CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION
resist being forced into a situation where you may be required to kill or seriously harm another person. One of the questions of the youngsters we taught was "Does conscientious objection apply to things other than war? The answer is "Yes!" But when we speak of conscientious objection it is usually in terms of resistance to the draft. We will use as the basis of this page some of the more pertinent questions posed by the young people in our sessions. However we will say a few things in general about conscientious objection first. 1. A quote from the words of Pope John Paul 2 to young people: "On my knees I beg you to turn away from the paths of violence ... I say to you, with all the love I have for you, with all the trust I have in young people: do not listen to voices which speak the language of hatred, revenge, retaliation. Do not follow any leaders who train you in the way of inflicting death. ... Give yourself to the service of life, not the work of death. Violence is the enemy of justice. Only peace can lead the way to true justice." 2. At present we do not have a draft and so no one is coerced into the military. However, before you sign up for the draft there are a few things to consider. The benefits you are offered, especially education, health insurance and even financial benefits sound great but you have to live to spend them. As far as the health benefits, investigate the Government's track record not their claims. At least 250,000 veterans are unable to work. Most of them are being denied health benefits because the Government maintains that the physical problems the have are really only psychological problems resulting from the trauma of war. This is not true. Even if they are the Government does acknowledge them as the reslt of their experience in war. But refuses to accept financial responsibility for their placing these veterans in such a damaging situation. 3. The teaching on conscientious objection is clear. Our conscientious objection does not excuse us from the responsibility of service. It simply states that the Government has a responsibility to provide us with an alternative form of service to the military draft. 4. The United Nations and many nations recognize the right of an individual to the conscientious objector status. The United States at present does not. There is no assurance you will not be prosecuted if you refuse to sign up for the draft if the draft is reinstated. 5. In the event of a draft being reinstated it is recommended that you not register. It is easier to prove your legitimacy as a conscientious objector if you refuse to register than if you register and then try to prove you are a conscientious objector. Some persons write on the draft form "I am a conscientious objector." If you do that, keep a copy of your draft form. It is even more difficult to be recognized as a conscientious objector before entering the military than after you enter. SOME OF THE YOUNG PEOPLE'S QUESTIONS IF I THINK WAR IS WRONG, AND THERE IS A DRAFT, DO I HAVE TO GO? No. That is the whole sense of conscientious objection. You are not forced to do anything against your own conscience. As stated above this does not excuse you from responsibility of service. It does not mean you status will be recognized. The Catechism of he Catholic Church says this: "Public authorities should make equitable provision for those who for reasons of conscience refuse to bear arms; these are nonetheless required to serve the human community in some other way. Op. cit. #2311 WHY MUST YOU BE FORCED AGAINST YOUR WILL TO FIGHT? ISN'T THAT A CRIME IN ITSELF? DOING SOMETHING BY FORCE? Yes it is! Your question says it well. That is why it is important to express conscientious objection status. We are resisting not some possible foreign oppressor but our own Government who is forcing us into something we know is wrong. DOES GOD LOOK ON US AS SINNING WHEN WE KILL SOMEBODY IN WAR? Yes! Thou shalt not kill does not say "this edict does not apply in war." The problem is not how God looks at us. God ALWAYS forgives. We are the one who must live with the consequences of our own actions. Even though expressing our thoughts on conscientious objection may lead to serious personal consequences, there is nothing more serious than a guilty conscience. No court of law, no judge, no religious leader can free us from our sense of personal guilt. As a priest and a confessor I know that is THE most serious problem people face. WOULD YOU GO TO WAR IF YOU DIDN'T AGREE WITH IT BUT WANTED TO DEFEND YOUR COUNTRY? Your question expresses the dilemma many younger persons face: how do I measure my patriotic duty, my desire to protest myself, my family, my friends against my own innate sense that war is wrong. Maybe these few pointers can help. 1. Make sure your actions are really protecting your country, that your country really IS at risk. We have seen in recent wars that the reason(s) given for the war (e.g. weapons of mass destruction supposedly owned by Saddam Hussein) do not exist. So why did we fight this war? 2. If there is a genuine risk is there any other alternative to war? Has proper negotiation been used? Could the matter be submitted to an international body of arbitration? 