A Christian Approach to Theories of War

by: Jack Huckleberry

28 July, 2009

In both the world at large and the church today there is essentially a choice of two

philosophical positions to take when it comes to the subject of war – just war theory or

pacifism.

This paper will explore these two positions and measure their value and credibility as

stances to be used by the Christian faith community, using the Bible as a standard.

But before we go any further let’s establish some jargon to be used. In this paper

a “Christian” in the context of describing an individual shall be considered a person who

honestly and earnestly seeks to live their life modelling the example of Jesus as outlined

in the Bible. This is as opposed to the person who simply “goes to church” because it’s

the “right thing to do”, “a guaranteed ticket to heaven”, or from any other self-serving,

passive, or ignorant motivation.

Additionally, the word “church” shall, as opposed to its conventional use as a

building where Christians gather, be used here as the body or assembly of Christians all

over the world; a meaning which is more scripturally accurate. To be sure, the Church in

its true form is a mystical entity, the physical expression of Christ Jesus in the world

today and through all time, composed of all who truly live for him (evidently, some

expressions of church in contemporary culture fall far short of this description, so

discretion is necessary to discern the two expressions of Christian - as those who make up

the church - noted above).

The first philosophical position to be surveyed is called just war theory.

Developed over a period of time and influenced by a combination of fourth century

Christianity and classical Greco-Roman values, it can be said to have been developed

primarily by Aristotle, Cicero, and Augustine. (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

2005)

Just war theory operates under the principle that so long as a certain set of criteria have

been met, participation in a war can be considered ethically justified, and from the

Christian perspective it is then acceptable for a Christian to participate militarily.

As cited from the online Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (2005),

Just war theory can be meaningfully divided into three parts, which in the literature are

referred to, for the sake of convenience, in Latin. These parts are: 1) jus ad bellum,

which concerns the justice of resorting to war in the first place; 2) jus in bello, which

concerns the justice of conduct within war, after it has begun; and 3) jus post bellum,

which concerns the justice of peace agreements and the termination phase of war.

We’ll now look at the rules regarding each of these subdivisions in sequence:

Jus ad bellum applies mostly to heads of state, as they are the ones who make the

decision to go to war in the first place.

There are at this time six standards which must be met within jus ad bellum. Failure to

account for any of these standards results in war crimes. The standards are as follows:

1. Just Cause - self defence or defending of others from external attack, protection of

others from, brutality and aggression;

2. Right intention - a state must fight for the just cause (ulterior motives must not be

present, only seeing the problems of just cause righted);

3. Proper authority - usually specified in that country’s constitution;

4. Last resort - only after exhausting all plausible, peaceful alternatives may a country go

to war;

5. Probability of success - a state may go to war if it can foresee that doing so will have a

measurable impact on the situation;

6. Proportionality - the state must, prior to going to war, weigh the universal good

expected to be accomplished against the universal evils expected to result.

Jus in bello, the second subsection of just war theory, can be said to imply “justice

in war or right conduct in the midst of battle” (ibid.). Jus in bello can be further

subdivided into two categories: internal jus in bello, which concerns the rules a state must

follow in regards to its own people during time of war with an outside state, and external

or traditional jus in bello, the rules for states to observe concerning enemy forces.

Internal jus in bello refers to basic standards of justice and protection for the state’s

internal civilian population in the midst of war. Surprisingly, it has happened in the past

that some crimes of war occurred against an army’s own civilian population. Examples

are ethnic cleansing, genocide, and mass rape (usually against a weak and unpopular

minority group.)

External jus in bello has six principles usually applied to the commanders, captains and

soldiers making up the military. They are required to obey the following:

1. Obey all international laws on weapons prohibition – relatively straight forward,

examples could be biological and chemical weapons

2. Discrimination and Non-Combatant Immunity – soldiers must seek to only fire on

enemy soldiers and structures/resources that directly aid the enemy in their illegal

actions. Care must be taken to minimize civilian casualties.

3. Proportionality – Soldiers must exercise restraint with regards to the use of force,

ensuring it is only the amount necessary to acquire their objectives.

4. Benevolent quarantine for prisoners of war (POWs) – enemy soldiers who surrender

are no longer threats, can cause no more harm, and so must be treated well and fairly as

individuals no longer engaged in aggressive action. Any kind of mistreatment is not

permitted.

5. No Means Mala in Se. – Actions such as mass rape, genocide, forcing captured

soldiers to fight against their own side, treachery – these are all considered unacceptable

means of conducting warfare.

6. No reprisals – the tendency to return violations of these rules with more rule-breaking

in order to “teach a lesson” is prohibited.

The third and final subsection of just war theory is jus post bellum. This criterion

applies to the final stage in a war, when the actual fighting is stopped and the aftermath is

to be determined. Jus post bellum “seeks to regulate the ending of wars, and to ease the

transition from war back to peace” (ibid.). The following are seven proposed principles

for jus post bellum:

1. Proportionality and Publicity – The peace settlement should be fair and just, and must

be made public,

2. Rights Vindication – the settlement should ensure the return of the rights originally

violated or taken which prompted the military action in the first place,

3. Discrimination – A difference needs to be maintained between the civilian population

and the commanders and officers of the defeated side. the innocent should be ensured of

fair treatment and the continuance of “regular life”,

4. Punishment #1 – If the defeated side was a blatant, rights-violating aggressor,

appropriate punishment of the leaders of the state before an international court for war

crimes is expected and appropriate,

5. Punishment #2 – Any soldiers on both sides of the conflict accused of committing war

crimes must be investigated and possibly tried,

6. Compensation – Financial amends on the part of the initially aggressive nation are to

be expected, subject to its ability to begin reconstruction and avoid new taxes on the

civilian population,

7. Rehabilitation – The situation after the war allows for a “retooling” of some

institutions in the defeated regime. Things like police and judicial re-training are

acceptable options of the defeated aggressor post-war (ibid.).

