Just War Theory

"Principles of the Just War"

1. A just war can only be waged as a last resort. All non-violent options must be exhausted before the use of force can be justified.
2. A war is just only if it is waged by a legitimate authority. Even just causes cannot be served by actions taken by individuals or groups who do not constitute an authority sanctioned by whatever the society and outsiders to the society deem legitimate.
3. A just war can only be fought to redress a wrong suffered. For example, self-defense against an armed attack is always considered to be a just cause (although the justice of the cause is not sufficient to justify war--see point #4). Further, a just war can only be fought with right purpose: the only permissible objective of a just war is to redress the injury.
4. A war can only be just if it is fought with a reasonable chance of success. Deaths and injury incurred in a hopeless cause are not morally justifiable.
5. The ultimate goal of a just war is to re-establish peace. More specifically, the peace established after the war must be preferable to the peace that would have prevailed if the war had not been fought.
6. The violence used in the war must be proportional to the injury suffered. States are prohibited from using force not necessary to attain the limited objective of addressing the injury suffered.
7. The weapons used in war must discriminate between combatants and non-combatants. Civilians are never permissible targets of war, and every effort must be taken to avoid killing civilians. The deaths of civilians are justified only if they are unavoidable victims of a deliberate attack on a military target. "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."

My personal view: Every war is and should be a religious war. If the combatants do not think that their actions are pleasing to God and in keeping with the laws of human nature (the natural law), then they have no business taking life or risking life in combat.

The Catholic Church is infallible in teaching about faith and morals. It is NOT infallible in declaring that the conditions for a just war do or do not exist. Church leaders may offer their opinions about particular circumstances, but they do so as responsible citizens and NOT as the authoritative teachers of the tradition.

Prudence is wisdom about practical matters. It is the virtue by which we judge what is to be done in specific situations. Intelligent, well-intentioned people often disagree about what ought to be done in particular circumstances. "A stitch in time saves nine" but "Haste makes waste." "Look before you leap" but "He who hesitates is lost." "Strike while the iron is hot" but "Marry in haste, repent at leisure." "A penny saved is a penny earned" but "Penny wise and pound foolish."

Deciding whether a particular war is just or not requires prudential judgment. The Church's claim to infallibility does NOT cover matters like this; only those elements of practical judgment that are intrinsically related to the deposit of faith are within the scope of the Church's teaching authority. The Church presents the essential principles of morality, but it is up to the well-formed conscience of the individual to determine how the principles apply to particular cases.

I think it is a grave error to attribute sin, the violation of religious traditions, to the religious traditions themselves. The Catholic and Protestant terrorists who have murdered hundreds of innocent civilians are not acting on Christian principles. The priests who abused children did not act on the principles of the Catholic Church. The Muslim suicide-murderers who have killed thousands of innocent people do not represent the best interpretation of the religion of Islam [Problem: Muhammed was a warrior who led troops in battle]. The Polish people who massacred Jews routinely from 1648 to World War II violated the teachings of the Church. "Wars of religion" are rooted in sin, not in religion. The antidote to such sins lies in embracing true religion, not in rejecting religion.