Just war theory supports United States bishops in their case against war

In an article in the April 12 issue of the Star Tribune, Bishop John C. Nienstedt responded to Robert G. Kennedy’s commentary in which Kennedy had said: "Catholics can part with bishops on Iraq." Kennedy’s statement was directed at the bishops’ statements to the effect that the war with Iraq has not met the criteria for a "just war." The president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bishop Wilton Gregory, had previously acknowledged this. Although Bishop Nienstedt agreed with this statement by Robert Kennedy, he did not believe that Kennedy had given the bishops enough credit regarding the strength of their argument.

Bishop Nienstedt emphasized that the basis of the just-war theory rests on the fact that followers of Jesus never resort to the force of violence in the pursuit of a cause, except for reasons of self-defense.

He made the point that careful scrutiny must be given to the case of preemptive war. He cited the example of a gunman entering your house. In this instance, you would not wait for him to begin shooting members of your family before you tried to disarm him. The act of disarming the man is an example of a preemptive strike which is justified as an act of self-defense.

He then made an analogy to Saddam Hussein, asking "Does he have a gun?" This question relates to the issue of weapons of mass destruction and the role of the United Nations inspectors. Despite the strong case that Secretary of State Colin Powell presented to the United Nations in February, the "smoking gun" was not identified.

Using the same analogy, there was also a second question of whether Saddam had actually entered the house. This refers to the issue of Iraq’s connections with Al-Qaida and the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Again, there is no proof of a direct link between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaida.

Bishop Nienstedt said that the U.S. bishops did not minimize the human rights violations nor the terror that Hussein has inflicted on his people.

The Church developed the principles of the just-war theory in the 15th century and when it was applied in light of the evidence presented, it showed that a preemptive strike against the country of Iraq was not yet warranted.

Bishop Nienstedt acknowledged that some may dispute the facts, but he concluded that the bishops stood on solid ground when they cautioned the president not to go to war when he did.

JoAnn Borchert is director of the Office of Religious Education and Adult Religious Education for the Diocese of New Ulm.