Chaplain says people in U.S. must keep up support for troops in Iraq

Published: 2007-03-08

FRANKFORT, Ill. (CNS) -- Support from people in the U.S. is important to the nation's troops who are serving in Iraq and must continue, especially for soldiers "in harm's way," a military chaplain told a congregation in the Diocese of Joliet. Father John Hannigan, a priest of the Chicago Archdiocese, has been has been on leave from active duty since January, but before that he had been stationed in Iraq since the early days of the war. He would travel every day in convoys with American soldiers along desert roads, dodging bullets and roadside bombs with his comrades while evading rocket-propelled grenades. The U.S. Navy commander who is a Marine Corps chaplain relied on donations from people stateside -- including members of St. Anthony Parish in Frankfort -- to secure rosaries, Bibles, medals and other religious items for the troops. He paid a visit to the parish in mid-February to express his thanks.

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