Dear Brothers and Sisters,

 

As we look at the necessary parameters for a just war, we should also recognize that a war can be just and still cause grave harm. Indeed, nearly every war will result in the loss of many human lives, the displacement of peoples, damage to economies and an increase in poverty and suffering. Even if a war is just, we should still pray for an end to the war. We should pray that all sides seek other alternatives to violence and killing so that by diplomacy and negotiations we can address wrongs and protect lives. If bishops or even the Pope calls for and prays for a war to end, it does not automatically mean that the war is unjust. I hope everyone prays for peace.
 

The second major principle to examine when looking to see if a war or conflict is just is to see if there is just cause. If the cause, or reason, for beginning the war is unjust – such as motivated by greed or the desire to take territory – then the war is unjust. The most classically accepted reason to declare war is self-defense – if one nation has first declared war or already invaded the territory of another nation, that second nation would have just cause. Other examples of just causes might be to protect innocents or to correct a wrong.
 

In the current conflict with Iran, it can be difficult to determine the exact reason for entering the war because our government officials have given different answers at different times (which is concerning in itself). But as I mentioned in the previous article, we are unlikely to know all of the state details about what is happening and what is likely to happen. We do know that Iran and its government has been very hostile to the United States and its allies (chanting “Death to America”). Intelligence reports indicate that they have been a major supporter of different terrorist organizations that have attacked and killed civilians, foster fear and the destabilization of the world, and that they were working to obtain or create nuclear weapons (or at least were unwilling to give up that goal). If it is the case that they state they would use any nuclear weapons against others, or that those weapons would be given to terrorist organizations, that might be just cause for conflict. A preemptive war – declaring war to prevent war or because you suspect the enemy is about to declare war on you – is possible under just war theory, but requires a strict examination of imminent threat. If the opposing force has a massive buildup of troops on the border and you have intelligence suggesting they will be crossing that border soon, you do not need to wait for them to invade before firing upon them. Personal self-defense is the same way; you do not need to wait for someone with a gun to fire upon you before you can respond if you have reasonable belief that they are threatening your life (and that will still likely go through a lengthy legal case to determine how reasonable it was). If there was reasonable intelligence that there was an imminent threat of attack by Iran, or that Iran would support terrorists to carry out an imminent attack, there would likely be just cause for engaging in the conflict. There could also be just cause if the reason for the war was to protect innocents and stop the Iranian government from the extreme slaughter of its civilian protesters (with estimates ranging up to 30,000 killed in the last year alone). Because we do not have certainty on the exact reasons for engaging in the conflict, but can determine that there easily could be just cause, we cannot use this parameter to definitively declare the war is unjust.

Peace in Christ,

Father Timothy