catholic social teaching

by Rev. Paul Lansu
Pax Christi International Senior Policy Advisor

The continued existence of over 14.575 nuclear weapons[i] held by a handful of countries is one of the greatest moral challenges of our time. The Catholic Church has taken critical positions right from the beginning in 1943 questioning the possible violent use of nuclear energy. In the midst of the Cold War (1982), the Holy See has taken the position of a conditional acceptance of nuclear deterrence. The current Church teaching since 2014 is condemning the possession and threat to use nuclear weapons. Nuclear deterrence has been classified as illegal and immoral. This latest has always been the position of Pax Christi International.

This reflection on nuclear disarmament is written in the context of Pope Francis planning a pastoral visit to Japan in November 2019, becoming the first pontiff to do so since John Paul II nearly 40 years ago. Pax Christi International is having its World Assembly in Hiroshima, Japan, in May 2020. A major focus of this Assembly will be on nuclear disarmament.

Catholic Social Teaching as a framework

Catholic social thinking (CST) provides a critical framework from where to search values and norms and to contribute to justice, peace and care for the Creation. The Churches have always had the duty of scrutinizing the signs of the times and interpreting them in light of the Gospel. The social ideas of the Church, which have developed over decades, offer an almost inexhaustible richness of points of reference for peace work. Especially concerning the four most prominent (international) areas of attention: peace/security, human rights, development and environment. Within the broader political framework, international law and especially international humanitarian law are applicable.

A persistent task in the constant peace work of Pax Christi International is the goal of complete nuclear disarmament or global zero. Our world has been confronted with the use of nuclear weapons in Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945 and since then the arms race in nuclear weapons, with ups and downs, did not stop. For nuclear weapon states, modernizing their arsenal is now a priority.

Pax Christi International and especially its national sections have been acting in the framework of the worldwide nuclear disarmament movement. Advocacy and campaigning has been done, mostly within national and international coalitions, towards the national political authorities and the international governmental organisations not at least the United Nations – but at the same time towards the Holy See or the Vatican which is also a sovereign state, one of the 193 states today. The Vatican has a diplomatic presence in most of the countries and apostolic missions at the multilateral organisations.[ii] That means that the thinking of the Holy See is also formulated in the context of international (humanitarian) law. The Holy See has been warning of the increasing dangers to humanity posed by nuclear weapons. Pax Christi International has been monitoring and influencing the thinking or teaching of the Holy See on nuclear weapons over the past decades.

Papal peace witnesses

Contemporary popes have continuously upheld the importance of collective responsibility as an essential part of the equation for establishing a world free from nuclear weapons. The concern for peace and disarmament entered into the social teaching.

Since World War II, all the Popes have consistently called for the abolition of these evil instruments of warfare that create both a false sense of security and foster distrust and disharmony. Papal peace witnesses support a world free from nuclear weapons. The contributions of all contemporary popes have been focusing on the moral evils manifest in nuclear weapons when directing their efforts to rid the world of these human-generated existential threats.

Based on scientific findings the Holy See urged the banning of the testing and deployment of nuclear weapons already in the 50’s. All weapons of mass destruction in the context of possible ABC warfare (atomic, bacteriological and chemical warfare) has been condemned. The Vatican advocated for international treaties to ban ABC weapons.

The Magna Carta of Pax Christi International is the 11 April 1963 Encyclical Letter Pacem in Terris or Peace on Earth,[iii] a few months after the Cuba Crisis of October 1962[iv]. This was the first encyclical addressed to all people of good will. Pope John XXIII called for the banning of nuclear weapons and mentioned several reasons why to do so: (1) the problematic possibility of accidental deployment; (2) the cost of arms racing while poverty exists in the world; (3) a condemnation of what is characterised as the misplaced notion that any balance of power in armaments could bring positive peace inclusive as a plausible justification for acquiring atomic weapons; and (4) the climate of fear created by nuclear weapons. Encyclicals are the most authoritative forms of teaching given by the Bishop of Rome.

