I don't often "butt in" on these threads, but the obvious question to me is what are the rules governing Catholic communion as they pertain to military chaplains, especially under combat conditons? I know for a fact that Catholic chaplains routinely provide pastoral care for non-Catholics, and vice versa from Protestant chaplains to Catholics when the "other chaplain" is not available to minister to those of his faith. Until reading this article, however, I had never thought about this in the context of the sacraments.
Canon 844 (4) of the Code of Canon Law provides:
§4 If there is a danger of death or if, in the judgement of the diocesan Bishop or of the Episcopal Conference, there is some other grave and pressing need, catholic ministers may lawfully administer these same sacraments to other christians not in full communion with the catholic Church, who cannot approach a minister of their own community and who spontaneously ask for them, provided that they demonstrate the catholic faith in respect of these sacraments and are properly disposed.When we left the Episcopal Church because it finally and unmistakeably tipped over the edge into heresy, we conferred at length with the rector of our new (Catholic) parish. Because the archbishop here has permitted "high" (i.e. crypto-Catholic) Episcopalians to receive the Eucharist when their own church is not available, and in our rector's judgment our church was no longer "available" to us, we did receive the Sacraments before we were received into the communion. (We did, however, go to Confession first!)
The situation of a military chaplain in a war is plainly a "grave and pressing need" and probably also "danger of death." So administration of the Sacraments in that context is permitted.
This is an excellent question!! You may want to do some research at this site.
Failing that, you may want to consider emailing them at: info@milarch.org.
If you do, please post their response. Thank you!