3. Have you looked into the profit motive? Who will make money off of this war? How much of the data being supplied comes from persons or corporations with vested economic interests? 4. Have you talked to your parents? your pastors or other religious leaders? 5. Would you be as ready to "defend" your country if you knew you would die in the process? There is a chance you might die! HOW CAN YOU USE CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION TO GET CLOSER TO GOD? That is an interesting question. We would hope that getting closer to God would be at least one of the goals of our life. Conscientious objection is the result of a process of reflection and the formation of conscience. We don't just wake up one morning and say "I am a conscientious objector." or "It would be nice to be a conscientious objector." We have to reflect on what war is. What are the consequences of war? Why would I want to harm or kill someone I don't even know? someone from another land? I don't know anything about the person I may kill or maim. (S)he may be a mother or a father. We might be good friends if we were able to sit down and talk to one another. War is not like a baseball game or a basketball game. Someone wins and someone loses. Nobody wins a war. People die in a war. This disrupts families and other human relationships. For every one who dies dozens or perhaps even hundreds of others have their lives disrupted. Wars destroy property, sometimes large areas of farmland, living area. Thousands, often millions of lives are affected. What good could have been done by the ones killed? What good could have been done with the money spent on war and the reconstruction from war? Whenever we ask these and similar questions we are assessing our life and what it means, our responsibility to ourselves, our families, the world as a whole, how we relate to God and the world God created. This in itself should draw us closer to God. WHAT ARE THE LIMITS OF CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION? I am not sure what the intent of this question is. Does conscientious objection apply to things other than war and the draft? Yes! We need to apply the principles of conscientious objection to every decision we make in our lives. Can we abuse conscientious objection? Only we use its principles to get ourselves out of war or an unpleasant situation. We can abuse any principle if we use it dishonestly. One or more persons' abuse of a principle does not invalidate the principle. ONCE YOU'RE IN WAR, IF YOU THINK IT'S WRONG, CAN YOU GET OUT OF IT? In the United States today it is very hard to be recognized as a conscientious objector once you have become part of the military. Some persons who have attempted to do so have ended up in jail. But today there is not a draft. It is assumed that whoever joins the military agrees with its principles and policies. It is important to express your conscientious objection BEFORE you enter the military. DOES CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION APPLY TO ALL RELIGIONS? Yes! Conscientious objection is not a matter of which church you belong to or if you even belong to a church. Conscientious objection is a right recognized by the United Nations and many of the member nations of the UN. It is simply the recognition that a human being has the right to decide whether (s)he will or will not choose to be placed into a situation in which (s)he may be forced to kill. WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU CAN'T DECIDE WHAT TO DO? Seek advice. Pray. Ask what you might tell your child if you were the parent and your child were in your situation. Unless there is a draft and you are required to register, you do not have to do anything. Do not sign up for the military if you have any doubts. CAN THE NATION OVERRULE THE CHURCH AND FORCE PEOPLE WHO OBJECT TO WAR TO FIGHT ANYWAY? The nation and the church are two separate entities. From the time of established churches there has been a conflict between the church and the state. Both seek the peoples' allegiance and support even though their directions are separate. The state deals with people's material needs. The church with people's spiritual needs. War deals with both spiritual and material needs. War involves the bodies of soldiers and so the state rules over them. War also involves the spirits of soldiers. The church teaches things like conscientious objection because our spirits are at risk when we are at war. The church is speaking out in order to help our spirits be at rest. But the state can still arrest our bodies which in turn will disrupt our spirits. So, the church is at a disadvantage in its struggle with the state. But the state cannot force anyone unless the draft becomes