prisoners could actually trade it with the North Korean guards for tobacco. The prisoners would always share their tobacco with Father Kapaun so he could smoke it in his pipe. But he would give it away to the sick and wounded prisoners and smoke various kinds of dried leaves he would find on the ground instead.
Father Kapaun, pray for us.
