Pope Wojtyla, Pope Bergoglio and the legitimate defense of peoples
The Notepad of Michael the Great
On 7 August 1992, the secretary of the Holy See Angelo Sodano released this declaration, obviously agreed with John Paul II: "To stop this war [in Yugoslavia], to bring relief to the populations and to investigate allegations of atrocities in concentration camps, for which the Holy See has more than sure news, the European states and the United Nations have the duty and the right to interfere, to disarm those who want to kill ”.
On December 5, 1992, in his speech to FAO, John Paul II said: "Humanitarian intervention should be made obligatory in situations that seriously compromise the survival of peoples and entire ethnic groups". On January 17, 1993, in his speech to the Diplomatic Corps, again on the war in Yugoslavia, he specified: "Once all the possibilities offered by diplomatic negotiations have been implemented and that, despite this, entire populations are on the point of succumbing under the blows by an unjust aggressor, states no longer have the 'right to indifference'. It seems that their duty is to disarm this aggressor ”. A year later, in January 1994, again to the Diplomatic Corps, Pope Wojtyla explained: “The Apostolic See, for its part, does not cease to remember the principle of humanitarian intervention. Not primarily a military intervention, but any type of action aimed at disarming the aggressor ”. Other times, other Popes.
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“Vim vi repellere licet” (it is legitimate to reject violence with violence), is a principle already present in Justinian's Digest (533). It is accepted by every juridical system and by every moral doctrine, except by the doctrines of nonviolence. With an even extensive interpretation, it was also accepted by the Catechism of the Catholic Church, wanted in 1992 by John Paul II precisely as an expression of the conciliar magisterium: "Legitimate defense, as well as a right, can also be a serious duty for those who are responsible for the lives of others. The defense of the common good requires that the unjust aggressor be placed in a state of harmlessness "(n.2265).
It is not enough. Further on, the Catechism reads: “The strict conditions that justify a legitimate defense by military force must be rigorously considered. This decision, due to its gravity, is subject to strict conditions of moral legitimacy. It is necessary at the same time: that the damage caused by the aggressor to the nation or to the community of nations be lasting, serious and certain; that all other means of ending it have proved impractical or ineffective; that there are well-founded conditions for success; that the use of arms does not cause evils and disorders more serious than the evil to be eliminated. In assessing this condition, the power of modern means of destruction plays a very important role; these are the traditional elements listed in the so-called 'just war' doctrine. The evaluation of these conditions of moral legitimacy belongs to the prudent judgment of those who have responsibility for the common good "(n.2309). If I say nonsense Pope Bergoglio will forgive me (after all, it is his job), but I have the impression that the right to legitimate defense of the Ukrainian people has not found up to now, in its passionate appeals for peace, the support it deserved.
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“Regarding the sending of weapons to Ukraine, I repeat what I said from the beginning: there is a right to armed defense in the event of aggression, this is also stated by the Catechism, under certain conditions. Above all that of proportionality, then the fact that the response does not produce greater damage than that of aggression. In this context we speak of a 'just war' ”. The problem of sending weapons lies within this framework. I understand that in practice it is more difficult to determine it, but we need to have some clear parameters to face it in the most just and moderate way possible "(Declaration released to the press on May 12, 2022 by Cardinal Pietro Parolin , Secretary of State of the Holy See).
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/mondo/papa-wojtyla-papa-bergoglio-e-la-legittima-difesa-dei-popoli/ on Sat, 09 Jul 2022 05:47:17 +0000.