Remix of Paul's Charges to Timothy

Remix of Paul’s Charges to Timothy

(Culled from 1 and 2 Timothy)

For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.  

            But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.   Keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.  Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

            In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction.  Keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which God will bring about in his own time--God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen.

Augustine's Just War Principles

Augustine’s Just War Principles

I'm pretty sure I've plagiarized much of this from some source, but cannot now cite it.

1.      A just war can only be waged as a last resort.  All non-violent options must be exhausted before the use of force can be justified.

2.      A war is just only if it is waged by a legitimate authority.  Even just causes cannot be served by actions taken by individuals or groups who do not constitute an authority sanctioned by whatever the society and outsiders to the society deem legitimate.

3.      A just war can only be fought to redress a wrong suffered.  For example, self-defense against an armed attack is always considered to be a just cause (although the justice of the cause is not sufficient--see point #4).  Further, a just war can only be fought with "right" intentions:  the only permissible objective of a just war is to redress the injury.  A country may not justly start a war to grab another country’s assets such as precious minerals or other natural resources.

4.      A war can only be just if it is fought with a reasonable chance of success.  Deaths and injury incurred in a hopeless cause are not morally justifiable.

5.      The ultimate goal of a just war is to re-establish peace.  More specifically, the peace established after the war must be preferable to the peace that would have prevailed if the war had not been fought.

6.      The violence used in the war must be proportional to the injury suffered.  States are prohibited from using force not necessary to attain the limited objective of addressing the injury suffered.  

7.      The weapons used in war must discriminate between combatants and non-combatants.  Civilians are never permissible targets of war, and every effort must be taken to avoid killing civilians.  The deaths of civilians are justified only if they are unavoidable victims of a deliberate attack on a military target.