An alumnus of Saint Paul Seminary, Hessian was ordained for the Archdiocese of Saint Paul in 1953, then served in a St. Paul parish for a decade before entering full-time Army chaplaincy. During his service as a chaplain, he received the Purple Heart after being wounded by shrapnel in Vietnam and the Soldier's Medal for disarming a suicidal soldier who was holding a grenade.[2][3]
He became the 16th Chief of Chaplains of the United States Army in 1982 and served in that role until 1986. His time as Chief of Chaplains was marked by a focus on increasing the spirituality and spiritual well-being of chaplains, as well as a court battle questioning the legality of the chaplain corps.
Hessian entered the United States Army Reserve in 1958 as a 1st Lieutenant.[6] He entered active duty on 29 August 1963, as a member of the 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division.[2][7]: 160 He was transferred in October 1964 to the Eighth Army Support Command in Korea.[2] In December 1965, he was assigned to Germany; while there, he participated in NATO exercises in Greece and Turkey.[2] He became the deputy division chaplain for the 8th Infantry Division in January 1966. During that time, he went through airborne training. He did not enjoy jumping out of airplanes, but nevertheless considered the training to be important for him to complete. In July 1969, he became the chaplain for the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vietnam.[7]: 162 While in Vietnam he was near-fatally hit by shrapnel, for which he earned the Purple Heart.[8][3] He earned the Soldier's Medal for disarming a suicidal soldier who was holding a live grenade with the pin pulled.[3] Qualified for both amphibious and airborne operations, Hessian had a unique skillset among chaplains.[7]: 162
In 1979, Hessian was promoted to brigadier general and was nominated by Ronald Reagan as the deputy chief of chaplains.[7]: 117 While deputy, Hessian assisted in creating a video tape including topics such as the need for collegiality among chaplains, the shortage of Catholic chaplains, and making chaplains more visible to soldiers.[7]: 119
During his time as Chief of Chaplains, one of Hessian's primary focuses was the spirituality and spiritual well-being of chaplains.[7]: 165 He also desired to enhance chaplain training, which he considered itself to be part of the ministry of chaplains – his motto was "Training is ministry".[7]: 165, 190 He sought to recruit more chaplains from underrepresented groups, such as Catholics, women, and minorities. Under his tenure, the program for training seminarians was renamed to the Chaplain Candidate program.[7]: 169 He also pushed to modernize the chaplaincy corps to use up-to-date computer and software systems.[7]: 186 When some chaplains who had served in Vietnam expressed hesitancy about chaplains being forbidden from carrying firearms, Hessian defended the prohibition to ensure their status as non-combatants.[7]: 218 Hessian inherited the struggle of a 1979 lawsuit from Joel Katcoff and Allen Wieder, law students at the time, claiming that the structure of chaplaincy was unconstitutional.[7]: 129 After various rulings and appeals, Katcoff and Wieder sought to drop the suit; Hessian argued that the case should be brought to completion.[7]: 129 The case was eventually dismissed with prejudice.[7]: 129
On 18 June 1986, Norris L. Einertson was confirmed by the Senate to succeed Hessian as the 17th Chief of Chaplains. A retirement dinner was held for Hessian on 25 June 1986, at Fort Myer, at which Army Chief of Staff General John A. Wickham Jr. gave a speech calling Hessian's ministry "characterized by a passionate concern for the needs of soldiers."[7]: 211
After retiring from the military, Hessian served as the Director of Development for the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis from 1988 to 1991 before retiring from full-time ministry.[1] He died on 8 September 2007, and following a funeral celebrated by Archbishop Flynn and 40 other priests, was buried with military honors in Sacred Heart Cemetery in Belle Plaine, Minnesota.[1][12][3]
