From a christian standpoint, this means applying biblical ideas to create those practical standards. I think this will be a just war, although all conflict is unwelcome, because sometimes it is the least bad option. While just war theory is not inherently religious, there is a natural tendency for common moral and ethic systems to form within particular religious traditions. Pdf just war theory and the war on terror researchgate. Set of terms examining just war theory in texts and traditions. From the just war justum bellum tradition, theorists distinguish between the rules that govern the justice of war jus ad bellum from those that govern just and fair. Jus ad bellum is sometimes considered a part of the laws of war, but the term laws of war can also be considered to refer to jus in bello, which concerns whether a war is conducted justly regardless of whether the initiation of hostilities was just. Just war, notion that the resort to armed force jus ad bellum is justified under certain conditions.
A war that is deemed to be morally or theologically justifiable. Many just war theorists simply assume that the deliberate. If proper institutions are in place, just war norms can be adhered to, if institutional framework alleviates the risk of the more permissive norm of preventative war. More recently, profound challenges to traditional just war theoryunder the banner of revisionismhave. The history and application of christian just war theory. Just war theory philosophy philosophy research papers. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
As widely used, a term referring to any war between states that meets generally accepted international criteria of justification. It is thus about a moral reflection on the goals and the means of the war starting from an ethical vision of the human interactions. Thomas aquinas provided the most celebrated and still discussed the main outlines of just war theory just war theory traditionally has two sets of criteria. Although it was extensively developed by christian theologians, it. That is, in standard just war theory, a distinction is drawn between jus ad bellumwhether the war is, in principle, justifiedand jus in bellowhether the. The just war tradition is based on the claim that only under certain conditions can war be morally defensible.
Just war theory has claimed a middle ground between the realist tradition, which treats morality as irrelevant and even dangerous in the life and death stakes that political communities face in a threatening world, and pacifism, which rejects warfare under any conditions. An analysis of the just war theory poses questions about us action in afghanistan. On this basis alone, it might be said, the just war argument fails. The history and application of christian just war theory as related to preemptive attack. Just war theory in traditional just war theory there are two basic elements. Within christian history alone there has been an extensive history of just war theory, which is defined by the evolution of its initial beginnings with roman and greek christian. That is, in standard just war theory, a distinction is drawn between jus ad bellumwhether the war is, in principle, justifiedand jus in bellowhether the means used to carry it out are justified.
This is a body of thought that seeks to provide guidelines for when it is justified for one nation to wage war on another. Just war is a western concept and should be distinguished from the islamic concept of jihad arabic. Many leading just war theory scholars accept it as a jus ad bellum requirement and some powerful politicians reference it. Just war theory legal definition of just war theory. To know the 7 principles of the just war theory you will be able to recall, select and rank these principles justifying themoppose them. This is a body of thought that seeks to provide guidelines for when it is. In the first case, the expectation is that just war theory properly applied will tell us whether a particular war, or a particular action in. The theory of the just war deals with the justification of the war jus ad bellum and how it must be fought jus in bello to respect the moral principles which govern our individual or. In the catholic tradition, there has always been a concept of a just war. I argue this interpretation is superior to previous ones, and recommends real world applications for just war theorists to utilize. More example sentences wars, even just wars like world war ii, are inherently awful, but sometimes they are necessary, and sometimes, as in kosovo, bombing actually works. Yet, as we have defined it here as the attempt to distinguish between ethical justifiable and unjustifiable uses of organized armed forces one might take.
Indeed, he uses this classic theory to expose contemporary misunderstandings of justwar. The concept of just war invokes both political and theological ideology, as it promotes a peaceful resolution and coexistence between states, and the use of force or the invocation of armed conflict only. Aug 17, 2017 the theoretical aspect of military ethics concerned with morally justifying war and the forms that warfare may or may not take is called just war theory. War is never just, a refutation of the just war theory. Just war theory how is just war theory abbreviated. The theory of the just war deals with the justifica tion of the war jus ad bellum and how it must be fought jus in bello to r espect the moral principle s which govern our individual or. The western war theory, of the just war theory as it is commonly known, is an amalgam assortment of greek, roman, catholic, enlightenment, and modern notions of war, which have built on each other and been molded into a cohesive theory over the span of some 2300 years. Sep 25, 2016 just war theory meaning just war theory definition just.
Just war theory meaning just war theory definition just. Thomas aquinas provided the most celebrated and still discussed the main outlines of just war theory just war theory traditionally has two sets of. The justification can be either theoretical or historical. And if it is, must we meaningfully question some of the chapter 2 criteria. Within just war theory, the moral issues surrounding war are traditionally divided into two main categories. Just war theory deals with the justification of how and why wars are fought. View just war theory philosophy philosophy research papers on academia. Just war theory and operation enduring freedom, arizona journal of international and comparative law, vol. The pew forum on religion and public life, just war tradition and the new war on terrorism, 5 october 2001. Just war thinking begins with three criteria for the just decision jus ad bellum to use military force. The willingness of terrorists to use indiscriminate force against civilians means that terrorism falls outside the scope of the international laws governing armed.
The just war theory forum is connected to interquest. The theory of just war began in the service of the powers. Augustine is noted in history as the founder of just war theory in the western tradition the islamic world has its own tradition of just war theory based on the koran. Principles and practice rethinking just war theory in a time of.
