Augustine and the Limits of Preemptive and Preventive War
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 14760306 |
|---|---|
| Authors | J Warren Smith (0000-0001-7344-3054), Josh SMITH (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2007 |
| Volume | 35 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 141-162 |
| Publication date | 2007-03-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Religious Ethics (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0384-9694 • E-ISSN: 1467-9795 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/j.1467-9795.2007.00298.x |
| OpenAlex | W2000931116 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 8 |
| References cited | 11 |
While Michael Walzer's distinction between preemptive and preventive wars offers important categories for current reflection upon the Bush Doctrine and the invasion of Iraq, it is often treated as a modern distinction without antecedent in the classical Christian just war tradition. This paper argues to the contrary that within Augustine's corpus there are passages in which he speaks about the use of violence in situations that we would classify today as preemptive and preventive military action. While I do not claim that Augustine makes an explicit distinction between the two types of war (such would be anachronistic), I will argue that based on examinations of De libero arbitrio I.v.11–12 and De civitate Dei I.30 Augustine's discussions of hypothetical cases or actual wars in history provide insights helpful for contemporary reflection on preemptive and preventive wars
Action (physics · Anachronism · Antecedent (behavioral psychology · Doctrine · Epistemology · Just war theory · Political science · Politics · Spanish Civil War · Augustinian Studies and Theology · History · Law · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology · Theology and Philosophy of Evil · War, Ethics, and Justification
| Unique citing works | 8 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,44 |
| Citation span | 2008 - 2025 (18) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 7 |