The Just War Doctrine in Catholic Thought

The Just War Doctrine in Catholic Thought PDF Author: James B. Whisker
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781536189827
Category : Just war doctrine
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
"The just war theory is a doctrine, which is related to and at times interchangeable with such concepts as military tradition, military ethics, the doctrines of military leaders, conflict theology, ethical policy-making, and military tactics and strategy. The purpose of the just war doctrine is to attempt to guarantee that a war is morally justifiable through a series of criteria, all of which must be met for a war to be considered just. The criteria are split into two groups: "right to go to war" (jus ad bellum) and "right conduct in war" (jus in bello). The first concerns the morality of going to war, and the second the moral conduct within war. Recently there have been calls for the inclusion of a third category of just war theory known as jus post bellum that is concerned with the morality of post-war settlement and reconstruction. Just war theory postulates that war, while terrible, is made less so with the right conduct. It also assumes that war is not always the worst option. Important responsibilities, undesirable outcomes, or preventable atrocities may justify war. There is a just war tradition, a historical body of rules or agreements that have applied in various wars across the ages. The just war tradition consists primarily of the writings of various philosophers and legal experts through history. This tradition examines both their philosophical visions of war's ethical limits and whether their thoughts have contributed to the body of conventions that have evolved to guide war and warfare"--

Just War Doctrine in Traditional Catholic Thought

Just War Doctrine in Traditional Catholic Thought PDF Author: Kevin Ray Spiker, Jr
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 228

Book Description
Can wars be just? Humankind has asked, and attempted to answer, that question for at least 3500 years. What criteria determine when there us a just cause that justifies warfare? What are the criteria used to judge ethical behavior during a war? The book examine the perspectives on these and related questions according to the traditional theologian-philosophers in the Roman Catholic Church, beginning with St. Augustine, the father of Just War Doctrine.

The Harvest of Justice is Sown in Peace

The Harvest of Justice is Sown in Peace PDF Author: Catholic Church. National Conference of Catholic Bishops
Publisher: USCCB Publishing
ISBN: 9781555867058
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 64

Book Description
Issued in commemoration of the tenth anniversary of the pastoral letter The Challenge of Peace: God's Promise and Our Response.

Just War as Christian Discipleship

Just War as Christian Discipleship PDF Author: Daniel M. Jr. Bell
Publisher: Brazos Press
ISBN: 1441206817
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 289

Book Description
This provocative and timely primer on the just war tradition connects just war to the concrete practices and challenges of the Christian life. Daniel Bell explains that the point is not simply to know the just war tradition but to live it even in the face of the tremendous difficulties associated with war. He shows how just war practice, if it is to be understood as a faithful form of Christian discipleship, must be rooted in and shaped by the fundamental convictions and confessions of the faith. The book includes a foreword by an Army chaplain who has served in Iraq and study questions for group use.

The Future of Just War Theory

The Future of Just War Theory PDF Author: A. VAN LERSEL
Publisher:
ISBN: 9783643911056
Category : Catholic Church and world politics
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
The Roman Catholic Church has used the tradition of 'just war' for ages. It changed substantially since World War II and the Second Vatican Council. Also Pope Francis reassesses the use of force in international conflict. This book provides an indepth insight in this ongoing reassessment of 'just war' as part of Catholic social teaching. --Book cover.

From Just War to Modern Peace Ethics

From Just War to Modern Peace Ethics PDF Author: Heinz-Gerhard Justenhoven
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110291924
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 360

Book Description
This book rewrites the history of Christian peace ethics. Christian reflection on reducing violence or overcoming war has roots in ancient Roman philosophy and eventually grew to influence modern international law. This historical overview begins with Cicero, the source of Christian authors like Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. It is highly debatable whether Augustine had a systematic interest in just war or whether his writings were used to develop a systematic just war teaching only by the later tradition. May Christians justifiably use force to overcome disorder and achieve peace? The book traces the classical debate from Thomas Aquinas to early modern-age thinkers like Vitoria, Suarez, Martin Luther, Hugo Grotius and Immanuel Kant. It highlights the diversity of the approaches of theologians, philosophers and lawyers. Modern cosmopolitianism and international law-thinking, it shows, are rooted in the Spanish Scholastics, where Grotius and Kant each found the inspiration to inaugurate a modern peace ethic. In the 20th century the tradition has taken aim not only at reducing violence and overcoming war but at developing a constructive ethic of peace building, as is reflected in Pope John Paul II’s teaching.

