Marc LiVecche

Marc LiVecche is the McDonald Distinguished Scholar of Ethics, War, and Public Life at Providence. He is also a non-resident research fellow at the US Naval War College, in the College of Leadership and Ethics.

Marc completed doctoral studies, earning distinction, at the University of Chicago, where he worked under the supervision of the political theorist and public intellectual Jean Bethke Elshtain, until her death in August, 2013. His first book, The Good Kill: Just War & Moral Injury, was published in 2021 by Oxford University Press. Another project, Responsibility and Restraint: James Turner Johnson and the Just War Tradition, co-edited with Eric Patterson, was published by Stone Tower Press in the fall of 2020. Currently, he is finalizing Moral Horror: A Just War Defense of Hiroshima. Before all this academic stuff, Marc spent twelve years doing a variety of things in Central Europe—ranging from helping build sport and recreational leagues in post-communist communities, to working at a Christian study and research center, to leading seminars on history and ethics onsite at the former Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi concentration camp in Poland. This latter experience allowed him to continue his undergraduate study of the Shoah; a process which rendered him entirely ill-suited for pacifism.

Marc lives in Annapolis, Maryland with his wife and children–and a marmota monax whistlepigging under the shed. He can be followed, or stalked, on twitter @mlivecche. Additional publications can be found at his Amazon author page.

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Marc LiVecche Christianity & National Security 2023

Marc LiVecche’s lecture at Christianity & National Security 2023. As much as I’d like to cede part of my time…

The Provcast: On Vincible Ignorance, Invincible Ignorance, and Just Getting it Wrong About Hamas

Marc LiVecche and Keith Pavlischek kvetch on pacifists, idealists, terrorist-enablers, and others who get Hamas, October 7th, and just war tradition wrong.

Veterans Day
Oorah! Happy Veterans Day

Today marks the observance to two great national holidays that honor the heroes among us. Go out your way to thank a veteran and hug a Marine.

The Provcast: The Israel-Hamas War

Providence’s Marc LiVecche and Pepperdine’s Robert Kaufman discuss the Israel-Hamas War, proportionality, intent, and fighting to win

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The Way Out is Through: Peace Must Start with the End of Hamas

While protecting her people and seeking justice, Israel must minimize harms against innocent Palestinians and multiply hell on Hamas.

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Just War 101 — E9: Prudence; or, Reality (Sometimes) Bites

Just war morality demands that ethical judgements must take into account certain cold, unrelenting, and frustratingly immovable facts. Wisdom matters.

Education school of athens
One End of Learning

Education in a free society is aimed at morally forming men and women of character capable of helping that free society to flourish

Jean Bethke Elshtain: An Augustinian at War
Jean Bethke Elshtain: After Ten Years

Today marks the denary anniversary of Jean Elshtain’s death. She is much missed. Her brand of Christian realist thinking is desperately needed today.

Russia and China at Once – Part III: The Importance of Alliances (Including Internal)

The United States cannot pursue a strategy capable of deterring and, if necessary, defeating both China and Russia at the same time alone. We need allies.

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People Were Not Directly In the Atomic Crosshairs

We can rightly regret the necessity of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But their primary purpose was never the killing of large numbers of civilians.