The document discusses three main models of violence and nonviolence: crusade theory, just war theory, and pacifism. Crusade theory involves an absolute conviction in one's own righteousness and unlimited aims and means. Just war theory provides criteria for determining whether a particular war is just, including just cause, right intention, legitimate authority, and proportionality. Pacifism rejects the use of force and violence in achieving outcomes, based either on pragmatic or moral principles. The document also discusses just peacemaking as working to prevent war and promote peace through nonviolent initiatives and addressing the root causes of injustice and conflict.

1. Just War, Pacifism,
and Just Peacemaking

2. 
Crusade
Just War
Pacifism
Models of (Non)Violence

3. 
Crusade
Just War – moderates between
the poles of crusade theory and
classical pacifism
Pacifism
Models of (Non)Violence

4. 
Crusade
Just War – the process of demonstrating
that a particular military action is
“just” – that it can be justified by
reference to a set of traditional,
historical, classical criteria.
Pacifism
Models of (Non)Violence

5. 
Crusade
Just War – classically understood as bearing
the responsibility of proving that a
particular war is just; just as someone is
presumed innocent until proven guilty, war
is presumed unjust until proven just.
Pacifism
Models of (Non)Violence

6. 
 Absolute Conviction of Righteousness of Cause
 Division of the World into Light and Darkness
 Unlimited Aims and No Sense of Compromise
 Unlimited Means
Crusade Theory

7. 
Rules Governing Waging War (jus ad bellum):
 Just Cause
 Right Intention
 Legitimate or Competent Authority
 Reasonable Hope of Success
 Last Resort
 Proportionality
Just War Theory

8. 
Rules Governing Waging War (jus ad bellum):
 Just Cause
 The reason for going to war must be just; protecting
innocent lives and/or addressing a great wrong done
 Not for vengeance or personal/national gain
 While we might like to attack this country to punish
or embarrass its ruler, this is not just cause.
Just War Theory

9. 
Rules Governing Waging War (jus ad bellum):
 Right Intention
 Force may be used only in a truly just cause and solely for
that purpose—correcting a suffered wrong is considered a
right intention, while material gain or maintaining
economies is not.
 This is connected to just cause – while there may be a
just cause for going to war, one must intend to address
the suffered wrong and actually address it. The just
cause must lead the conflict, not something else.
Just War Theory

10. 
Rules Governing Waging War (jus ad bellum):
 Legitimate or Competent Authority
 Only duly constituted public authorities may wage war. A
just war must be initiated by a political authority within a
political system that allows distinctions of justice.
Dictatorships, rogue or deceptive military actions do not
meet this criterion. It is impossible to legitimately assess a
just war within a system that represses the process of
genuine justice.
Just War Theory

11. 
Rules Governing Waging War (jus ad bellum):
 Reasonable Hope of Success
 There should be a realistic hope for success in the
addressing the just cause, without having to resort to
disproportionate measures (nuclear attack,
indiscriminate attack of civilians, etc.). Going to war
should not be undertaken thoughtlessly or when the
cause is futile.
 This criterion is a recommendation for prudence and
caution.
Just War Theory

12. 
Rules Governing Waging War (jus ad bellum):
 Last Resort
 War is morally permissible only when no other means to
achieving the Just Cause is possible. All potential solutions,
including political and diplomatic, have been fully
attempted. This condition aims to guard against the national
pride that sometimes leads to war as the resort of choice. A
nation may have to compromise and negotiate to win
solution short of war.
Just War Theory

13. 
Rules Governing Waging War (jus ad bellum):
 Proportionality
 The evils of war – the costs in human lives and a nation or
people’s common life, the destruction of property, the drain
of financial resources – must be outweighed by the good
achieved – the restoration of just and legitimate
government, protection of innocent persons, or upholding
of international law.
 This is imprecise and difficult to determine with any
certainty.
Just War Theory

14. 
Question: How might the
incarnational aspect of our faith
inform our approach to (and our
application of) just war theory?
Just War Theory

15. 
Crusade
Just War
Pacifism
Models of (Non)Violence

16. 
Intentional Nonviolence (with or
without other forms of resistance)
 Pacifism is the intentional rejection of the use of force,
both interpersonal and/or national, to achieve a
desired outcome.
 Pacifists generally reject just war theory, either on
principle or as too destructive to be helpful.
 Pacifism may be based on pragmatism (a utilitarian or
consequentialist view) or on moral principles
(a deontological view).
Pacifism

