The brotherhood of war Story by Lt. Col. Paul McCullough III
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uring the month of February, many people are enamored with the celebration of Valentine’s Day, but this year, February is special for me because of a very different reason. My son, who bears the suffix of IV in his name, has decided to join the Army. He is now the fourth generation of Paul McCullough to make the decision to serve his country. He’s getting ready to leave for ROTC Advanced Camp in a few months, an activity which will determine in large measure whether he will continue on to earn a commission in the Army. In an effort to help him prepare, we recently went through a few “gorilla boxes” I’ve stored in my basement for several years, in the hopes I could one day pass on to him many of the items I utilized during my military career. As we went through the various pieces of gear together, his face beamed with joy and I felt an overwhelming sense of pride in the man he’s becoming. In the last few months since he’s joined ROTC, we’ve had numerous conversations about his experiences, and I loved hearing about every bit of it because I am now living vicariously through him. His military service has brought us incredibly close together, in a way that now allows us to understand each other’s struggles. Our shared experiences have helped us to develop a bond like no other – the brotherhood of war. I mentioned that February is important to me. This is because only 9 days after Valentine’s Day this year, our country will celebrate the 80th anniversary of the raising of the flag at Iwo Jima. This action was completed by six Marines from E Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines, atop Mount Suribachi on 23 February 1945. This unforgettable action was actually the second flag raising of that day but became the iconic and world-renowned pose that millions of people have viewed at the Marine Corps Memorial in Washington, D.C., since 1954. For me, this statue represents the true essence of the brotherhood of war. Men and women, young and old, put their lives in each other’s hands during a combat situation. They have a mission to complete and they will do absolutely everything in their 22
AT E A S E | Fe b r u a r y 2 0 2 5
Lt. Col. (Rev.) Paul McCullough, U.S. Army retired, is president of the Association of the U.S. Army’s Penn & Franklin-Greater Philadelphia Chapter and an Army Reserve Ambassador from Pennsylvania. He served 20 years in the Army, retiring in 2018 as deputy director for supplier operations, Defense Logistics Agency. He deployed to Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2005, and in 2017 as commander of the DLA Support Team-Kuwait. He holds a doctorate in business administration from Walden University.
power to accomplish that mission, including giving their own lives to protect their battle buddy. The six men who raised a flag at Iwo Jima symbolize the incredible struggle that all service members endure when they go to war and their dedication to the overarching mission – to protect the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. I still remember taking this oath as a brand-new Second Lieutenant, fresh out of college. I didn’t know much about the Army at that point, but I did know about the concept of a battle buddy and how crucial it is to develop bonds with other service members. As I grew older and progressed in my career, the military was still important to me, but I discovered that I can have the same kind of relationship through my faith. In Christianity, we are called to engage in spiritual warfare. Ephesians 6:12 states, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” This may seem like impossible odds, a situation in which we could never possibly hope to defeat the enemy of our soul. But much like the military, we are called to walk through life together as we practice our faith. Jesus modeled the concept of a battle buddy, sending his disciples out two by two. As the Church grew and His disciples started preaching the Gospel in Acts, we read “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and the prayers” (Acts 2:42). I believe this is akin to relationships in the military. For me, the statue from Iwo Jima will always represent the brotherhood of war, both in the military and Christianity. We are called to do life together, in both communities. As my son gets ready to begin his military career, I want him to know that I will always have his “six”.