Vietnam trip helps heal war’s wounds - Sentinel-Tribune | Sentinel-Tribune | Sentinel-Tribune

Vietnam trip helps heal war’s wounds

Written by BILL RYAN Sentinel Religion Editor

Friday, 29 June 2012 10:09

Father Herb Weber makes rice paper to be eaten in a fresh spring roll in Vietnam. (Photos provided by Father Herb Weber)

Over the years Father Herb Weber has taken countless trips around the globe, including to many third-world countries. None of those previous trips touched him in quite the same way as his recent trip to Vietnam.
The Asian country may not be most people’s first choice for a vacation; however, for Weber it was one he needed to visit.
Weber, the founding pastor of Blessed John XXIII Parish in Perrysburg, recently spent more than two weeks in the country more noted for its war with America, than for its tourism.
“It was important for me to see that country up close,” Weber said.
The 1965 high school graduate explained it was his class year which had the most draftees in the war. By the time he was ordained in 1974, the war was still ongoing, ending in 1975. He thus, as a pastor, had to deal with counseling people who were returning as well as families of those who did not return.
In addition, the pastor lost two of his high school classmates in the war.
“The Vietnam War colored my whole life,” Weber said noting he thought about visiting for the last eight to 10 years.
The visit did not disappoint.
“I love the fact we got off the beaten path and visited many homes and outlying villages as well as the cities,” he said.
He traveled with a sister and brother-in-law, joining a group totaling 14 on the tour organized by Overseas Adventure Travel.
Weber explained OAT, through their connections, was able to take the group to places most tourists would not normally see.
One of those trips provided a touching moment Weber will likely never forget.
Among their small group was a man named Jimmy who served in the Vietnam War for the United States Air Force. They visited a home of a man named Mr. Viet who had been drafted by the North Vietnamese Army to serve in what the Vietnamese people call the American War.

Weber in a Cu-Chi tunnel

Roughly 40 years after the men served on opposite sides at the same time, neither held any grudges. Jimmy had flown over the foreign land but was not involved in any bombing,
“They sat next to each other and spoke through an interpreter,” Weber said of the situation. “Neither one had any animosity.”
Weber said Viet pulled out a gourd of rice wine (saki) and poured a glass for both of them, as well as the others who witnessed the meeting. The two veterans from opposite sides toasted each other, shook hands, and all those gathered gave a cheer in Vietnamese, which translated to 1-2-3-yoh, with everyone raising their glass on the emphatic “yoh.”
Viet then pulled out a musical instrument similar to a mandolin and played some music.
“It really was a powerful experience. I know it meant a lot to Jimmy,” Weber said.
He also admitted to being emotional when he visited the areas where his two classmates died.
“They were only 19 and 20. What a waste of life,” the pastor shared.
“Another highlight for me was when we went to the mountain village and met with the Chil people,” Weber said.
The Chil people are the equivalent to the Native Americans of our country, the indigenous people.
“They have only seen Westerners in the last couple of years,” Weber said.
With two Sundays spent in Vietnam, he was on a junk, an Asian sailboat, for one of those. He celebrated Mass on the junk with his fellow travelers. The other Sunday he was in attendance at Notre Dame Cathedral in Dalat, a city in the western mountains. He enjoyed that experience among the mostly young Vietnamese Catholics.
Upon his return, he told his congregation, “I only understood two words, ‘Amen’ and ‘Alleluia.’”
He also was touched when joining with the Vietnamese as they made the sign of the cross.
“Suddenly, I felt, we were united in spite of language and geographical distance,” Weber wrote in the parish bulletin.
Catholics comprise about 10 percent of the population. The main religion is Buddhist.

Weber with Zen Buddhist monk in Vietnam

Calling the trip a “history lesson,” Weber shared some of what he learned. While many Americans have heard of the dangers of the chemical Agent Orange used by Americans during the war, he said the Vietnamese people are still dealing with the effects.
“It gets into the genetic systems of the people. So the kids and grandkids are still suffering as a result,” Weber said.
He was able to make rice paper, which is edible and was eaten on spring rolls. He made bamboo baskets and went down in the famed Cu-Chi tunnels.
The tunnels were used in the Viet Cong to surprise American troops. The tunnels are filled with bats, and Weber has one picture where a bat was right over his head.
He also imagined how the American soldiers would have to slosh through the tunnels and fight the “tunnel rats” as they were called.
“It was like a three-week immersion course. A very intense course,” Weber summarized of his trip which encompassed some 20,000 miles total. “It was not just a vacation. I came home exhausted.”
After anticipating the visit, how did it measure up?
“The trip was everything I wanted. I know it was not the same country as during the war, but it was still the same in some ways. I needed to make peace.”

Last Updated on Friday, 29 June 2012 12:59