According to St Augustine, When Can a War Be Just, Can It Ever Be Holy?
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According to St Augustine, when can a war be just, can it ever be holy?
St Augustine is considered to be one of the founding fathers on the theory of just war and further debates over Christian war ethics, however it would seem that his interpretation, although subject to a great deal of debate, has been slightly misunderstood. The idea of a just war, relates to a situation within which war or violence, can be justified as fair and necessary. However, St Augustine’s theory is rather more diverse and complicated than this, and one must acknowledge that his interpretation relies completely upon a medieval, Augustinian definition of war and justice, and that roman society and warfare were integrally different and irrelevant to the forms one witnesses today. War, during the fourth century, seems to be understood and referred to by St Augustine and his peers as civil unrest as well as foreign conflict, however indeed more often than not it simply referred to civil unrest. Hence it would be relevant to question why the works of St Augustine on conflict and war have been used so readily to justify foreign conflicts. St Augustine’s interpretation of justice also differs greatly to that which one understands today, and the conditions that defined a war as just, are also complex. The first of such conditions would be the reason for which war was waged, for although Augustine has not specifically addressed this issue, it would seem that he condoned only war waged with the eventual aim of peace and order. As he outlined in his letter to Boniface, “peace should be the object of your desire, war should be waged only as a necessity.” Hence it is also clear that St Augustine’s acknowledgment of a just war was given only with the view that its eventual aims were the establishment and maintenance of harmony and accord and it is common within his works to find discussions over the issue of order. Another reason that St Augustine used to justify war, is its initiation by a higher...
St Augustine is considered to be one of the founding fathers on the theory of just war and further debates over Christian war ethics, however it would seem that his interpretation, although subject to a great deal of debate, has been slightly misunderstood. The idea of a just war, relates to a situation within which war or violence, can be justified as fair and necessary. However, St Augustine’s theory is rather more diverse and complicated than this, and one must acknowledge that his interpretation relies completely upon a medieval, Augustinian definition of war and justice, and that roman society and warfare were integrally different and irrelevant to the forms one witnesses today. War, during the fourth century, seems to be understood and referred to by St Augustine and his peers as civil unrest as well as foreign conflict, however indeed more often than not it simply referred to civil unrest. Hence it would be relevant to question why the works of St Augustine on conflict and war have been used so readily to justify foreign conflicts. St Augustine’s interpretation of justice also differs greatly to that which one understands today, and the conditions that defined a war as just, are also complex. The first of such conditions would be the reason for which war was waged, for although Augustine has not specifically addressed this issue, it would seem that he condoned only war waged with the eventual aim of peace and order. As he outlined in his letter to Boniface, “peace should be the object of your desire, war should be waged only as a necessity.” Hence it is also clear that St Augustine’s acknowledgment of a just war was given only with the view that its eventual aims were the establishment and maintenance of harmony and accord and it is common within his works to find discussions over the issue of order. Another reason that St Augustine used to justify war, is its initiation by a higher...