The complete elimination of nuclear weapons is mentioned In Gaudium et Spes, the Pastoral Constitution on the Modern World of 7 December 1965[v]. The nuclear arms race is an utterly treacherous trap for humanity and one that injures the poor to an intolerable degree. Indeed, the immense resources spent on nuclear weapons could be devoted to the implementation and achievement of what we call today the “Sustainable Development Goals,”[vi] especially the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, which are basic factors of instability in our world.

Pope Paul VI wrote the encyclical Populorum Progressio on 26 March 1967,[vii] which addressed the urgent need for integral human development as a response to both direct and structural violence. He urged governments to work for an end to all weapons of mass destruction.

Limits of nuclear deterrence

During the Cold War, the Holy See gave limited acquiescence to the military strategy of nuclear deterrence on the strict condition that it would lead to disarmament measures. In a Message addressed to the General Assembly of the United Nations 7 June 1982,[viii] Pope John II saw nuclear deterrence as very limited in time and it should lead to nuclear disarmament, which not happened. Major powers have instead persisted in their reliance on nuclear deterrence and begun the modernization of their nuclear arsenals.

During the Cold War, most of the Pax Christi sections worked hard to approach their national bishops’ conferences, which resulted in pastoral letters from the bishops on war and peace, especially on nuclear disarmament. Nuclear disarmament was at the top of most politicians’ agenda and the international peace movement including Pax Christi International were able to mobilize large sections of the population in favour of disarmament. That period is in stark contrast to today’s day where many young people are of the opinion that a nuclear weapon must be part of their furniture!

Pope John Paul II mentioned on several occasions the importance of non-proliferation of nuclear arms and a complete ban on nuclear testing via effective and binding international agreements. The Non-Proliferation Treaty[ix] will soon be fifty years old, and no comprehensive negotiations for nuclear disarmament have ever taken place. It is the opposite, some Nuclear-Weapons States are modernisation their nuclear weapons.

Pope Benedict XVI situated an imperative for nuclear disarmament within the framework of a socio-ecological duty to care for the planet.[x] All efforts should be encouraged to ensure progressive disarmament and a world free of nuclear weapons, whose presence alone threatens the life of the planet and the ongoing integral development of the present generation and of generations yet to come. In his first World Day for Peace Message Benedict stated, that in a nuclear war there would be no victors, only victims.[xi]

Humanitarian approach

Pax Christi International was present at the Third Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons in Vienna, 7 – 9 December 2014. The Holy See takes on a leading role in abolishing nuclear weapons by focussing on the humanitarian consequences of weapons of mass destruction. In his message, Pope Francis questioned the doctrine of nuclear deterrence that was developed during the Cold War: “Nuclear deterrence and the threat of mutually assured destruction cannot be the basis for an ethics of fraternity and peaceful coexistence among peoples and states.”[xii] The Holy See affirmed the immorality of the use of nuclear weapons as well as the immorality of their possession, thereby clearing the road to nuclear abolition. Pope Francis repeated in many of his message the condemnation of nuclear deterrence.

Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons

Thanks to the efforts of the Holy See, a significant number of non-nuclear states, diplomats and civil society groups were able to produce under the auspices of the United Nations the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons adopted at the UN Headquarters on 7 July 2017 [xiii]. The Treaty prohibits the use, threat of use, development, testing, production, manufacturing, and possession of nuclear weapons. Nuclear weapons have no legitimate role in politics. A major role has been played by ICAN (International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons) in which Pax Christi International and several of its national sections have been co-operating intensively.

Delegates of Pax Christi International have been present at the International Symposium on the Prospects for a World Free of Nuclear Weapons and for Integral Disarmament in the Vatican, November 2017. Pope Francis made clear at the Symposium that nuclear escalation is morally unacceptable. The Holy Father voiced concern over the catastrophic humanitarian and environmental effects of nuclear weapons use. The threat of their use, as well as their very possession, is to be firmly condemned [xiv].

