November 15, 2007
U.S. Bishops' Statement on War in
Iraq
"Our Nation and Its
Leaders Face Important Decisions"
BALTIMORE, Maryland, NOV. 13, 2007 (Zenit.org).-
Here is the statement of Bishop William Skylstad of Spokane,
president of the U.S. episcopal conference, on the war in Iraq.
The statement was affirmed today by the fall meeting of the U.S.
bishops, under way in Baltimore.
* * *
Our nation and its leaders face important decisions about the
difficult challenges and terrible dilemmas in Iraq. As the
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops gathers in
Baltimore, our thoughts and prayers are with our military
personnel in Iraq, their families, and all the suffering people
of Iraq. In this statement we seek to draw on our moral teaching
to continue raising some ethical questions regarding the road
ahead for our nation in Iraq.
Our Church both ministers among our troops and shares deep
spiritual ties to the Church and people in Iraq. Pope Benedict
XVI in his Urbi et Orbi Easter message of 2007 focused the
world’s attention on Iraq, a nation “torn apart by continual
slaughter.” As pastors and teachers, we are convinced that the
current situation in Iraq remains unacceptable and
unsustainable. Our Conference offers once again the goal of a
“responsible transition” as an overall ethical framework for
national decisions. The dangerous political stalemate in Iraq
that blocks national reconciliation finds a parallel in our own
nation. We are alarmed by the political and partisan stalemate
in Washington. Some policy makers seem to fail to recognize
sufficiently the reality and failures in Iraq and the imperative
for new directions. Others seem to fail to recognize
sufficiently the potential human consequences of very rapid
withdrawal. These two forms of denial have helped contribute to
partisan paralysis.
As pastors, we have called for bipartisan action for almost two
years. Our country needs a new direction to reduce the war’s
deadly toll and to bring our people together to deal with the
conflict’s moral and human dimensions. Our nation needs a new
bipartisan approach to Iraq policy based on honest and civil
dialogue. Our Conference encourages our national leaders to
focus on the morally and politically demanding, but carefully
limited goal of fostering a “responsible transition” and
withdrawal at the earliest opportunity consistent with that
goal. The moral demands of this path begin with addressing the
humanitarian crisis in Iraq and minimizing further loss of human
life.
We do not have specific competence in political, economic and
military strategies and do not assess particular tactics, but we
can, as teachers, share a moral tradition to help inform policy
choices. Our Catholic teaching on war and peace offers hard
questions, not easy answers. Our nation must now focus more on
the ethics of exit than on the ethics of intervention. The grave
moral concerns we and others raised prior to the war now give
way to new moral questions. In the current situation the
traditional principles of “noncombatant immunity” and
“probability of success” suggest these questions: How can we
minimize the further loss of human lives? What actions will do
the most good and least harm? What elements of a responsible
transition are attainable? How can they be achieved? What
actions should be avoided? How can decision makers take into
account both the realities and setbacks in Iraq and the likely
human consequences of rapid withdrawal? What are the financial
costs and global consequences of continued war and occupation?
And, how can our nation effectively counter the perversion of
religion and ideologies that support terrorism, which in all
cases merits condemnation?
Catholic teaching has long held that peace is more than the
absence of war; it is built on the foundation of justice. This
moral insight means that building a just peace in Iraq requires
far more than military action; it demands a comprehensive
political, diplomatic and economic effort. This effort begins in
Iraq, but it does not end there. For this reason, we believe
sustained U.S. efforts to collaborate with the other nations,
including Syria and Iran, are critically important for bringing
some measure of stability to Iraq. The responsibility for
stabilizing and rebuilding Iraq rests primarily with Iraqis, but
the United States as well as other nations have a practical and
moral obligation to act. Given the extensive devastation in
Iraq, the U.S. has a unique and inescapable obligation to
continue to offer major and continuing support for economic
development and reconstruction. Respect for Iraqi
selfdetermination suggests that our nation should reiterate our
pledge not to seek permanent military bases in Iraq, nor control
over Iraqi oil resources.
A neglected policy priority is the dire situation of refugees
outside the country, internally displaced persons within Iraq,
Christians and other vulnerable minorities. The suffering of the
Christian community has a particular claim on our hearts and
consciences. We remain in solidarity with the suffering Catholic
Church in Iraq and welcome with joy the naming of Chaldean
Patriarch Emmanuel-Karim Delly of Baghdad to the College of
Cardinals by our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI.
We recognize that Christians are not alone in their plight and
we reiterate our concern for the whole of the Iraqi people. A
staggering two million refugees have fled Iraq; another two
million Iraqis are internally displaced. The U.S. should
immediately make more substantial commitments to Iraqi refugees
by expanding admissions, eliminating roadblocks to resettlement,
and supporting countries in the region burdened with war-related
refugee populations. Extensive aid should be provided to
internally displaced persons. The protection and promotion of
human rights, especially religious freedom, in Iraq remain
critically important. Iraq’s future stability is related to the
stability of the region. This is why U.S. leadership to advance
a just peace for Israelis and Palestinians is critical. The
continuing failure to achieve the vision of two states living
side by side in peace and justice contributes to regional
instability.
Real progress toward a fair and just Israeli-Palestinian
agreement would help the region and deprive extremists of a
cause they exploit to promote hate and violence. In a recent
letter to Secretary of State Rice our Conference has also
expressed deep concern regarding the difficult situation
involving our nation, the international community and Iran, and
has urged caution, determination, and restraint in the use of
force. The volatile situations in Pakistan and Afghanistan also
raise significant moral questions and require urgent attention
if regional stability is to be enhanced.
In all military actions, ethical norms require protecting
civilians, using proportionate and discriminate force, rejecting
torture, and fighting terrorism with nonmilitary means and the
legitimate use of force when necessary. This is morally
essential and also necessary for winning hearts and minds,
especially in the struggle against terrorism. Our concern for
human life and dignity extends to the members of our own
military. We support those who risk their lives in the service
of our nation and recognize their generous commitment. U.S.
policy must take into account the growing costs and consequences
of a continued occupation on military personnel, their families
and our nation. There is a moral obligation to deal with the
human, medical, mental health and social costs of military
action. Our nation must also make provisions for those who in
conscience exercise their right to conscientious objection or
selective conscientious objection.
Each course of action in Iraq should be weighed in light of the
traditional moral principle of “probability of success.” In
other words, will the action contribute to a “responsible
transition” and withdrawal as soon as appropriate and possible?
This principle requires our nation’s leaders to be more
realistic about the difficult situation in Iraq and more
concerned about the likely consequences of a withdrawal that is
too rapid or not rapid enough. The morally and politically
demanding, but carefully limited goal of responsible transition
should aim to reduce further loss of life and to address the
humanitarian crisis in Iraq, the refugee crisis in the region,
the need to help rebuild the country, and human rights,
especially religious freedom.
We call on Catholics and others to persist in praying for peace
and those most effected by the war and to engage these moral
questions. To help our people reflect on the war, Bishop Thomas
G. Wenski, the Chairman of our Committee on International
Policy, has prepared a summary of our Conference’s perspectives
on the war in question-and-answer format. All of us must
struggle with these moral questions, but in a particular way,
our Conference and individual bishops will continue to engage
policy makers on the moral and human dimensions of this
conflict. We pray and hope that policy makers begin to work
together on a bipartisan basis to bring an end to this war and
occupation at the earliest opportunity consistent with the
limited goal of a responsible transition and the protection of
human lives -- Iraqi and American.
