Conflict within the human race is not a modern issue, and in fact, can be traced to our earliest historical records. With the rapid evolution of the war landscape, the debate over the morality of war continues to march on today, and clear answers are seemingly lost in its fog. I argue that, as Christians, we need to attack this argument from the biblical principle of the preservation and sanctity of human life.
Major Historical Theories.
While there may be several theories and sub-theories on war, two stand out as the major frontrunners: Pacifism and Just War theory. Within each of these theories there are subcategories that draw out small distinctions, however, for the purposes of this paper we will look at them from a high-level overview. .
Pacifism.
Pacifism states that all uses of violence, particularly the use of deadly force cannot be justified. Most pacifists agree that participation in war is always immoral and should be avoided. The use of violence in self-defense also cannot be justified under this theory. Rae (2009) also points out "though many pacifists who hold their views out of religious convictions (both Eastern and Western religions), other pacifists have no such religious inclinations" (p. 308).
Just War Theory.
Proponents of the just war theory traditionally maintain that only wars of self-defense are justified. They admit that war is ugly and undesirable, but it is sometimes necessary to maintain security and justice. Rae states, "the just war tradition can be dated "to the time of Augustine but was not systematically well developed until the Catholic theologians did so in the Middle Ages" (p. 314). He also goes on to say that some just war theorists have included preemptive war by vulnerable nations as an act of self-defense against stronger aggressors. While this may not fit entirely into the historical definition of a just war, it is argued that in the modern context of the world, the spirit of the theory is still intact.
