Week2AssignmentJustWarTheory.docx - Running head WEEK 2...

Running head: WEEK 2 ASSIGNMENT - JUST WAR THEORY 1
Week 2 Assignment - Just War Theory
Sherman George
Ashford University
Ethics & Homeland Security
HSM 311
Professor Karen Duffala
April 10, 2018

WEEK 2 ASSIGNMENT - JUST WAR THEORY 2
Week 2 Assignment - Just War Theory
When you look at history there has been several factions, countries and people have tried
to find ways to justify their actions when going to war by way of the "Just War theory". This is a
concept that has been around for thousands of years and is still being used today. There are some
Just War tenets that was theorized of St. Ambrose, Cicero and Saint Augustine that are used as a
guide when making decisions even today concerning wars that may be fought tomorrow. This
paper will focus on the St. Augustine Theory of Just War. To do this we must look back on its
history to truly understand it. The Just War Theory root beginning came from Christian theology.
It is St. Augustine that most see as being the first person to come up with the concept of war and
justice. St. Augustine used the Bible to identify and determine that there are some wars that are
necessary to eradicate evil. Later St. Augustine worked with St. Thomas Aquinas who revised the
original version. They did this by developing 3 bases for a Just War. These were: the war had to
have a just cause, be called on with the right intentions, and should be waged by a legitimate
authority. The Just War Theory was created as a standard of rules to be used during military
combat. The jus ad bellum provides the moral justification to go to war, and the jus in bello
express the moral conducted to be used during war.
Although there are several tenets to the Just War Theory provided by St. Augustine, these
are the four I believe to be the most vital:
1. Last Resort
This means that at military action of war should only be utilized as a last resort. The Just
War should never be an option until all peaceful resolutions has been exhausted.