17. 
Principled Pacifism
 The classical Christian position of pacifism, a
deontological position
 Principled pacifism holds that all violence, all along
the spectrum from war to interpersonal physical
violence, is inherently morally wrong.
 Proponents of this position traditionally derive their
principles from the life and witness of Jesus.
 The Sermon on the Mount
 Blessed are the peacemakers
 Do not resist an evildoer
 Jesus allowing himself to be crucified.
Pacifism

18. 
Pragmatic Pacifism
 Pragmatic pacifism holds that the costs of war and
interpersonal violence are so substantial that better
ways of resolving disputes must be found.
 This position is usually not as absolute or unwavering
as principled pacifism, as it can be difficult to
“calculate” the harm caused by war and the harm
prevented by war.
Pacifism

19. 
 The Quaker Christian tradition
 Mahatma Gandhi
 Martin Luther King, Jr
 Anabaptist tradition (Mennonite, Brethren in
Christ, the Amish, Bruderhof communities)
 Catholic Peace Initiatives (Thomas Merton,
Dorothy Day, Catholic Worker Movement)
 Christian Peacemaker Teams
Pacifism

20. 
 Stands alongside pacifism and the just war
tradition, not as an alterative to either one, but as a
process that persons from both positions can utilize
 Working from within a theology of peace
 Instead of merely trying to decide when war is
justified (which – while necessary – is not a
sufficient response), just peacemaking proactively
considers the practices that
 prevent war
 promote and maintain peace
Just Peacemaking

21. 
 Peacemaking Initiatives
 Support nonviolent direct action
 Take independent initiatives to reduce threat
 Use cooperative conflict resolution
 Acknowledge responsibility for conflict and injustice;
seek repentance and forgiveness.
 Justice
 Advance democracy, human rights, and religious liberty
 Foster just and sustainable economic development
The Ten Practices of
Just Peacemaking

22. 
 Love and Community
 Work with emerging cooperative forces in the
international system
 Strengthen the United Nations and international
efforts for cooperation and human rights
 Reduce offensive weapons and weapons trade
 Encourage grassroots peacemaking groups and
voluntary associations
The Ten Practices of
Just Peacemaking

23. 
 The authors of Just Peacemaking: The New
Paradigm for the Ethics of Peace and War
emphasize the importance of naming the practices
specifically. Without this, “we fall back into the
vagueness of being generally in favor of peace
while failing to support the specific practices that
make peace.”
 The ten practices constitute “a unified and agreed
paradigm” resulting from five years of dialogue.
The Ten Practices of
Just Peacemaking

24. 
 Just peacemaking arises from two primary things:
 Deeply held faith commitments
 Empirical realism – the ten practices are proving to
work empirically (actually observed and
experienced, not just advanced as a theory) in
decreasing wars.
Question: What is a way we could describe the practice
of just peacemaking in terms or paradigms from other
classes here at Asbury?
Just Peacemaking

25. 
Shalom versus pax Romana…
“Do not mistake a necessary
evil for a good.”
What is “peace”?

26. 
Assessing the Positions
Having read and watched many resources on just war
theory and pacifism, please consider the following:
List the strongest arguments of the position -- pacifism or
just war theory -- that you think to be the
morally weaker Christian position, displaying it in the
very best way possible.
Next, outline the weakest points of the position—pacifism
or just war theory—that you consider to be the
morally stronger position.

27. 
Assessing the Positions
Finally, given these points, explain why you have
come to the overall conclusion that you have.
This can be done in outline form or in short
paragraphs (or in a longer treatment, if this
assignment appeals to you). Again, length and
academic "polish" are not as important as conveying
to me that you both understand the positions and can
engage them in dialogue, recognizing the strengths
and weaknesses of each position.

28. 
Cases for Discussion
Consider whether you can make a solid case
for the following being “just” wars:
• World War II
• The “War on Drugs”
• The Gulf War (1990-1991)
• The Military Action in Afghanistan (2001-now)
• The “War on Terror”
• Preemptive strike against a hostile nation (e.g.
North Korea, etc.)