B. all other means of
putting an end to the aggression and damage must have been shown to be
impractical or ineffective;
C. we must be pretty
darn sure we can win
D. the use of arms
must not produce evils and disorders graver than the evil to be eliminated.
E. should be supported
by at least two allies
THE ANSWER IS
..E (not a condition.)
But requirements A, B, C, and D must ALL be met to have
moral grounds for waging a war.
The conditions for a just war were formulated throughout Christian
history by St Augustine of Hippo and later by St Thomas Aquinas.
Deciding whether or not a situation meets this criteria is the
responsibility of an individual nation, which has the right to fight a war if
the conditions exist.
The pope does not make infallible pronouncements regarding specific
politics or specific wars. Even so, Christians are encouraged to give his
comments serious thought as they form their conscience regarding whether a
specific war is the best way to protect and uphold the sanctity of life, and
whether more good would be done than harm.
http://www.newadvent.org/summa/304001.htm
(Words of St. Thomas Aquinas, one of the fathers of Just War doctrine)
http://www.catholic.com/library/Just_war_Doctrine_1.asp (JUST WAR DOCTRINE
Explained)
http://www.thomashurley.com/mc031803.html
(Iraq essay)
http://jesseromero.com/jrc_20030305.htm
(St. Thomas Aquinas on Just War)
http://ethics.acusd.edu/Applied/Military/Justwar.html
(Resources on Just War Theory)
http://www.cjd.org/paper/jp2war.html (Popes
Opinion on Iraq War)
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0210-03.htm
(Popes past comments on Iraq)
http://www.cathnews.com/news/303/124.php
(Popes past comments on Iraq)
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/28/politics/28CHEN.html?ex=1080795600&en=04bea4c6772f9c2b&ei=5070 (pope meets Cheney)
http://www.theolympian.com/home/news/20030323/frontpage/27510.shtml
(pope)
http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/europe/01/12/pope.iraq.reut/ (popes 2004
comments on Iraq)
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/special_features/peace/prayer-peace_index.html
(popes special home page on peace)
**********************************************************************
HERES WHAT THE CATECHISM SAYS ABOUT PEACE AND WAR
III.
SAFEGUARDING PEACE
Peace
2302 By recalling the commandment, "You shall not
kill,"94 our Lord asked for peace of heart and denounced
murderous anger and hatred as immoral.
Anger is a desire for revenge. "To desire vengeance
in order to do evil to someone who should be punished is illicit," but it
is praiseworthy to impose restitution "to correct vices and maintain justice."95
If anger reaches the point of a deliberate desire to kill or seriously wound a
neighbor, it is gravely against charity; it is a mortal sin. The Lord says,
"Everyone who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment."96
2303 Deliberate hatred
is contrary to charity. Hatred of the neighbor is a sin when one
deliberately wishes him evil. Hatred of the neighbor is a grave sin when one
deliberately desires him grave harm. "But I say to you, Love your enemies
and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father
who is in heaven."97
2304 Respect for and development of human life require
peace. Peace is not merely the absence of war, and it is not limited to
maintaining a balance of powers between adversaries. Peace cannot be attained
on earth without safeguarding the goods of persons, free communication among
men, respect for the dignity of persons and peoples, and the assiduous practice
of fraternity. Peace is "the tranquillity of order."98
Peace is the work of justice and the effect of charity.99
2305 Earthly peace is the image and fruit of the peace of Christ, the messianic
"Prince of Peace."100 By the blood of his Cross, "in
his own person he killed the hostility,"101 he reconciled men
with God and made his Church the sacrament of the unity of the human race and
of its union with God. "He is our peace."102 He has
declared: "Blessed are the peacemakers."103
2306 Those who renounce violence and bloodshed and, in
order to safeguard human rights, make use of those means of defense available
to the weakest, bear witness to evangelical charity, provided they do so
without harming the rights and obligations of other men and societies. They
bear legitimate witness to the gravity of the physical and moral risks of
recourse to violence, with all its destruction and death.104
Avoiding war
2307 The fifth
commandment forbids the intentional destruction of human life. Because of the
evils and injustices that accompany all war, the Church insistently urges
everyone to prayer and to action so that the divine Goodness may free us from
the ancient bondage of war.105
2308 All citizens and all governments are obliged to
work for the avoidance of war.
However, "as long as the danger of war persists and there is no
international authority with the necessary competence and power, governments
cannot be denied the right of lawful self-defense, once all peace efforts have
failed."106
2309 The strict conditions for legitimate defense by military force require rigorous
consideration. The gravity of such a decision makes it subject to rigorous
conditions of moral legitimacy. At one and the same time:
- the damage inflicted by the aggressor on the nation or community of
nations must be lasting, grave, and certain;
- all other means of putting an end to it must have been shown to be
impractical or ineffective;
- there must be serious prospects of success;
- the use of arms must not produce evils and disorders graver than the
evil to be eliminated. The power of modem means of destruction weighs very
heavily in evaluating this condition.
These are the traditional elements
enumerated in what is called the "just war" doctrine.
The evaluation of these conditions for moral legitimacy belongs to the
prudential judgment of those who have responsibility for the common good.
2310 Public authorities, in this case, have the right
and duty to impose on citizens the obligations
necessary for national defense.
Those who are sworn to serve their country in the armed forces are
servants of the security and freedom of nations. If they carry out their duty
honorably, they truly contribute to the common good of the nation and the maintenance
of peace.107
2311 Public authorities should make equitable provision
for those who for reasons of conscience refuse to bear arms; these are
nonetheless obliged to serve the human community in some other way.108
2312 The Church and human
reason both assert the permanent validity of the moral law during armed conflict. "The mere fact that war
has regrettably broken out does not mean that everything becomes licit between
the warring parties."109
2313 Non-combatants, wounded soldiers, and prisoners
must be respected and treated humanely.
Actions deliberately contrary to the law of nations and to its universal
principles are crimes, as are the orders that command such actions. Blind
obedience does not suffice to excuse those who carry them out. Thus the
extermination of a people, nation, or ethnic minority must be condemned as a
mortal sin. One is morally bound to resist orders that command genocide.
2314 "Every act of
war directed to the indiscriminate destruction of whole cities or vast areas
with their inhabitants is a crime against God and man, which merits firm and
unequivocal condemnation."110 A danger of modern warfare is
that it provides the opportunity to those who possess modern scientific weapons
especially atomic, biological, or chemical weapons - to commit such crimes.
2315 The accumulation of arms strikes many as
a paradoxically suitable way of deterring potential adversaries from war. They
see it as the most effective means of ensuring peace among nations. This method
of deterrence gives rise to strong moral reservations. The arms race does not ensure peace. Far
from eliminating the causes of war, it risks aggravating them. Spending
enormous sums to produce ever new types of weapons impedes efforts to aid needy
populations;111 it thwarts the development of peoples. Over-armament multiplies reasons for
conflict and increases the danger of escalation.
2316 The production
and the sale of arms affect the common good of nations and of the
international community. Hence public authorities have the right and duty to
regulate them. The short-term pursuit of private or collective interests cannot
legitimate undertakings that promote violence and conflict among nations and
compromise the international juridical order.
2317 Injustice, excessive economic or social inequalities,
envy, distrust, and pride raging among men and nations constantly threaten
peace and cause wars. Everything done to overcome these disorders contributes
to building up peace and avoiding war:
Insofar as men are sinners, the threat of war hangs over them
and will so continue until Christ comes again; but insofar as they can vanquish
sin by coming together in charity, violence itself will be vanquished and these
words will be fulfilled: "they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against
nation, neither shall they learn war any more."112
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