[Arthur McGowan]

He's right about the principles involved, and he has the authority, as a bishop to teach those principles. A Catholic (or anyone else) is forbidden ever do anything immoral, and being commanded to do something immoral does not authorize anyone to obey that command. I.e., there is no such thing, in Catholic moral theology, as the excuse, "I was just obeying orders." If the act is immoral, BOTH the one who commanded it and the one obeying are guilty.

So it is not an adequate answer to the bishop to tell him that the President says we are going to war, so shut up. That is a mindless response to the bishop.

The question is: Is the bishop correct in his judgment that this war violates justice? He has no special charism or authority to make that judgment. He can be as easily wrong as right.

I think he is wrong, because we have been at war for years--i.e., the U.S. is not about to initiate unjust aggression--and Saddam is a killer who is manifestly preparing to kill again.

[jwalsh07]

The problem is that he knows as well as you do that the answer to the question you pose is not his province yet he places additional burdens on young Catholic fighting men and women the world over.

[griffin]

"Catholic moral theology"

Hmmm. What ever happened to Jesus?

[Jorge]

He's right about the principles involved, and he has the authority, as a bishop to teach those principles. A Catholic (or anyone else) is forbidden ever do anything immoral, and being commanded to do something immoral does not authorize anyone to obey that command.

Since the bishop has distorted moral priorities regarding the justice of this war, he is completely misapplying the principles involved.

It seems to me that he is vainly trying to make God's Word support his own personal bias, which is an abuse of his position in the Church.

[ultima ratio]

He is wrong about the principles for a just war. Humanitarian intervention certainly is a recognized justifiable motive for war. We may go to war justly under all seven principles:

1. The war will have been waged as a last resort. Twelve years of negotiations, sanctions, diplomacy and weapons inspections have failed to disarm Saddam.

2. The United States has the legitimate authority as a sovereign state to wage war.

3. The war would redress wrongs suffered by the Iraqi people; it would remedy the violation of a truce established at the end of the first Gulf War by which Saddam Hussein agreed to dispose of his weapons of mass destruction; it would preclude the harboring of Al Qaeda terrorists who threaten us with harm and who have been given sanctuary within Iraqi borders.

4. The war has a reasonable chance for success. Few doubt it cannot be won.

5. The war will bring peace to Iraq and to the long-suffering Iraqi people. No longer will human beings be dropped into giant shredders, no longer will husbands be forced to watch their wives being raped, no longer will parents watch their children being killed; no longer will civilians have their tongues cut out for petty offenses, or be gassed, or be silenced after their loved ones are taken away and killed, so that they cannot even dare complain.

6. The violence will be proportionate and contained. A thousand JAG lawyers have been assigned to accompany troops to assure that violence is kept within the bounds of civilized warfare.

7. Civilians will not be targeted. In fact, everything is being done to delimit collateral damage by means of precision bombing and other advanced technologies. Food and medicine have been readied for the civilian population. The civilian infrastructure will not be targeted.

This bishop has no moral authority to make the statement he has made regarding this matter. Nor have Catholics any need to obey him.

[vaudine]

This bishop is not higher than Christ, who said to render unto caesar that which is caesars and unto God that which is God's. A military obligation carried out is giving caesar or the govt its due.

vaudine

[Claire Voyant]

Are you Roman Catholic? This Bishop is NOT Roman Catholic.