Pope Francis was the first pope to call for a ban on nuclear weapons that extends to their possession based upon their supposed values as deterrents. The teaching of Pope Francis is completely in line with the policies of Pax Christi International.

Action is needed

The time has come to embrace the abolition of nuclear weapons as an essential foundation of collective security. A major task still to be done is encouraging all Governments of States who adopted the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons to sign and ratify. Nuclear-Weapon States needs to end their production and modernisation programmes of increasingly sophisticated and destructive weapons. Billions are wasted each year to develop and maintain stocks that will supposedly never be used. Moreover, existing treaties such as the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF)[xv] have to be respected.

Pope Francis’ visit to Japan in November 2019 and the World Assembly of Pax Christi International in May 2020 in Hiroshima could be a renewed time for action. It is expected that Pope Francis in listening careful to the Hibakusha[xvi] and the victims of the nuclear bombings of 1945 and that he is pleading again strongly in favour of a complete ban of all nuclear weapons.

We need a worldwide dialogue, including both the nuclear and non-nuclear States and the burgeoning organizations that make up the civil society, to ensure that nuclear weapons are banned finally to the benefit of our common home. It is hoped that a renewed awareness can be created in which Churches, NGO’s, academia, think tanks, and popular movements can be committed to a world without nuclear weapons.

The role of Pax Christi International is vital to not let hope die, to not let cynicism and realpolitik take over. Pax Christi International believes that an ethic rooted in solidarity and peaceful coexistence is necessary for the future of humanity.

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[i] https://www.ploughshares.org/world-nuclear-stockpile-report

[ii] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_See_Representative

[iii] http://w2.vatican.va/content/john-xxiii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_j-xxiii_enc_11041963_pacem.html

[iv] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuban_Missile_Crisis

[v] http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651207_gaudium-et-spes_en.html

[vi] https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/

[vii] http://w2.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-vi_enc_26031967_populorum.html

[viii] https://w2.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/messages/pont_messages/1982/documents/hf_jp-ii_mes_19820607_disarmo-onu.html

[ix] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_on_the_Non-Proliferation_of_Nuclear_Weapons

[x] https://easttexascatholic.wordpress.com/2010/05/05/pope-at-audience-calls-for-complete-nuclear-disarmament/

[xi] https://www.catholiceducation.org/en/religion-and-philosophy/social-justice/in-truth-peace-the-first-lesson-of-benedict-xvi-on-peace-war-and-terrorism.html

[xii] http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2014/documents/papa-francesco_20141207_messaggio-conferenza-vienna-nucleare.html

[xiii] http://www.icanw.org/treaty-on-the-prohibition-of-nuclear-weapons/

[xiv] https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2017-11/pope-to-disarmament-conference–world-without-weapons-not-imposs.html

[xv] http://www.ipb.org/ipb-statements/ipb-statement-inf-treaty/

[xvi] https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hibakusha

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Photo credit: CNN

Peace, Peace Spirituality, Social Issues

The motives for meaningful peace work

December 18, 2018March 14, 2019 Editor

By Fr. Paul Lansu
Senior Policy Advisor, Pax Christi International

Catholic social teaching provides a critical framework from where to search values and norms and to contribute to justice, peace and care for the creation. The social ideas of the Church,[1] which have developed over decades, offer an almost inexhaustible richness of points of reference for peace work. Especially concerning the four most prominent (international) areas of attention: peace/security, human rights, development and climate. Within the broader political framework, international law and especially international humanitarian law are applicable.

Human dignity

Catholic social teaching has the dignity of each individual as its point of departure. Each person is unique. Moreover, life in solidarity is people’s calling. Solidarity refers mostly to taking responsibility together for each person’s dignity, whatever his/her identity and so-called social status. Catholic social thought is universal in nature. Transnational problems will ask for transnational answers, especially in these times of globalisation.

