February 8, 2009
War . . . What Is It Good For? (Part 2)
Karen J. Diefendorf urges Christians and churches to think morally about war, national interests, consumerism, and the responsibility of informed citizens to speak when soldiers cannot.
Articles for tag: Just War Theory
January 20, 2008
What About War?
Christian involvement in war: conscience, Scripture, and the tragic view of life A longtime question haunts the author: how Christians should think about war when Scripture, church history, and human suffering all pull in different directions. The article traces poetry, biblical warfare texts, the just war tradition, and personal experience toward a “tragic view of life” that resists easy answers. The author wrestles with the irony of war and the challenge of God’s participation in biblical conquest. Church history shows shifting Christian positions—from early opposition to later “just war” frameworks. Personal stakes come into view with the deployment of the
November 5, 2006
JUST WAR? – A Valid Concept
By Jack Cottrell To my knowledge, in Christian history no one has ever tried to defend war as such, or to justify indiscriminate participation in warfare. However, for centuries many Christians have believed that in any given war, usually one side of the conflict is evil while the other side is righteous or just. In the most basic terms, those who hold this view generally say that the aggressor (the one who starts the war) is guilty of sin, while the defender (the one fighting to repel the aggressor) is not. From the standpoint of the latter, the cause is
November 5, 2006
Just War? A Question of Kingdom Allegiance
Jason Bembry shares the questions that reshaped his assumptions about Christian participation in war, engaging Jesus’ teaching, early church practice, Restoration voices, and Romans 13.
