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VATICAN, Jan 30, 03 (CWNews.com) -- The Vatican's Secretary of State has expressed clear opposition to a military strike on Iraq, in the strongest language yet used by a Vatican official. "We are against the war," Cardinal Angelo Sodano told a group of Italian journalists. He added that whatever arguments might be made about a "pre-emptive strike" on Iraq, "it is certainly not a defensive war." In his remarks, Cardinal Sodano advanced a view which would represent a major new development in Church teaching, questioning whether warfare could ever be justified under current circumstances. Cardinal Sodano told the reporters that Vatican diplomats are working closely with officials from Great Britain and the United States, "who hold the main keys to the situation." The cardinal raised several practical arguments against military action. He wondered aloud whether American officials had learned from the country's experiences in Vietnam. "Aren't they risking dozens of years of conflict with the Islamic world?" he asked. He pointed out that although the world's Muslims are not united on matters of foreign policy, "they do have a sense of collegiality." But Cardinal Sodano also advanced a radical new argument, going beyond the scope of the Church's "just war" teaching. He said: "It is not only a matter of knowing if this war would be just or unjust, moral or immoral. We want to raise the question: Is warfare worthwhile?" The Vatican has organized a series of discussions on modern warfare recently, obviously seeking to stimulate debate on the questions outlined by Cardinal Sodano. In a response to those initiatives, the US ambassador to the Holy See, Jim Nicholson, has convened a February 3 seminar to discuss the justice of military action against Iraq. Michael Novak, a noted American scholar, will defend that proposition. | | Return Home | About Us | What's New | Urgent Action | Getting Involved | Great Links | Articles | Contact Us | |
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