Serving the common good

Living in solidarity entails striving for the common good, or the ‘bonum commune’, together. Society should develop in harmony with every person and his/her environment, and to everybody’s content. Solidarity calls for tangible acts. It is time for action. Every person deserves help, especially in situations of war or other need, such as people on the run.

As a human being, one inevitably lives in the company of others, both locally and globally. Society belongs to everyone and people thus live in a participatory manner. The social fabric in which people live has both local and international characteristics. That social fabric should be, or is, the medium for life in peace and harmony with other people and our surroundings.

Options for the poor and weakest

People are part of different social networks: family, upbringing, culture, religion, career, etc. The (shared) responsibility for social/public life lies with people themselves in the first place.

This kind of thinking requires making choices regularly. It requires prioritising the most weak and the poorest and simultaneously it requires redistribution of wealth. A social safety net should take up the delicate. It is not possible to live in freedom without there being some form of social protection.

Globalisation often results in inequality between countries and societies. It is necessary to eliminate large inequalities between people and between populations. We must develop the earth and her society in a responsible way as much as possible. The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are a frame of reference for this as well.[2]

It is worth mentioning at least two religious documents here. First, there is the 1963 Pacem in Terris – or Peace on earth. This encyclical is the Magna Carta of the global Christian peace movement. An orderly society can live in peace by respecting and striving for/realising four key concepts: truth, justice, love and freedom. The role of an international world order, in this case organised or guaranteed by the UN, is of great importance in the prevention, control and settlement of (armed) conflicts. The increasing number of threats with weapons of mass destruction can for instance not last forever. A nuclear would automatically entail collective suicide.

The 1967 encyclical Populorum Progressio – Progress of the people(s) – gave a strong impulse to the importance of development cooperation. Development became the new name for peace. Social justice has international dimensions. There is no such thing as a non-binding task to continue battling for a just community of people. Development and justice are primary conditions for populations to live in peace. The social question is an international issue.

Building bridges

Christians are mediators by stimulating dialogue and contact and by working inclusively: each person is part of society. Dialogue is aimed at the advancement of justice, peace, brotherhood and human dignity. Particularly in times of tension and conflict, openness and dialogue with others can contribute to a better society. In order to come closer to another, we must first listen to the other. This listening is accompanied by humility and entails that the other can question you. No human being is worth more than another is, people are equal.

Drawing from spiritual roots

Christians should continuously inspire and encourage each other to safeguard human dignity, both in human growth and in human suffering and dying. Reciprocal love shall be humanity’s culture.

This requires continuous nourishment and ‘resourcing’, looking for and giving purpose, also from a Biblical tradition. The gospel asks us to regularly test and explain the signs of the time. What is currently taking place in the world and what is its deeper meaning? Forever daring to ask the question: what is our society today like and what must be done to communally turn all people in that society into better people.

The never-ending effort of people to live together with others and to form a true society means that one person’s good life contributes to someone else’s good life too. Helping one another is essential to this process. Among other things, it is about care, well-being, charity, compassion, solidarity and assistance toward each other.

Sometimes it goes beyond that and one has the duty to help people in need, also ‘unknown people’ in need. This then often leads to dilemmas: where lie the boundaries of human or individual responsibility and where begins the state’s responsibility? Dilemmas are not negative or threatening, rather they make life interesting.

Reconciliation is our key concept

A key task of the Christian peace movement is the restoration of broken relations. This reconciliatory work must take place on all levels: individually, within the own family and society and between population groups, nations and religions. Reconciliation is only possible when the various parties acknowledge fault (and are ashamed of past mistakes), ask for, and receive forgiveness. Injustice remains injustice and that is something we should point out. Fault is something we must acknowledge and confess to. We shall respect and return everyone’s dignity. It comes to down to a willingness to start over again. Willingness to reconciliation is a turning point.