Just war theory today is, and indeed has for some centuries been considered a

level-headed and reasonable approach to deciding on the justification for national armed

conflict by most Christian denominations in North America and Western Europe.

The biblical reasoning for just war theory varies only slightly between denominations and

can be summarized in two or three main arguments.

One biblical reason for just war theory is the history of the nation of Israel. This

is looked to as proof that war and bloodshed is sometimes within the will of God.

Throughout the Old Testament Israel both initiates aggression toward and retaliates

against aggression from other nations. It is therefore reasoned that, as it is in the Bible, it

is therefore acceptable to fight in battle in certain circumstances (catholic 2009).

Another reason some denominations justify supporting war is the apparently

inherent brutality and lawlessness of human kind. The presence of evil in our species as

seen in acts of callous brutality and atrocities and simply cannot be permitted to continue

unchallenged. Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime are often cited as an example here

(ibid.).

A third reason used to support just war theory is the concept of government and

the law and order it is ideally intended to safeguard and ensure. As the reasoning goes,

God is a God of order, and as such has set up the various governments to carry out that

order. Therefore, when it happens that evil rears up in the form of an aggressor nation or

oppressive tyrant and works chaos and destruction, the other governments are justified to

step in and quell the trouble, thereby restoring order (Baer 2005).

What of the other position a Christian or the church can adopt regarding the

concept of war? Pacifism is a tradition that was a central part of the church right from its

conception.

The reasoning and logic used to explain and understand pacifism is a much more subtle

undertaking; it requires a more intuitive approach to both the essential character of war

and the essential character of the life and work of Jesus Christ.

One of the important things for a Christian to think about concerning pacifism as

an approach to war is the way in which Jesus conducted himself in his life and death.

Being born and raised in Israel in a time of occupation and rule from Rome, it is

significant that the teachings of Jesus were largely about love of enemy, as exhibited in

the Beatitudes: “Blessed are the meek, Blessed are the humble, Blessed are those who

mourn, Blessed are the merciful, Blessed are those who seek after righteousness, Blessed

are the peacemakers”, etc. (Matthew 5: 3-10)

In the culture of his time, it is significant that Jesus did not incite his disciples or the

general population he lived amongst to rise up against the oppressive Roman rule, as

indeed some of his followers were most likely expecting. Nowhere in the Gospels is

there any account of Jesus dispensing anything like just war theory.

Jesus accepted the title Messiah, one who was said to come and free the people

from their captivity; the King of the Jews, of the line of David, come to restore God’s

chosen people. But what is Jesus’ message to the people of his time? “If someone asks

for your coat, give them your shirt also. If someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn

to them your left also. If someone compels you to walk with them one mile, walk with

them two miles. Bless those who curse you, do good to them that spitefully use you, love

your enemy.” To love those who are good to you shows nothing, but the love of God will

be evident in you when you show love to your enemy.”(Matthew 5:38-44)

Nowhere in the gospels does Jesus promote the use of violence, and definitely not

killing a person – with one apparent, mysterious exception. On the night he was betrayed

he ordered his disciples to bring with them any swords they may have access to.(Luke

22:36) But even then, in the garden as Jesus is being arrested and Peter strikes at the

soldier and cuts off his ear, what does Jesus do? He reaches down and reattaches the ear

for the man, (Luke 22:51) telling Peter to put the sword away and chastising him, “those

who live by the sword shall die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52)

The teachings of Jesus are teachings of self-sacrifice, of enemy love. Jesus taught

his followers to bless those who curse you, to love. (Luke 6:28)

Another important factor regarding pacifism is the way that it is not coercive, that

it does not necessarily strive to be in any position of power. This echoes the life of Jesus

in how he too did not in any way force or impel people: Jesus’ way was a way of peace –

culminating in his death – scorned by the ones he came to save. Pacifism does not try to

force or compel anyone to do anything with the threat of harm. From the pacifist point of

view, there certainly are times when it is essential to take action on an issue of injustice -

the key factor is the activity we choose to use. For those who profess to model their lives

after the example of Christ, violence and killing are not options. These are not

characteristics that mirror the life of Christ.

A final factor in the position of pacifism is its view of the sanctity of all life.

From a Christian perspective life is sacred, a gift from and creation of God. War, in its

wanton destruction of nature and killing of human beings, stands in direct juxtaposition to

these concepts. Christian are to nurture and foster life, to emulate Christ in his bringing

of the good news: to feed the hungry, to house the homeless poor, to remove the yoke of

injustice, and to set the captive free (Isaiah 58: 6, 7) – the captive of mental, relational,

and spiritual as well as physical captivity.

In conclusion, upon closer survey of both just war theory and pacifism, it is clear

that, with the life, teachings, and death of Christ as the biblical standard, pacifism is a

more Christ-like approach to issues like war and armed conflict. Therefore in the context

of the Christian and the Church as the individual and communal expressions of Christ,

pacifism should the only stance taken by them on the issue of war.

References

Baer, H. David. 2005. “The Just War Theory of Peacemaking.” 03 June, 2009.Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Social-Issues/Journal-of-Lutheran-Ethics/Issues/June-2005/The-Just-War-Theory-of-Peacemaking.aspx

Catholic Answers. “Just War Doctrine”. 10 June, 2009.http://www.catholic.com/library/Just_War_Doctrine_1.asp

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (2005). “Just War Theory”. 29 April, 2009.http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/war/

All quotes from the Bible are from the New King James Version.