Just war theory and the last of last resort cambridge core. An armed conflict occurring between two different states or parties. Augustine commented on the morality of war from a christian perspective, as did several arabic commentators from the 9th to the 12th centuries. The christian just war tradition is therefore the history of how just war theory. However, just war theory also acts to remind contenders that war is a last resort and that its essential aim is always peace, so if peace is forthcoming in any guise, it is morally critical for all parties to seek a return to a permanent peace rather than a momentary lapse of war. The goal of the just war theory is to identify when it is morally acceptable to support a particular conflict. The first principle of a just war, that of a just cause, is clearly, in my view, met in this case. Just war theory has a long history in the western intellectual tradition. Six conditions must be satisfied for a war to be considered just. An open invitation to web discussions on the conditions of just war theory is extended to all. In order for a war to be just, the war has be fought within certain rules. Oct 15, 2018 in the catholic tradition, there has always been a concept of a just war.
Stout, professor of american religious history at yale university, gave a. Pdf augustine and the just war theory joelle e lucas. The purpose of the doctrine is to ensure war is morally justifiable through a series of criteria, all of which must be met for a war to be considered just. Jul 20, 2006 the just war theory specifies conditions for judging if it is just to go to war, and conditions for how the war should be fought. Apr 27, 2014 just war theory suggests that under certain conditions it is possible to be be morally justified. As a result the theory does not satisfy many of the criteria of chapter 2 that theories are supposed to possess.
This article on just war and terrorism first appeared in the summer 2016 issue of providences print edition last august. Jus ad bellum refers to legitimate reasons a state may engage in war. The history of just war thought and its application to specific wars is referred to as the just war tradition. A special part of the interest of just war theory is that it is built on a long and rich historical development, just as a special part of the interest of the just war tradition is that it is the history.
Just war theory is typically considered to be an essential rightsbased or deontological theory. The classical just war framework provides the foundation for customary international law as well as the formal laws of armed conflict, in addition to ethical reflection. The historical aspect, or the just war tradition, deals with the. The last resort criterion has a hallowed place in the just war theory tradition. Wars fought to redress grievous wrongs or put a stop to evil have been termed just wars. Jul 20, 2006 six conditions must be satisfied for a war to be considered just. The just war theory legal definition of the just war theory. Just war ideas before augustine while war is hell, war is a reality in our world. President roosevelts declaration of war officially titled the joint address to congress leading to a declaration of war against japan 1941 distribute the following definition of just war theory. In just war theory, war should be a grave exception to the norm, which should be peace and order. Richard falk, defining a just war, the nation, 29 october 2001. Just war theory provides normative content for ethical argu ments about the resort to and conduct of war on the assumption, distinct from realism, that morality has a place in international. For example, jean elshtain argued after the 1991 gulf war that despite.
Nov 30, 2015 within just war theory, the moral issues surrounding war are traditionally divided into two main categories. Just war theory and christianity the bible and comparative. But some have a long life in this world, a history most often of service to the powersthatbe, but also, sometimes, an oppositionist history. The just war theory specifies conditions for judging if it is just to go to war, and conditions for how the war should be fought. A summary of just war theory as it applies to declaring war. Just war theory suggests that under certain conditions it is possible to be be morally justified. Augustine and his views on just war the extent to which a christian can and ought to participate in war and likewise the limits.
The theoretical aspect is concerned with ethically justifying war and the forms that warfare may or may not take. Submitted to the department of religious studies and the faculty of the graduate school of the university of kansas in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of master of arts. Cw just war theory 210115 to understandknow the 7 principles of the just war theory to be able to apply these rules to the war in iraq 5. On such occasions, we sometimes hear pronouncements that just war theory is hopelessly flawed. Shalom argues that the war in afghanistan and pakistan is unjust because it has violated the principles of last resort, right authority and proportionality.
This is a masters level paper for a degree in theology from durham university uk in 2019. Especially discussion concerning the united states policy towards iraq. The history and application of christian just war theory as. Indeed, he uses this classic theory to expose contemporary misunderstandings of just war. However, justwar theorists such as walzer take soldiers to become liable to attack by fighting in war, even if they are prosecuting a just cause. Just war theory internet encyclopedia of philosophy. Occasionally, skeptics of just war theory will also, for satirical effect, cite instances from the classical literature of causes for war that are now rejected but were once widely accepted as just, such as the punishment of wrongdoing and the spread of the christian religion. Just war theory and the civil war civil war history. Thomas aquinas provided the most celebrated and still discussed the main outlines of just war theory. It deals not with ethics as a whole, but with a small cluster of ethical issues. A war that starts as a just war may stop being a just war if the means used to wage it are inappropriate. The just war theory is an attempt to distill moral principles into guidelines relevant to warfare. Books authored by swanson include war is a lie, a catalogue of types of falsehoods regularly told about wars.
The second world war was a just war, but the allies did not always fight it with just means. The just war tradition or just war theory is one subset of military ethics. After briefly discussing aspects of the tradition of just war theory, i turn to rawlss com ments in. The first is from an encyclopedia of war and ethics and the second is an online source from the stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. In the stanford encyclopedia of philosophy, professor brian. Feb 09, 2002 an analysis of the just war theory poses questions about us action in afghanistan. Information and translations of just war theory in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. Jus post bellum moral duties that must be met after the war. The triumph of just war theory and the dangers of success. Jus ad bellum concerns the justification for the resort to war in the first place, a. Just war theory entertains concepts of both proportionality goals are proportional to the means employed invokes a limit to the carnage and discrimination avoiding the targeting of civilian populations.