BOSTON (CNS) -- Retired Auxiliary Bishop John J. Glynn of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, awarded a Bronze Star for valor while a Navy chaplain in the Vietnam War, died at age 78 in Milton, just outside Boston.

A funeral Mass was held Aug. 27 at his boyhood parish, St. Gregory's Church in the Boston suburb of Dorchester. He died of colon cancer Aug. 23 at Milton Hospital.

Bishop Glynn was named an auxiliary bishop for the military archdiocese in 1991 and retired in 2002.

He was a familiar presence in the Arlington Diocese over the years when he was asked to help with the confirmation schedule.

While a member of the U.S. bishops' international policy committee in 1999, Bishop Glynn participated with other religious leaders and famous personalities in campaigns supporting a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty and measures to reduce the foreign debt of poor countries.

At an Oct. 7, 1999, press conference, he said the test ban treaty "is not just a political or legal instrument; it is a moral commitment."

"We cannot credibly urge other nations to forgo nuclear weapons if we are not even willing to ratify a treaty to stop testing our own nuclear weapons," he said.

Less than a month later, he joined U2 lead singer Bono and other religious leaders in asking Congress to pass measures to relieve the debt of the world's poorest nations.

At the Nov. 4, 1999, press conference he referred to the Old Testament concept of a jubilee year established to forgive debts, "to right old wrongs, to re-establish justice and equality."

"As we consider how this tradition can be applied to our time, there is no more pressing issue of justice and equity than debt," he said.

The bishop was also a strong advocate of providing religious services for military personnel forming part of U.N. multinational peacekeeping forces.

At a 1994 Vatican conference for military bishops, Bishop Glynn said that as the United Nations puts together its multinational forces it must take measures to ensure that soldiers' religious needs are met.

"We're not talking about a U.N. chaplain corps -- that's not practical," he said, but some coordination with national military chaplaincies is needed.

Bishop Glynn was born Aug. 6, 1926, in Boston. He attended Boston Latin School and St. John's Seminary in Brighton. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1951. He held several parish assignments before entering the Navy Chaplain Corps in 1960.

He served in the United States and the Pacific, including two tours in Vietnam. During a 1965-66 tour he was awarded the Bronze Star.

He served as personnel director of the Office of the Navy Chief of Chaplains in Washington and at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. He retired from the military in 1985 with the rank of captain.

In May 1986, he was appointed to the staff of the central office for military ordinariates at the Vatican's Congregation for Bishops. In 1990 he was named vice chancellor and vicar for chaplains at the U.S. military archdiocese, now based in Washington.

He was named a bishop Dec. 10, 1991, and ordained Jan. 6, 1992, in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City by Pope John Paul II.

He is survived by two brothers, James Glynn of Milton and Msgr. William Glynn of Duxbury, and a sister, Mary Glynn of Milton.