Introduction
Just war: Although war is regarded as bad, if it is FOR Justice it could be considered less wrong. From early times Christians have tried to justify war and to make rules and conditions for it.
In the 4th Century, St. Augustine set out two conditions for a Just War (later added to by St. Thomas Aquinas and others) – ALL of these conditions should hold if a war is to be considered JUST.
- PROPER AUTHORITY - war should be declared by a proper authority e.g. a government or king
- JUST CAUSE – the war must be started for a good reason – e.g. self-defense, and not because of greed, etc..
- RIGHT INTENTION – the war must be fought to establish good, or fight evil
- LAST RESORT – it must be a last resort, when everything else has been tried, e.g. diplomacy
- PROPORTIONALITY – the amount of force used must be only enough to succeed - no more
- WIN POSSIBLE – it should be possible to win the war
- JUST METHOD - no civilians should be involved, and no deliberate unnecessary cruelty.
Mnemonic to help you remember the criteria:
Poor Annie Just Couldn't Resist Ian's Latest Romantic Proposal Without Playing Jelly Marbles
