The just war tradition reconsidered : Protestantism and international law

Scholars are engaged in a lively conversation concerning the questions of legality and justice raised by the field of international law and the use of force. This article argues that we can enrich this discussion by reconsidering the just war tradition through the lens of law and religion. We argue that the just war tradition provides four contributions to legal and ethical evaluations of the use of force. First, the tradition provides a language of moral reasoning with which to assess the justice of the use of force. Secondly, it provides an inner restraint upon the use of force. Third, the tradition provides a morality of aspiration with regard to the uses of force, and fourth, the tradition provides strength where international law is weak. The article then critically examines the potential contribution that just war theory can provide to Christianity, in particular mainline Protestant denominations, which have in recent decades largely eschewed the tradition.