Jan. 31, 2015, would have marked the 100th birthday of the American Trappist monk and author Thomas Merton.

World War I stories include several about enemies who discovered one another’s humanity. On the 100th anniversary of the United States' entry into the war, this is one.

This is not the day of exultation. It is the day of tragedy.

William Calley is still alive.

In many respects, the U.S. Army and the Catholic Church could not be more dissimilar institutions. Both have radically different missions, divergent access to resources, and, seemingly, heterogeneous cultures.

The story of the rowdy young man who was martyred for refusing to obey Hitler.