Bishops assess ethical lessons from Iraq and 9/11

Washington D.C., Nov 17, 2005 / 22:00 pm

The new questions raised by global terrorism and the preventive use of military force in Iraq were discussed by academics, Church leaders and military scholars during a colloquium at Georgetown University Nov. 11.

“This was an opportunity to convene experts representing many different perspectives to examine and apply the Church’s teaching on war and peace to pressing foreign policy issues,” explained Bishop John Ricard at the colloquium convened by the Bishops’ Committee on International Policy. The event was co-sponsored by the University of Notre Dame’s Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and Georgetown University.

“The purpose was not to rehearse past debates, but rather to reflect on future moral challenges in light of what we have learned from recent experience,” said the bishop, who completed his term as chairman of the committee this week. Bishop Thomas Wenski will take up the position.

Other topics included arms control, disarmament, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, preventive peace, alternatives to war, and the role of the Church in addressing these issues.

The discussion was off the record, but written presentations will be available, along with the agenda, at http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/international/index.htm.