Q3 History Test: Just War Theory

just war theory

how and why wars are fought

The criteria are split into two groups:

Jus Ad Bellum & Jus In Bello

just war theory

how and why wars are fought

The criteria are split into two groups:

Jus Ad Bellum & Jus In Bello

Jus Ad Bellum

"right to go to war" – the morality of going to war

Jus In Bello

"right conduct in war" – moral conduct during war

the Rules of Just Conduct fall into two principles:

discrimination & proportionality

discrimination

concerns who are legitimate targets in war

proportionality

concerns how much force is morally appropriate

who originated the christian theory of Just War?

St. Augustine

St Augustine’s beliefs in Just War:

He thought that Christians, acting as part of a government, shouldn’t be ashamed of punishing evil and wickedness when they are forced by the government to do so; individuals should not resort immediately to violence, but God has given the sword to the government for a good reason

St Thomas Aquinas’s requirements for a Just War:

1. the war must be waged by a rightful sovereign.

2. the war needs to be waged for just cause, on account of some wrong the attacked have committed.

3. warriors must have the right intent, namely to promote good and to avoid evil

St Thomas Aquinas’s belief of a Just War:

a just war could be offensive; injustice should not be tolerated to avoid war and violence must only be used as a last resort; it was only in the pursuit of justice, that the good intention of a moral act could justify negative consequences, including the killing of the innocent during a war.

Jus Ad Bellum conditions:

Just Authority, Just Cause, Just Intention, and Last Resort

Just Authority

a just war must be initiated by a political authority within a political system that allows distinctions of justice.

Just Cause

If a cause cannot be shown, many people will reject the call to war. It is not enough to simply
claim to have a cause. We must be able to show that some wrong has been committed by
one nation for which war is the proper redress by another.

Just Intention

sets a limit to the extent of the war (once war has been going on for a while, they will come to a negotiation and cease-fire)

Last Resort

War is morally permissible only when no other means to achieve the Just Cause is possible; the condition requires that political and diplomatic approaches to a solution have been fully attempted

Jus In Bello conditions:

providing standards of conduct for nation’s armies, and individual soldiers at war; Armies must maintain some standards of lawful vs. criminal behavior.