Just War and Modern Warfare (Part 1)
Most Christians are aware of the very public conflict between Pope Leo XIV and President Donald Trump over the Iranian War. The pope has condemned the war and stated publicly that God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war.” The president, meanwhile, advised the pope to stay out of politics, arguing that the war was saving lives. Lost in the shuffle are honest disagreements about the nature of just war, and whether U.S. actions qualify as a just war theologically.
The topic is complicated and requires review of scripture, the church fathers, and canon law. On one side are those who argue that any offensive war is unjust, which is the pope’s position. On the other are those who argue that threats of nuclear war make preemptive warfare not only defensible but even humane given the number of lives involved. It is important to review the arguments about just war in light of this debate. An initial review of the Bible reveals that its primary focus is on personal and not political behavior, and it’s from this that the church fathers developed their views about justifying war.
The Scriptures on Warfare
Despite the widespread debate about just war, the first thing the student of the Bible will observe is that very little is said about warfare in the scriptures. It is, like slavery, divorce, and other social evils, a sin that was tolerated because of people’s wickedness and sometimes even used to advance God’s greater good. This has been one of the major arguments against the Old Testament God – He often commanded the Israelites to war against pagan nations. This fact has also often been used by Christians to defend warfare. However, in most cases when God commanded war, its purpose was to eliminate evil that threatened destruction of His followers, and He often placed restrictions on how far people could go. Conduct of warfare without personal vengeance or murderous intent was just as important as the reasons for going to war.
In fact, most of the scriptures people commonly cite against war are related to individual not national behavior. The best examples are the sixth commandment, “Thou shalt not kill” (Ex. 20:13), and “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord” (Rom. 12:19). In the case of the former, Bible scholars have long argued that the Hebrew word tresah is better translated “murder”; not all killing was prohibited, but only intentional murder of individuals. Most Protestants argue these verses don’t apply to issues such as warfare or capital punishment. Vengeance, meanwhile, doesn’t have to do with all violence but only an attitude to get back at people. In the case of Iran, while some ascribe this attitude to the U.S., public statements about the reason for the war make clear that it was not executed for payback but to prevent a grave world disaster.
Other verses often used to oppose war are often taken out of context. For example, the verse the pope quoted, “When you make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood” (Isa. 1:15), refers not to warfare but blood sacrifices made without a change of heart. Jesus’ statement that “all that take the sword will perish by the sword” (Mt. 26:52) is concerned more about the attitude of the heart. He had in fact previously told the apostles to purchase swords to defend themselves (Lk. 22:36). His clearest command is, “If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Mt. 5:29), but it also appears to focus more on the individual resisting evil, and especially political evil.
The Sources of the Just War Doctrine
In other words, the commands in the Bible are related to individual, not national, behavior. Of course, nations are made up of individuals who will one day stand before God to defend their actions; but when commanded to war by a nation, soldiers often must kill to defend themselves or others. Christians must do so without participating in violence of intent, an often difficult proposition. While Christ encouraged nonviolence, His focus was always on a changed life, not on the niceties of such legal issues such as whether any particular government action was justified. The pacifist Jesus, like the love-in Jesus, is a caricature that doesn’t appear to match what we actually read in the Bible.The Sources of Just War Doctrinehe Sources of Just War Doctrine
If the Bible states nothing definitively about the evils of warfare, from whence do these ideas come? The answer is the church fathers, primarily those of the fourth and fifth centuries. Earlier church fathers were far more concerned with the individual, who was often a victim of government; with the legalization of Christianity and the conversion of the Roman ruling class, Christian leaders now had to contend with the conduct of warfare.
The first major writer to discuss the concept of a just war was Ambrose of Milan. In The Duties of the Clergy, he discussed the importance of justice in general and especially the conduct of warfare (Bk. 1, Ch. 18-19). Wars should be started for just reasons, not for personal reasons, and they should be waged while treating others properly. In this, his ideas appear to be influenced as much by classical philosophy (mainly Aristotle and Cicero) as the Bible. His was an appeal to Christian leaders to be ethical in war, as traditionally defined. At the same time, he provided Biblical examples of Moses, Joshua, and others that fit this model.
The other major writer to discuss just war was Augustine of Hippo, primarily in Reply to Faustus the Manichaean. In responding to criticism of the morality of Old Testament figures such as Abraham sacrificing his son, Moses killing an Egyptian, and David conducting warfare. Augustine defends them by noting that God forgave their personal sins. He then turned to the issue of warfare, arguing that war is just when made by those under God’s command or authority and not by rebels, when it defends the weak or prevents evil and not for personal reasons, and when it is conducted justly and with mercy rather than for vengeance (22:65-76).
His views more or less reinforce the biblical view:
What is the evil in war? Is it the death of some who will soon die in any case, that others may live in peaceful subjection? This is mere cowardly dislike, not any religious feeling. The real evils in war are love of violence, revengeful cruelty, fierce and implacable enmity, wild resistance, and the lust of power, and such like; and it is generally to punish these things, when force is required to inflict the punishment that, in obedience to God or some lawful authority, good men undertake wars, when they find themselves in such a position as regards the conduct of human affairs, that right conduct requires them to act, or to make others act this way (22:74).
In other words, “what is required is not a bodily action, but an inward disposition” (22:76). As long as Christians remain merciful and peaceful in heart while avoiding revenge, hate, rebellion, and ambition, there is no law against Christians participating in war. In fact, war is sometimes necessary to protect the weak or eliminate evil.
People have used the doctrine of just war to defend or attack specific wars, such as the war against Iran. In fact, an initial review of the scriptures involved reveals that the Bible says very little specifically about the conduct of warfare other than examples in the Old Testament that bear very little on a general rule. The focus of biblical ethics is personal responsibility, not political rules. It’s more about how individuals should behave whether as soldiers or citizens. Instead, the primary source for the doctrine of just war lies mainly with the church fathers Ambrose and Augustine, who extrapolate a law for nations from personal ethics that also reflects classical influence. At the same time, both also continue to emphasize the Christian’s responsibility in war in alignment with scripture. It is this that ought to be the focus of Christian commentary on war.
Next week – the doctrine of just war and problems with its application.
