The 80th anniversary of the end of World War II has captured the attention of our world in recent days. What brought about the ending of that war on the Feast of the Assumption, 15 August 1945, was incongruous—in the days prior, the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were annihilated by the force of the atomic bomb. On the one hand, the forced cessation of the unyielding aggression of Imperial Japan saved the lives of many Allied soldiers and local populations by bringing the Pacific battlefields to an end. One the other hand, the long-lasting effects of that horrific atomic event in Japan are replayed for us to watch in horror today. Those who survived tell the story of seeing the devastation of life – the lives of so many innocent Japanese. How could humanity justify the obliteration of such innocent life for the sake of peace? What led the usually peaceful Allied nations to regard this as the only way forward? And what could they have done differently to secure peace?

Well could we ask these same questions today as we face the horrors of the war in Gaza or Ukraine. No matter how much war can be justified by the various warring parties, the destruction of innocent life, including women and children, seems incomprehensible. Day after day we watch our screens and shake our heads in shameful neglect, often empty-handed ourselves in being able to offer viable solutions to intractable problems.

In his most recent Angelus address, Pope Leo XIV stated that “Those who make decisions about conflicts ‘should always keep in mind their responsibility for the consequences of their choices on the people. They should not ignore the needs of the weakest and the universal desire for peace. Let us continue to pray for an end to wars,’ said the Pope. ‘The 80th anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has reawakened throughout the world the necessary rejection of war as a means of resolving conflicts.”

The Just War theory (bellum iustum) had its origins in the time of St Augustine and was later expanded by St Thomas Aquinas in an attempt to integrate philosophy with ethics to guide world leaders in their decision making. Its fundamental premise is based on understanding the complexities of warfare ensuring that in all conflict, including the right to defend oneself, an ethical and just basis is used to resolve conflict. In his later years as Pope, Francis began to dispute this theory asking if any use of warfare could be justified, particularly as it resulted in the loss of innocent life: “I believe it is time to rethink the concept of a ‘just war.’ A war may be just, there is the right to defend oneself. But we need to rethink the way that the concept is used nowadays,” Pope Francis said. “I have said that the use and possession of nuclear weapons are immoral. Resolving conflicts through war is saying no to verbal reasoning, to being constructive. … War is essentially a lack of dialogue.”

How then can a new way be found to address the current warfare raging in conflict zones in our world today, often referred to as World War 3 by Pope Francis? In his great work Fratelli Tutti, he outlined the principles of a new world order based on the teachings of Jesus when he expounded the Reign of God and what that would look like. Pope Francis based his principles on respect for human life that showed itself in the equality of all people to be treated with dignity and to live their lives sustainably. What is needed is to examine the root causes that fester division, resentment and eventually escalate in warfare. The symptoms belie the underlying inequality that exist in our current world order.

“Social friendship and universal fraternity necessarily call for an acknowledgement of the worth of every human person, always and everywhere. If each individual is of such great worth, it must be stated clearly and firmly that “the mere fact that some people are born in places with fewer resources or less development does not justify the fact that they are living with less dignity” (Evangelii Gaudium, 190). This is the basic principle of social life that tends to be ignored in a variety y of ways by those who sense that it does not fit into their worldview or serve their purpose” (Fratelli Tutti, 106).

As we reflect on our current world situation, it is important to return to the teachings enunciated by the American Bishops Pastoral Letter released in 1983 The Challenge of Peace: God’s Promise and Our Response. It was a defining pastoral statement that speaks as loudly to us today as it did back then:

“The whole world must summon the moral courage and technical means to say ‘no’ to nuclear conflict; ‘no’ to weapons of mass destruction; ‘no’ to an arms race which robs the poor and the vulnerable; and ‘no’ to the moral danger of a nuclear age which places before humankind indefensible choices of constant terror or surrender. Peacemaking is not an optional commitment. It is a requirement of our faith. We are called to be peacemakers, not by some movement of the moment, but by our Lord Jesus.”

May our Religious Institutes continue to be voices that speak out clearly and loudly for a world order that is based ultimately on the dignity and worth of every living creature on our planet for in neglecting that principle we lose sight of anything of worth in our world.

Br Gerard Brady CFC,

CRA President.