Conscientious Objection to War - New Resource Available

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has recently created a new web page to help those making decisions of conscience regarding war: www.usccb.org/sdwp/peace/consciencewar.shtml.

In a letter dated August 21, 2007 from Bishop Wenski of Orlando and Chairman of the Committee on International Policy, Bishop Wenski states that this resource was created, "in view of the fact that some Catholics, especially younger people are raising questions regarding the Church's position on conscientious objection to participation in warfare." The need for this guidance was anticipated earlier in the months immediately preceding the Iraq War when the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops stated:

We pray for all those most likely to be affected by this potential conflict, especially the suffering people of Iraq and the men and women who serve in our armed forces. We support those who risk their lives in the service of our nation. We also support those who seek to exercise their right to conscientious objection and selective conscientious objection, as we have stated in the past. (November 12, 2002)

The website contains a short document, Guidance on Questions of Conscience and Military Service. This document and the web page contain relevant excerpts from documents of the Church to help in responding to the pastoral needs of people struggling with decisions of conscience regarding war.

This is a very useful document. Take a look!