The Fourth Way

We look at the final tenet of just war theory, the idea of "just peace."

We look at the sixth tenet of just war theory, the idea of "last resort."

We look at the fifth tenet of just war theory, the idea of "reasonable success."

We look at the fourth tenet of just war theory, the idea of "discrimination" or "civilian safety."

We look at the third tenet of just war theory, the idea of "right intention" or "proportionality."

We look at the second tenet of just war theory, the idea of "just authority."

This episode explores one of the first tenets of Just War Theory, the idea of "just cause." We explore the concept of just cause to uncover how it is idealistic, produces incompatibility with other ideas, and is inconsistently applied.

Since today is Independence Day in the United States, I thought it would be a good time to look at how we have gained and maintained our independence. We take a look at some very hard truths about the United States, and the human condition expressed in it, as it is in all empires throughout history.

Our original series explored the positive case for Christian nonviolence. In this series, we will take a look at the Just War Theory and see how it holds up to scrutiny. In our first episode of the series we'll lay out the general composition of this theory and discuss its formation in Christian thought.

We re-explore a topic discussed in episode 7 - if most Christians believe it's moral to condone the assassination attempt of Hitler, why don't we condone the killers of the New Holocaust, abortionists? Since this was one of the conundrums which lead me to the acceptance of pacifism in order to be morally and logically consistent, I think it's worth exploring again at the end of our abortion series.

This episode piggybacks off the previous one by digging into the structures of racism in abortion. We discuss the shifting demographics of abortion and how the very people decrying abortion and attempting to legislate directly against it tend to be the group which creates and fosters the environments most conducive to producing abortions.

I was disappointed, though not surprised, to discover that the anti-abortion position and movement in Evangelicalism (especially the white brand) has racial overtones. While our sullied past doesn't negate the logical case made against abortion in season three, I do think it is vital that we Evangelicals are honest about our history. Understanding the past helps lead us to repentance, honesty, integrity, authenticity, and restoration, whereas the ignoring of the past leads to hard heartedness and blindness of both past and current injustices. This episode ties in consequentialism, race, and politics - three topics which have been discussed at length throughout the three seasons so far.

This episode wraps up our case for abortion by surveying the landscape of both the Christian and secular positions, as well as bringing in the topics of our previous two seasons: nonviolence and consequentialism.

I take a look at one of the arguments the pro-abortion side often levies against the anti-abortion side. Ectopic pregnancies are viewed as an area where pro-lifers are inconsistent in their application of the logic. In this episode I take a look at what I believe a consistent anti-abortion logic entails.

Some would argue that you shouldn't even listen to me on the topic of abortion, as I am a man. Men not only have a vested interest in the abortion discussion, but also have the inability to understand from a woman's perspective. While such an argument undermines the possibility of using logic in arguments, I look at where the vested interests truly lie, and in how we recognize in other areas how diverse voices are vital for fighting injustice.