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IRAQ WAR | ANTIWAR MOVEMENT
Vatican will not support American war on
Iraq
By JOHN L. ALLEN JR.
Rome
A growing chorus of Catholic bishops from around the world,
including five senior Vatican officials, has spoken out against the possibility
of an American-led military campaign against Iraq.
Among other things, the comments suggest that if the United States
moves forward, it will likely do so without the moral support from the Vatican
its offensive in Afghanistan enjoyed in the aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001.
The most direct statement of Vatican thinking came in a Sept. 10
interview with Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran, a Frenchman who is in effect the
pope’s foreign minister, with the Italian Catholic newspaper
L’Avvenire.
Tauran insisted that any action against Iraq “should happen
within the framework of the United Nations.” He added that consideration
must be given to the consequences for the civilian population of Iraq, as well
as the repercussions for the countries of the region and for world
stability.
Tauran’s bottom line, though diplomatically expressed, seemed
negative.
“One can legitimately ask if the type of operation that is
being considered is an adequate means for bringing true peace to
maturity,” he said.
In a later interview on Vatican Radio, the host said a war with
Iraq seemed probable. Tauran responded, “Let’s hope it is not
probable, because it would be a defeat for all humanity.”
Four other Vatican officials spoke either directly or indirectly
against the idea of war in Iraq at a Sept. 1-3 summit of religious leaders in
Palermo, Italy, sponsored by the Sant’Egidio community. They were
Cardinals Roger Etchegaray (French), Ignatius Moussa I Daoud (Syrian), and
Walter Kasper (German), along with Archbishop Diarmuid Martin (Irish).
Etchegaray, who functions as an informal papal diplomatic
troubleshooter, and who has long been critical of the United Nations sanctions
against Iraq, said he was “happy to see growing opposition” in the
international community. “The threat coming from Washington is something
that is simply unthinkable. There is no war, least of all today and least of
all in the Middle East, that can resolve something,” Etchegaray said.
Kasper, meanwhile, said there are neither “the motives nor
the proof” to justify a war. Both men spoke in response to questions from
reporters.
The criticism from Martin and Daoud was more indirect, and came in
the context of prepared remarks on other topics.
Commenting on the response of the United States to the attacks of
Sept. 11, Daoud said: “Every part of the earth suspected of complicity in
terrorism has fallen under threat. Iraq now finds itself on the waiting
list.
“Where will this campaign finish? Will it succeed in
stabilizing an order of peace, preventing war with war, violence with violence,
demanding the arms of the enemy through the use of arms?” Daoud asked. His
conclusion seemed negative.
“In the end, the arms remain in the hands of a part of the
world, and their presence expresses in itself an explosive situation,” he
said.
Martin, the pope’s representative to the United Nations in
Geneva, argued that a successful “war against terrorism” has to be
focused on development and social justice. He made no direct reference to
Iraq.
“The great weapon of the war will have to be that of trust
and respect toward other people,” Martin said. “The war against
terrorism will not be won with some ‘quick fix’ that resolves
tensions for the moment, disregarding a sustainable future for all.”
A final comment, also indirect, came Sept. 7 from John Paul II
himself in remarks to the new English ambassador to the Holy See, Kathryn
Frances Colvin.
“As an essential part of its fight against terrorism, the
international community is called to undertake new and creative political,
diplomatic and economic initiatives aimed at relieving the scandalous
situations of gross injustice, oppression and marginalization which continue to
oppress countless members of the human family,” the pope said.
“History in fact shows that the recruitment of terrorists is
more easily achieved in areas where human rights are trampled upon and where
injustice is a part of daily life,” John Paul said.
Taken collectively, the comments seem to signal that the Vatican
would oppose armed intervention in Iraq, especially if it is not sanctioned
internationally. This would mark a turnaround from last September, when Vatican
spokesperson Joaquín Navarro-Valls, speaking during the pope’s trip
to Kazakhstan, offered support for military action against the sources of
terrorism.
“It is certain that, if someone has done great harm to
society and there is danger he may be able to do it again, you have the right
to apply self-defense for the society which you lead,” Navarro-Valls said
on Sept. 24.
In an Oct. 12 interview with the French newspaper La Croix,
Tauran had likewise defended U.S. action.
“We must recognize that Operation Enduring Freedom is a
response to the terrorist acts of aggression against innocent civilians on
Sept. 11,” Tauran said. “Today we all recognize that the American
government, like any other government, has the right to legitimate defense,
because it has a duty to guarantee the security of its citizens.”
The Vatican’s more dovish stance on Iraq seems to mirror
sentiments expressed by a growing number of Catholic bishops worldwide.
On Sept. 5, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, head of the
Catholic church in England, published an opinion piece in the London
Times suggesting the proposed military action fails the tests for
legitimate use of force set out in Catholic theology.
“I am convinced that the might of generous self-sacrifice,
rather than the might of arms, is the only way to construct a more just and
more peaceful world,” he wrote.
At the Sant’Egidio gathering, two other senior Catholic
prelates expressed similar sentiments.
“We must assign criminals to international courts without
subjecting entire populations to bombardments,” said Cardinal
Etsou-Nvabi-Bamungwabi of Kinshasa in the Congo.
“Let’s hope that world public opinion will put more
pressure on those hawks in America who want to have this war with Iraq for
reasons that we don’t yet understand,” said Archbishop John Onaiyekan
of Nigeria.
On Sept. 10, a group of seven Australian Catholic bishops joined
31 other church leaders in calling on Prime Minister John Howard to use his
influence to try to dissuade the U.S. from an attack.
“It is a cause of deep distress that the threat of military
action seriously devalues the lives of all people in countries such as Iraq,
who are already suffering severely from harsh leadership and the economic
impact of extreme sanctions and bombardments,” the letter said.
John L. Allen Jr. is NCR Vatican correspondent. His
e-mail address is jallen@natcath.org
Full texts of the comments by Tauran, Daoud Martin, and
Murphy-O’Connor are on the NCR Web site
www.natcath.org/ncr_onli.htm under “documents.”
National Catholic Reporter, September 20,
2002
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