UNDERSTANDING OF JUST WAR IN CHRISTIANITY AND ISLAM Cover Image

СХВАТАЊЕ ПРАВЕДНОГ РАТА У ХРИШЋАНСТВУ И ИСЛАМУ
UNDERSTANDING OF JUST WAR IN CHRISTIANITY AND ISLAM

Author(s): Miloš Jelić
Subject(s): Christian Theology and Religion, Theology and Religion, Islam studies, Comparative Studies of Religion
Published by: Centar za empirijska istraživanja religije (CEIR)
Keywords: Christianity; Islam; just war; holy war; Augustine; jihad

Summary/Abstract: Although practically both are sharing a common tradition with regard to justifying war conflicts, Christians and Muslims have a different approach to the ethics of warfare. While the Christians, after three centuries of non-violence and turning the other cheek, from the 4th century had started to form what is nowadays called a just war theory, the Muslims had considered warfare as a way of preserving their community, and expanding its boundaries, and, therefore, combat in this sense had been justified from the very beginnings of the Muslim society. Later, in the Middle Ages especially, there had been various circumstances for conducting just wars, on either sides, sometimes even led as holy wars, still, the fact remained that the warfare was deeply tragic, although often unavoidable activity when all other means of reaching peace were exhausted. This paper represents author's attempt to sketch an overview of just war theories in Christianity and Islam, including both traditional and contemporary approach to this matter.

  • Issue Year: 13/2015
  • Issue No: 24
  • Page Range: 279-300
  • Page Count: 22
  • Language: Serbian
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