Dear Neighbors,
You may have heard of the Just War Theory. It is a philosophical or ethical construct that has developed to a great degree from Thomas Aquinas through the moderns, some Christian and some not, such as Hugo Grotius, Gary Bass, Louis Iasiello and Brian Orend. It has a few deep roots back to the Greek philosophers, Cicero, and even St. Augustine of Hippo (A.D. 400). The full three parts of the theory have had a long development.
I must interject here that for the first four hundred years of the Church Catholic there was little support for war/violence, personal or corporate. Some will say that Our Lord did not specifically say, “War is not to be entered into.” So war must be at least a possibility. Right? No! I would say there are many things He didn’t tell us not to do that we are sure we shouldn’t do (like child molestation). Others will say that war is a sad unfortunate reality, like divorce, that God does not want, that simply happens. I, again, would have to say that they are not on the same par. One does not have to kill to get a divorce. It is far easier than that.
Here is the outline I have knitted together from several sources so that you can understand what is meant by “Just War Theory.” Is it to be used as an ethical conscience? Is it to be a planning guide for a war? Is it a rubric to assess how a war is going? You will find various answers in the literature, and I encourage you to look for yourself. Please, try to apply each of the steps to any war or police action. Does any war measure up to these standards? Or even 50% of the standards?
JUST WAR THEORY
Jus ad bellum – just cause and conditions to go to war
1. Just cause
2. Right intention
3. Proper/Competent/Legitimate authority and public declaration
4. Last Resort
5. Probability of Success
6. Proportionality
[7. Comparative justice]
Jus in bello – ethical manner or justice within war
1. Obey all international laws on weapons prohibition
2. Distinction/Discrimination and Non-Combatant Immunity
3. Proportionality of weapons
4. Benevolent quarantine for prisoners of war
5. No Means Mala in Se (“evil in themselves”)
6. No reprisals
Jus post bellum - justice during war termination
1. Proportionality and Publicity
2. Rights vindication
3. Discrimination
4. Punishment #1 – defeated country
5. Punishment #2 – individual soldiers
6. Compensation
7. Rehabilitation
[8. Public declaration with authority]
If this is Just War Theory what is Just Peace Apologetics? That is the journey we will be taking on this blog. I will post several pieces of writing this week for you to look over, and to get a good idea of the focus of Just Peace Apologetics.
In Christ’s love,
Fr. Robert Pax
Books: I was brought to the works of Br. Thomas Merton through his work “The Seven Story Mountain.” The next was his editing and extensive introduction to the book “Gandhi on Non-Violence.” I continue to read, over and over, his work “Contemplative Prayer.” For our purpose I would suggest the volume “Passion for Peace: Reflections on War and Nonviolence,” edited by William H. Shannon, along with a good introduction and chapter notes.
Quotes: “At the root of all war is fear, not so much the fear men have of one another as the fear they have of everything. It is not merely that they do not trust on another; they do not even trust themselves. If they are not sure when someone else may turn around and kill them, they are still less sure when they may turn around and kill themselves. They cannot trust anything, because they have ceased to believe in God.
It is not only our hatred of others that is dangerous but also and above all our hatred of ourselves: particularly that hatred of ourselves which is too deep and too powerful to be consciously faced. For it is this which makes us see our own evil in others and unable to see it in ourselves.” Br. Thomas Merton
“Peace demands the most heroic labor and the most difficult sacrifice. It demands greater heroism than war. It demands greater fidelity to the truth and a much more perfect purity of conscience.” Br. Thomas Merton
