Minneapolis Area Synod, ELCA -- Synod Assembly

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Thinking About War

InterActs Article
November 2002 issue
Bishop Craig Johnson
Minneapolis Area Synod

I suspect that many of you are engaged in congregational discussion around the topic of war with Iraq. The doves and the hawks are both flying and it is important for us to have an ability to listen and speak with some important criteria that comes from our ethical tradition of “just war.”

The following are some thinking points as you move to make your own decision concerning this potentially impending war. These were presented by Professor Martha Stortz of Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary at a recent seminar.

1. Just Cause This criterion demands that war not be waged for revenge or domination, property or personal vendetta, but for protection of innocent life, basic human rights, the safeguarding of future generations. Have we met this criterion?

2. Proper Authorization A second thinking point is proper authorization. The war must be authorized by proper authorities. There is a fair amount of internal debate on this question: whether the president, also commander-in-chief, was granted power to engage Iraq by decade-old legislation passed during the Gulf War? Or does Congress alone retain the power to declare war? But is the United States itself a proper authority or is the United Nations the only appropriate body to adjudicate the situation? Should regime change, if that is what we want, be the goal of one country against another?

3. Intent What is our motivation? What is our intent: forcing weapons inspection or lobbying for regime change? We hinted at both. “Just war” thinking suggests that the only proper motivation would be self-defense.

4. Last Resort War is a last resort. It should happen only if all other means, in this case, diplomatic and economic, have been exhausted.

5. Proportionality The criterion of proportionality imposes as a moral obligation assessing consequences of possible engagement before initiating it. This means worrying about the stability of the region during and after the war. There must be reasonable hope of success to justify the suffering war will cause. And we need to be quite broad in defining what counts as “success.” This means considering what happens to the majority, both marginalized Shiite population in the south of Iraq and the disenfranchised Kurds in the north? This means a solid and in-dollars commitment to nation-building in Iraq after we leave. It is very easy in a situation like this to only pick and choose those arguments that support our position. As leaders in this church it is important to listen to other voices before positions are taken. We will still have thoughtful people on both sides of the issue but they will be more respectful. Above all, pray for wisdom from God and reflect upon the words and person of Jesus.