A certain measure of empathy is needed to imagine someone else’s pain, hurt and mistakes. This is a reciprocal process. Reconciliation is not possible without having first put yourself in another’s shoes. In times of crisis, it is also a matter of learning from and living with changes. Change is mostly generated by and in technology.

Peace work needs public space

The purpose of peace work and the role of civil society are of essential importance in an open democracy. Every citizen has the right – or even obligation – to ask critical questions in order to make a constructive contribution to the improvement of society. That is why citizens ask the political realm to protect human dignity through the advancement of human rights. An open or authentic democracy has human dignity as its point of departure, as well as respect for human rights and concern for general well-being. People and the political community especially have the duty to protect fellow human beings and to prevent disaster, misfortune and conflicts.

Living truthfully is of essential importance to an authentic democracy. Free press and freedom of speech are therefore important to find truth and to take good decisions based on that truth.

In the end, people should be true to their conscience in all their acts. That means that no one can be forced to act in opposition to his/her conscience, especially not in religious affairs. However, in the sphere of war and peace too must there be space for scruples. We shall thus have to continuously shape our conscience. People should always have the freedom to doubt, to think things over, to hear different opinions or to find new directions.

Living in a communal home

People are a fundamental part of the earth – the Creation – as the ‘communal home’ in which all creatures have a place. Ecological issues such as polluted rivers and oceans, air pollution or global warming are increasingly playing out internationally and politically. Climate change has become the most important international issue. These issues concern the direct living conditions of people and have, among other things, bearing on working conditions, fair salaries, working with clean paint materials and non-toxic pesticides.

People’s desire for ever more consumption goods is the underlying source of this spiritual crisis. The message is thus to carefully handle the earth’s sources. It is a matter of enjoying the ‘enough’. A possible eighth work of mercy[3] is the care for climate, the care for our communal home, the earth.

Most people tend to think they are the centre of the world and that their culture is the cornerstone of human history. Related to this, we can establish that we are living in an ‘identity moment’, in other words, the own ‘I’ in all its forms – like culture, skin colour, language and philosophy of life – comes first. Most people have no eye for anything expect their own freedom! It is difficult to do the opposite: to first choose on behalf of someone else and then on my own behalf!

Emotions dominate both our personal lives and geopolitics. When thinking of ‘emotions’ we mostly think about compassion, love and empathy. Nevertheless, during conflicts and times of war emotions gain different content: terror, fear, hate and cruelty. Religions, or rather religious people, are often manipulated in the process. Let us be clear: holy wars do not exist. Only peace is holy. No war, no form of violence can be justified in God’s name. God serves no nation. God stands above every nation and each population group. Peace is every individual’s ultimate dream. Peace is God’s ultimate dream for all people.

Working on peace is every person’s duty

In our peace work, we are not only addressing Catholics, but also other Christians. Ecumenical cooperation means: serving the world together. We also address people of other religions or philosophies. Working on peace is our communal task.

Building peace is not solely something done for and through ‘professionals’. Working on peace is everyone’s responsibility. Peace is every person’s calling. That is why we ask ‘all people of good intention’ to cooperate. The communal frame is the need for a peaceful and just life. Every person and population group has the right to peace and security. I am sure, convinced, that I will only feel safe and well when others share that feeling. Christian peace work offers a platform where people can meet, can communicate and, importantly, can eliminate potential disagreements.

It is a virtue to bring people together. A good society is characterised by a fruitful tension between space for difference and the search for a common factor. The political community is thus at the service of the human community. That requires social pluralism, so diversity of general good can show to its full advantage.

The peace sector not only needs many professionals, it also needs many that continue to live from a necessary indignation to seek and give meaning in life.

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[1] In this reflection I do not refer directly to the many ecclesiastical documents that apply here.

[2] https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Works_of_mercy

Photo credit: CNN

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