Religion and War

Reasons why people go to war

1. To defend their country e.g WWII2. To defend religious beliefs, political

beliefs, their freedom or way of life3. To defend an ally or other nation 4.To gain wealth, power, land or

resources5. To remove their own government or

leader6. To stop atrocities e.g mass murder

Afghanistan

9/11 – Bin Laden and Al Qaeda flew the planes into the twin towers

At the time the Taliban government ruled Afghanistan and allowed terrorist camp in their country

The Taliban refused to give up Bin Laden so USA and Allies invaded and removed them from government

Consequences of War 

1. Some can be positive e.g Freedom / removing a corrupt government / stopping terrorism

2. Mostly death or injuries of those fighting

3. Infrastructure like the economy, schools, water supplies, disease and famine can be affected.

Key Terms Peace The absence of conflict and a real

sense of well being or security. An inner peace of prayer and meditation

Justice Justice is treating people fairly.

Without justice there can’t be peace, unfairness leads to conflict. Real peace exists with human rights and no threat of oppression.

Key Terms

Sanctity of life

All life is special and should be respected at all costs. In a war situation you should value all life even the life of the enemy

Pacifism

Based on the belief that all violence is wrong. War can never be justified it is against their conscience "Conscientious objectors“

Some will work as first aid workers

Sanctity of life

The Sanctity of life is the belief that all human life is sacred, it is special and should not be destroyed.

Christians believe that life is a gift from God it should be respected at all costs.

Muslims believe that life is given by Allah and he is the only one who should take it away.

Christianity and Pacifism

Some Christians follow the example of Jesus and follow peaceful means, they will die for their beliefs but will not kill for them.

Often in times of war they will help with first aid or ambulance drivers but not as troops.

The Quakers (type of Christian) put particular emphasis on pacifism.

Islam and Peace

Muslims prefer to live in a peaceful and fair world.

The Qur'an (holy writings) teaches that peace is better than violence

Muslims try to forgive each other for wrong doings

Allah (God) prefers peace to violence

Just War Theory

1. This is for the CHRISTIAN religion and it is 7 conditions that must be met for a war to be considered as RIGHT

Conditions – Number 1

War must be declared by the head of state -

The Prime Minister – David Cameron

Conditions – Number 2

A just cause is needed

A good reason to go to war such as the defence of the country or to stop terrorism

Conditions – Number 3

The reason for War must be for good not evil

You can not go to war with evil intentions such as to wipe out another race of people

Condition 4

The war must be a last resort

peace talks must have taken place

Condition 5

It must have a reasonable chance of success

V

Condition 6

Just means – innocent people must be protected and excessive force should not be used

Condition 7

The war should only take place if the good achieved will outweigh the evil that led to the war

Holy War

Holy war was a concept in ancient times that people considered was a war for God. The Crusades is a good example of this.

A Holy war must have three elements 1. War must have a religious goal 2. A religious leader must authorise

the war 3. There must be a spiritual gain for

those who fight

Reasons for a Holy War

1. To spread faith

2. To recover countries that used to follow the religion

3. To rescue religious people in hostile countries

4. To re capture sacred places

Islam and War

It is allowed in self defense and to defend Islam – or people who are oppressed.

A Jihad war is an idea that comes from the Qur'an

Islam and War

War is permitted only when it is morally right and under clear guidelines.

It is controlled by a religious leader It has a Just Cause and is a Last

Resort Keep suffering to a minimum

including the environment It is not for an act of aggression or to

gain territory

Red Cross / Red Crescent

The Red Cross has 97 million volunteers worldwide. They are neutral in war. They help to stop suffering without any discrimination of nationality, religion or political opinion.

Part of the group is responsible for injured soldiers, searching for missing people and protecting civilians. They provide first aid care

Another part of the Red Cross responds when there is a major disaster such as earthquakes or tsunamis.

Irena Sendler

Irena Sendler was a Roman Catholic (Christian) During the Nazi attack in WWII she was a member of the Polish resistance who offered Jews food and shelter.

They helped created over 3000 false documents so Jewish families could avoid arrest.

She also organised the smuggling of Jewish children from the Ghettos and placing them with Polish families so they would be safe.

Dalai Lama

Born In Tibet

China invaded Tibet and he fled to India

Came up with a 5 point peace plan

Refused to consider violence to win back his country

Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

United Nations

The UN was set up at the end of WWII and now has 192 member states. Its aims are

To help countries cooperate with each other.

The protection of human rights – disable mines

To establish world peace. Sometimes the UN directly intervenes in a

conflict or it sends peace keeping forces to help stop the fighting and protect the civilians.

Nato / Terrorism

NATO was created as military alliance of 26 European countries, Canada and the USA, if a NATO country is attacked then other members of the alliance will come to their aid.

Terrorism is the unlawful use of extreme violence to achieve a political goal. The object is to achieve maximum publicity and terror. Most people think that it can never be justified as it harms innocent people

Weapons of Mass Destruction

Biological weapons have bacteria or viruses that can cause fatal diseases.

Chemical weapons were banned in 1925 but have been used since. They can cause choking, paralysis and damage to the environment.

Nuclear weapons

Nuclear weapons cause huge devastation. First used against Japan (Hiroshima) they can not only kill people by the initial blast but also the radioactive property. Now nuclear weapons have enough power to destroy life on Earth several times over!

For / Against

For A deterrent (Stops

people attacking the country)

Stopped the fighting in WWII which would have resulted in the death of many soldiers

Against Unacceptable suffering to

innocent people

An irresponsible government / terrorist might use them

Goes against the Just War Theory because innocent people are targeted

PROLIFERATION- spreading of nuclear weapons country to country