War And The Christian Conscience How Shall Modern War Be Conducted Justly? eBook

A fascinating inquiry into the ancient Christian theory of the "just war" and its application today.

"In this volume, a product of the Lilly Endowment Research Program...a competent scholar deals with a major issue in the field of Christian ethics. The central theme of the book is stated in the sub-title, "How shall modern war be conducted justly?" The author seeks primarily to articulate principles of justice relevant to decisions concerning the nature and use of weapons by nations.

At this crucial period in international relations Dr. Ramsey thinks that neither unlimited warfare nor the total abolition of force is the desirable solution of the tension. He is convinced that statesmen should give attention to the kind of weapons that should be prohibited in what Dr. Frank Graham has described as an era of "mortal peril and immortal hope."

In the quest of a rationale for effective armament, the author sets forth a revised version of the "theory of the just war." After a penetrating analysis of motifs in the doctrine of the just war in the writings of Augustine and Thomas Aquinas and in contemporary Roman Catholic and Protestant thought, he presents norms by which right and wrong action in warfare may be distinguished. He thinks that there is a basic moral difference between limited and total war and that the exposure of noncombatants—including the children, the sick, and the aged—to indiscriminate bombing can not be justified. He is convinced that the possession or the use of megaton weapons surpasses reasonable and moral limitations of international conflict. He believes that justice requires nations to settle disputes by diplomacy, to explore every honorable way to avoid war, and to prepare for a limited and purposeful defense. He argues that "counter-forces warfare" is the only kind of warfare that can be conducted justly and that present weapons of unlimited power should be eliminated at the earliest possible moment."—Olin T. Binkley