A People Adrift

A People Adrift PDF Author: Peter Steinfels
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 9780743261449
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 454

Book Description
In this national bestseller, the most influential layman in the United States reports that the Roman Catholic Church in America must either profoundly reform or lapse into permanent irrelevance.

Blessed Are the Peacemakers

Blessed Are the Peacemakers PDF Author: Lisa Sowle Cahill
Publisher: Fortress Press
ISBN: 1506457797
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 394

Book Description
This book is a contribution to the Christian ethics of war and peace. It advances peacebuilding as a needed challenge to and expansion of the traditional framework of just war theory and pacifism. It builds on a critical reading of historical landmarks from the Bible through Augustine, Aquinas, the Reformers, Christian peace movements, and key modern figures like Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Reinhold Niebuhr, and recent popes. Similar to just-war theory, peacebuilding is committed to social change and social justice but includes some theorists and practitioners who accept the use of force in extreme cases of self-defense or humanitarian intervention. Unlike just-war theorists, they do not see the justification of war as part of the Christian mission. Unlike traditional pacifists, they do see social change as necessary and possible and, as such, requiring Christian participation in public efforts. Cahill argues that transformative Christian social participation is demanded by the gospel and the example of Jesus, and can produce the avoidance, resolution, or reduction of conflicts. And yet obstacles are significant, and expectations must be realistic. Decisions to use armed force against injustice, even when they meet the criteria of just war, will be ambiguous and tragic from a Christian perspective. Regarding war and peace, the focus of Christian theology, ethics, and practice should not be on justifying war but on practical and hopeful interreligious peacebuilding.

Catholic Perspectives on Peace and War

Catholic Perspectives on Peace and War PDF Author: Thomas Massaro
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780742531765
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 174

Book Description
This book offers a thorough and accessible analysis of Catholic teaching on war and warmaking from its earliest stages to the present. Moral theologians Thomas Massaro and Thomas A. Shannon begin with a survey of the teachings on war in various religions and denominations and then trace the development of Just War theory and application, review the perspective of several Catholic bishops, comment on the bishops' pastoral letter The Challenge of Peace, address contemporary developments in light of 9-11 and the United States war with Iraq, and conclude with theological reflections. Complete with recommended readings, Catholic Perspectives on Peace and War offers an informative and thoughtful moral analysis that helps readers navigate the rapidly changing terrain of war, warmaking, and peace initiatives.

Preventing Unjust War

Preventing Unjust War PDF Author: Roger Bergman
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 153268665X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 216

Book Description
Catholic pacifists blame the just war tradition of their Church. That tradition, they say, can be invoked to justify any war, and so it must be jettisoned. This book argues that the problem is not the just war tradition but the unjust war tradition. Ambitious rulers start wars that cannot be justified, and yet warriors continue to fight them. The problem is the belief that warriors do not hold any responsibility for judging the justice of the wars they are ordered to fight. However unjust, a command renders any war “just” for the obedient warrior. This book argues that selective conscientious objection, the right and duty to refuse to fight unjust wars, is the solution. Strengthening the just war tradition depends on a heightened role for the personal conscience of the warrior. That in turn depends on a heightened role for the Church in forming and supporting consciences and judging the justice of particular wars. As Saint Augustine wrote, “The wise man will wage just wars. . . . For, unless the wars were just, he would not have to wage them, and in such circumstances he would not be involved in war at all.”