Vatican OKs Use Of Force In Middle East

http://www.catholicleague.org ^ | August 15, 2014 | William Donohue

[scouter]

I'm not a Catholic Church hater! I love the Catholic Church. I've been an active Catholic my whole life. While I am not particularly fond of this pope on a personal level, especially as compared to Benedict XVI, I recognize his authority on matters of faith and morals, and I pray for him and his intentions daily.

My criticism of the hierarchy on this point is not hatred of the Church. Rather, it is to call them back to the true teaching of the Church, which is that using the necessary violence to defend oneself or the innocent is not only justified, but at times obligatory.

You can't deny that there has been an awful lot of ambiguity coming from Rome these days where there should be clarity.

[xone]

The weapons used in war must discriminate between combatants and non-combatants.

Just War.

So no use of fragmentary weapons? By this definition you couldn't shoot bullets lest they hit a non-combatant. Bayonets and swords. Stupid idea that sounds good until the details are revealed.

[NKP_Vet]

“Rather, it is to call them back to the true teaching of the Church, which is that using the necessary violence to defend oneself or the innocent is not only justified, but at times obligatory”.

I agree. But very few wars meet Just War guidelines. Agreeing that the slaughter of Christians in Iraq is wrong and using force to stop it has nothing to do with the Just War Theory. It’s common sense.

[MasterGunner01]

How many army divisions, aircraft wings, and warships does the Vatican have? Can Pope Francis do a public relations release to be more specific? I haven seen the Vatican’s Table of Organization and Equipment (TO&E) for its armed forces.