THEO-074 Christian Perspectives on War and Peace

THEO-074 Christian Perspectives on War and Peace

Fall only

Professor Robert W. Van Der Waag

The course examines Christian perspectives to the issues of war and peace. The first part of the course provides an extensive historical outline of Christian attitudes over the past two thousand years about these topics. It does this through an examination of major thinkers within the Christian tradition who wrote about war and peace. It begins with a review of pertinent biblical literature and ends with a critical assessment of materials written during the twentieth century. The final part of the course examines the two major Christian theological responses to war that have emerged from these historical reflections: the just war tradition and pacifism. This part of the course explores the ethical implications of these two major traditions and their responses to contemporary issues ranging from the 1) use of weapons of mass destruction, 2) purpose, limits, and usefulness of humanitarian interventions, 3) persistent threat of genocide, and 4) modern-day terrorism.

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisites: None

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Fall '09: Van der Waag R (description)

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