The Modern Catholic Just War Tradition

Publisher Marketing: Warfare in the modern era is especially destructive and has the potential to be worse in the years to come, which encouraged-Catl: lolic_writers_aod_tbiokers_to_ask.que"stio_ns_ab_o_u_tbow to __ aRpl}' the Just War tradition in the modern ag ___ .:: During the Twentieth Century the world endured two horribly destructive wars in Europe, which cost the lives of millions I and arguably broke the backs of the European powers. The Pacific theater of war was brought to conclusion by the ! employment of two nuclear bombs on two separate Japanese cities and ushered in the nuclear age and the Cold War. While superpowers avoided a direct peer-on-peer war, the Cold War manifested itself in smaller conflicts throughout Asia and eentrai-America-and-cultivated-fear-and-suspicin-among-the-world-population-brought-about-by-the-arms-race.--- ----- Once the Cold war was over, the proliferation of weapons and the problem of terrorism was prevalent. These conditions, which were exacerbated by high profile terrorist attacks, notably, the September 11, 2001 attacks on the twin towers, inspired a variety of different interpretations of the proper direction of the Just War tradition, because the circumstances revealed lethal types of warfare not present during the original formulation of the tradition. Three prominent points of view-are at work-in modern Catholic thought. -They.are.notthe result of the September J. Lattacks, but the_ events_ of __ _ - modern warfare provide a useful context for the necessity of developing a deeper understanding of the Just War tradition. One prevailing idea is the notion of pacifism . Another can be referred to as the 'presumption against war', which is not quite pacifist, but has a powerful disposition against the use of violence. A third idea can be referred to as tlle presumRtion for justice', which does not relish the use of force; however, it asserts the concept that sometimes war I is necessary in order to protect the common good. War is horrible and destructive and it is important to understand its moral context in order to develop clarity for decision making regarding war."