Nuclear War

To my knowledge, no formal statement on nuclear proliferation has been issued as yet by any official body of the Orthodox Church.

Without a doubt, it will become an issue. In my book, “Contemporary Moral Issues”, I address the “arms race.”

I believe that it is the Church’s general teaching that war is not good, no matter how entered or for what purpose-that is, though it may be in some cases a necessary “lesser evil,” it still remains an evil.

However, our Church has not maintained a pacifist view either. The main thrust of our Church on the issue of war, however, is to pray for and work for peace among nations.

Thus, the 20th Clergy-Laity Congress made a strong call to ‘commend every effort and every movement to terminate war and hostility in every area and to take seriously the pursuit of peace.”

The 21st Clergy-Laity Congress called for Orthodox people to “pledge ourselves to labor in all possible ways to bring peace. ..”

Without question this “bias toward peace” of the church is intensified before the horrible possibilities of nuclear war.

The present nuclear arsenals of nations both great and small pose a serious threat of a global nuclear incineration.

In the “arms race” section, I express what I feel to be an absolute “bottom line” view on the Church’s position, which of course, does not preclude a stronger statement, for instance, at the forthcoming Clergy-Laity Congress of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, the Sobor of the OCA, the Convention of the Antiochian Archdiocese, and the meetings of the other Orthodox jurisdictions in our country.

Here is the “bottom line” position modestly revised which I believe cannot be consistently rejected by any Orthodox Christian:

“As a Church we deplore anything which will further slow the already too slow pace toward the reduction of death dealing armaments, with emphasis on nuclear armaments.

Orthodox Christians understand the need for defense, and therefore, do not of necessity subscribe to proposals of unilateral disarmament.

But it is certainly morally necessary to urge our government and all governments to work diligently in furthering a reduction of potentials for nuclear war.”