[These materials are adapted from a course, Just War and the War in Iraq, that I taught to the "Partners for Life" class in the Fall of 1990, when war with Iraq seemed imminent. (In fact, Operation Desert Storm erupted just a few weeks later.) Those materials were posted, largely without editing, because they provide a collection of readings and discussion topics relevant to Christian thinking on war generally. I've modified them somewhat and reposted them because, well, as these things go, the players change but once a decade or so we can expect to be confronted with the same kinds of questions.]
There will be four weeks of study:
Week 1 (November 18, 2001) -- Nature of War and Nature of Peace. Background, definitions, etc., on war; intended to dispel certain myths about war so we can discuss it intelligently.
Week 2 (November 25, 2001) -- Traditional Christian Thinking on War. Particularly the "just war" criteria. Initially conceived by Augustine, developed by Aquinas, extensively thought out by the Catholic church during the counter reformation. The just war criteria continue to be the majority Christian view of war.
Week 3 (December 2, 2001) -- Applying the Just War Criteria. We'll look at some of the particular aspects of the just war criteria, such as the duty to country versus conscience, the legitimacy of assassination, and exporting the war to other countries.
Week 4 (December 9, 2001) -- Analyzing a War Against Terrorism. Using excerpts from news sources and the Christian principles we've learned, we'll discuss some questions about what Christians can and cannot do in this new world we live in.
I have also provided the list of References on which the foregoing materials are based.
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10/27/2001