obligatory by law. COULD SOMEONE'S CONSCIENCE BE A BAD ONE? IF SO DOES THIS IDEA STILL EXIST? Yes. A person's conscience can be badly formed. (S)he may be rationalizing to avoid doing something {s} he considers unpleasant. That may happen in regard to any moral question. The poor formation of an individual's or even many individuals' conscience does not invalidate the principle that we are to follow our conscience. IF SOMETHING IS MORALLY WRONG, BUT YOUR CONSCIENCE TELLS YOU TO DO IT, CAN YOU BE BLAMED? This is a tricky question. Do you KNOW it is morally wrong? If you know it is morally wrong why would you want to do it? If it is wrong but its opposite is also wrong you maybe in a position of having to choose the lesser of two evils. There are no clear rules regarding this kind of choice. This would be a value judgment you need to make. A lot of our moral decisions fall into this category. Then there is the question of "blame". Blame is a legal phenomenon not a moral one. Our conscience directs our moral behavior. We can act in complete harmony with our moral conscience and still find we are blamed and perhaps found guilty in a court of law and subject to some form of punishment IS IT WRONG TO SUPPORT THE WAR? You need to give thought to WHY you support the war. Do you ask if the war is just? There are certain criteria for a war to be considered "just". 1. The cause must be just. 2. The war must be declared by a legitimate authority. 3. It must be waged as a last resort. Every form of arbitration and mediation must have been tried and failed. 4. There must be a reasonable chance of the war being successful. A war is considered successful if it brings about peace. 5. Deadly force must not be used against civilians. Wars of the last 40 to 50 years fail to meet the criteria of just wars in at least 2 major ways. A) They are not waged with a reasonable chance of success. Success means there is a reasonable chance of peace resulting from the war. Wars today simply prompt another war in their wake. B) Deadly force is constantly used against civilians. HOW LONG HAS CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION BEEN AROUND? A long time. There are references to it in the Bible. Many of the Old Testament prophets lived a form of conscientious objection. They lived out a faith and a morality that was contrary to the commonly accepted morality and faith of their day. WHAT IS A PACIFIST AND WHAT DOES WAR HAVE TO DO WITH A PACIFIST? A pacifist is one who is committed to living and working to promote peace. War and violence is something a pacifist will completely avoid. IS IT WRONG TO BE A PACIFIST JUST TO NOT BE IN THE DRAFT? YOU REALLY DON'T MIND VIOLENCE, YOU JUST DON'T WANT TO GO TO WAR? If you don't mind violence then you are not a pacifist. A pacifist is a person who is committed to resist war and violence. There is a distinction between one who is a pacifist and one who is anti war. You can be anti war and not necessarily a pacifist you just don't want war. Your anti war sentiments can take on two forms. You can be against war period or you are simply against YOU going to war. You need to decide who you are a full scale pacifist, a full fledged anti war person or simply one who does not want to go to war. WOULD IT BE A SIN TO LIE AND SAY YOU ARE PACIFIST SO YOU WOULDN'T DIE? It is not a sin to try and protect yourself. Read the question and answer immediately above. IS IT WRONG TO HOLD SOMEONE HOSTAGE DURING WAR? Are you asking about being held hostage or being a prisoner of war? A hostage is one who has been kidnapped and is being held for some type of ransom (money, bargaining for something you want, or some other form of gain). It is wrong at any time (war or peace) to use others by force in order to further your own ends. A prisoner of war is one (usually a member of the enemy group) who is captured in the course of the war. At times there is no other option but to keep the person(s) as prisoners. There are certain regulations which guide this procedure. The prisoners must be adequately fed and housed. They may not be subjected to any form of violence or mistreatment. IS IT WRONG TO BLOW UP A CITY DURING WAR JUST TO GET RID OF THE PEOPLE? Yes. Blowing up a city simply to get rid of the people would violate the requirements necessary to make a war just. The entire war would be rendered unjust by such actions IS GOING TO WAR AND KILLING SOMEONE A MORTAL SIN? Recall the criteria for mortal sin: it must be something serious. You must know it serious. It must be intentional. You must want to do it. The Catechism of the Catholic Church also says of mortal sin: "although we can judge that an act is in itself a grave offense, we must entrust judgment of persons to the justice and mercy of God." op. cit. sec. 1861 To continue NEXT To return to the main page HOME To email bill crumley or whitney vilcan Rev. William Crumley CSC 3041 Chitimacha Trail Charenton, La. 70523-0278 337-923-4281 |
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