But Orthodoxy says that all war is sinful, though forgivable certainly.
That's a somewhat problematic idea. Certainly all sins (yeah, I know) are forgivable ... but what of repentance, conversion, firm purpose of amendment? "Forgive me ... I have sinned: I shot the enemy, and I'm going to keep doing it until the war's over." If shooting the enemy was a sin yesterday, I should instead purpose not to do it tomorrow. Nor should I join the Army, nor should I financially support an army or any of the impedementia thererof. If waging war is inherently sinful then preparing to do so is also inherently sinful. Committing adultery with your neighbor's wife is sinful; so is preparing to do so by booking a room at the NoTell Motel.
Of course, you're welcome to swim the Tiber ... I can think of worse reasons to do so than agreement with the "Just" War concept.
Comments?
The Orthodox position is that war is always sinful -- i.e. it is the result of man's fall, and it there is always a better way. It is a part of our corrupt world, not a reflection of how it was intended to be. Obviously, that "better way" is not always available to us, so yes, we would agree that war is sometimes unavoidable as a last resort. But that does not make it "just."
One of the most famous stories in Russian Orthodoxy on this topic is that of St. Sergius of Radonezh -- a wonderworker whose sanctity is hardly in doubt. When the Tartars were bearing down on Russia, he told those monks in his large monastery who had formerly been soldiers to take up their swords again, and go defend the monastery and the people against the Muslim marauders.
But the story has some clues: he sent those who had that knowledge and skill, and he sent monks, not priests or other clergy. In the Orthodox Church, if you have killed some one -- even by accident, let alone in a "just" war -- the canons forbid one becoming a priest. If a priest kills someone accidentally (such as hitting them with a car he is driving), he can no longer serve the Divine Liturgy.
It is similar to our canons regarding marriage -- divorce is allowed, with up to a total of three marriages in the church, with proper justification. But priests are held to a higher standard -- they are to be "the husband of one wife." Even if their wife died, they cannot remarry if they are priests, and if a man has been widowed and remarried, the canons forbid him from being ordained.
Double standard? Not really. The Orthodox Church is big on iconography. Priests are to be icons of the Christian life, examples to the faithful, who are encouraged to emulate them.
Same with killing people. The church's prohibition on ordaining those who have killed someone is a reminder to all that these things shouldn't happen, and that they are the result of a sinful world.
Of course our sins are forgiven when we confess and repent. But there is a higher standard to which we are called -- to avoid sins in the first place.
I hope this adds something to your understanding of the Orthodox position, which is anything but pacifist. The text of one of our most famous hymns, the Apolytikion/Troparion of the Cross, is literally translated from the Greek as: "O Lord, save Thy people, and bless thine inheritance. Grant victory unto our king over the barbarians. And by the power of Thy Cross, preserve Thy commonwealth."
The Russian church changed it to "grant victory to our Orthodox emperor over his adversaries". Today it is usually sung in English as "grant victory to Orthodox Christians over their adversaries.
On the Feast of the Cross and on the Sunday of the Cross in Great Lent I always make sure I chant it at least once in Greek -- not only is the Byzantine melody haunting and moving, I think the "real" words need to be sung every year!
The Saturday of St. Demetrius was instituted in the Russian Church hundreds of years ago specifically to commemorate and pray for the souls of all soldiers who have died protecting Orthodox Christian countries against foreign invaders.
We pray multiple times in our cycles of services for the armed forces of whatever country we find ourselves living in.
We have countless saints in the early centuries of the church who were soldiers who were martyred. Their lives made clear that they did *not* leave military service when they became Christians, as the rare but tiresome truly pacifist Orthodox Christians claim (who predictably don't even know the facts of the lives of the saints that they are appealing to -- it's a liberal thing.) Frequently, they fought and won great battles for their pagan commanders and emperors against the foes of the Roman empire after they had become Christian. The familiar theme is that they were martyred either after refusing to participate in worship of the pagan gods, or after refusing to use their military units to persecute their fellow Christians.
War is a necessary evil, although we Orthodox would probably more emphasize the evil than the "necessary." We support and honor those who engage in it for their countries in good faith, and we look forward to the 2nd coming of the Prince of Peace.