398. "The world is redeemed by the patience of God. " -- Pope Benedict XVI

 YOUCAT Catechism + Catechism of the Catholic Church Lesson 398

Ave Maria series

398  Must Christians be pacifists?

The Church strives for peace but does not preach radical pacifism.  Indeed, no one can deny either the individual citizen or particular governments and alliances the fundamental right of armed self-defense.  War is morally justifiable only as a last resort. [2308]

'Guernica' was painted by the Cubist Spanish painter, Pablo Picasso in 1937. The title 'Guernica' refers to the city that was bombed by Nazi planes during the Spanish Civil War. The painting depicts the horrors of war and as a result, has come to be an anti-war symbol and a reminder of the tragedies of war.

The Church unmistakably says No to war.  Christians should do everything possible to avoid war before it starts: They oppose the stockpiling of arms and trafficking in weapons; they fight against racial, ethnic, and religious discrimination; they work to put an end to economic and social injustice and thus promote peace.  283-284

“It is not power, but love that redeems us!  This is God’s sign; he himself is love.  How often we wish that God would show himself stronger, that he would strike decisively, defeating evil and creating a better world.  All ideologies of power justify themselves in exactly this way, they justify the destruction of whatever would stand in the way of progress and the liberation of humanity.  We suffer on account of God’s patience.  And yet, we need his patience.  God, who became a lamb, tells us that the world is saved by the Crucified One, not by those who crucified him.  The world is redeemed by the patience of God.  It is destroyed by the impatience of man.”  Pope Benedict XVI, April 26, 2005

SAFEGUARDING PEACE

[2308]

Avoiding war

2308 All citizens and all governments are obliged to work for the avoidance of war. However, "as long as the danger of war persists and there is no international authority with the necessary competence and power, governments cannot be denied the right of lawful self-defense, once all peace efforts have failed." (Gaudium et Spes 79 § 4.)¹⁰⁶

Sin Spanish Civil War