Opinion: Iraq Attack Not a ‘Just’ War

by Lawrence Silver

From my pew near the back of my church, I see the pastor in his black liturgical robe approach the center of the chancel to welcome everyone to morning worship. A prism of colors is visible from the sunlight streaming through the stained glass windows. Behind him on the left is the flag of the United States. On his right is the Christian flag. Standing midway between the two, the minister is a symbol of the Christian dilemma—dual citizenship. Christians are citizens of both the United States and the Kingdom of God and this can, as William H. Willimon, dean of the chapel at Duke University puts it, "cause some tension."

Tension, indeed. Led by President Bush, a committed born-again Christian, politicians of both major parties are lining up to support an attack on Iraq. Christians are encouraged, regardless of nationality, to support magistrates. God, it is believed, is the giver of all authority, and Christians are called to be good citizens. Military service is an acceptable vocation for Christians. When asked, John the Baptist told Roman soldiers to be satisfied with their pay. He did not tell them to quit or desert.

Good citizenship and military service do not, however, relieve the Christian of his or her moral obligation in the conduct of war. We believe that God will judge individuals and communities for the decisions they make. How does a Christian resolve this quandary? Jackson churches for the most part have remained silent on the matter, focusing on personal morality and salvation rather than community morality.

But our ability to sin collectively is potentially much more serious than anything we can do on our own. Thus, for Christians, issues that affect the community are not individual decisions; they are collective decisions made by those who claim to be the people of Jesus.

Few world leaders deny that Saddam Hussein is a reprehensible human being. A"backsliding" Muslim, he is not a good neighbor to other Arab states, and has been known to murder people in his own government who disagree with him. Yet the larger worldwide Christian community—the World Council of Churches, the Middle East Council of Churches, Pope John Paul II and the Archbishop of Canterbury—all oppose any military action against Iraq by the United States and Britain. Their opposition stems from a theology that has been acknowledged by the church for centuries. Developed by St. Augustine in the first century, the theory of "just war" presents seven principles for Christian communities to consider when deciding when to go to war.

Of Augustine's seven principles of a just war, the United States and Britain meet only one—that a war is just only if it is waged by a legitimate authority. Thus, government can wage war, but individuals may not take it upon themselves to right some perceived wrong.

The other six principles of a just war either have not yet been met by the administration or have not been sufficiently explained. In fact, not only do the remaining principles cast doubt on whether a future attack on Iraq is just, they question the periodic air strikes carried out by Allied forces against Iraq.

According to Augustine and the collective historical wisdom of the church, war is a last resort. All non-violent options must be exhausted before a country can justify the use of force. While the administration has made some diplomatic attempts, Bush and his supporters are becoming increasingly impatient.

A third principle of a just war is that it must be fought only to redress a wrong suffered. It remains unclear what wrong Iraq has perpetrated on the United States other than strong rhetoric.

Fourth, for a war to be considered just, the warring party must have a reasonable chance of success. That is, death and injury in a hopeless cause are not justified even if the cause is justified. We know the United States has the military power to wipe Iraq from the map. We do not know the reaction of the Muslim world to our actions. We do not know what will take the place of the current regime. We don't know whether in the long run, we will succeed. Despite the president's words, Christians, according to St. Augustine, cannot justify a war simply because our country is "good" and the enemy is "evil."

Peace is the ultimate goal of a just war. And not just any peace. A just war must lead to a better peace than would have existed had the war never been fought. We not only do not know this, but as noted above, there is a real possibility that the situation could become worse.

Violence used in a just war must be proportional to the injury suffered. Since the perceived wrong is difficult to identify, the level of violence necessary for redress is also vague.

Finally, weapons used in a just war must discriminate between combatants and non-combatants. Notwithstanding our technological ability, we witnessed in Afghanistan more than one accident involving civilians. We also know that Saddam may place non-combatants between our weapons and his military targets. If he does, I believe St. Augustine would say we have no choice as Christians but to pull back.

Many, if not most, Americans are Christians who are also dedicated to their country and want to do what is right for both their faith and their country. I consider myself one of those.

I fervently hope that Christians throughout the nation—including the president of the United States—will prayerfully consider the justness of a war on Iraq. I envision my own congregation and others in the nation—led by their ministers, standing midpoint between the Christian and American flags—addressing, discussing and praying about this crucial matter. The principles of St. Augustine, I submit, are a good place to start.

Lawrence Silver is a freelance writer and professor of marketing at Mississippi College in Clinton.

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