If we use last resort to prevent war in almost all circumstances because we see the use of force as evil, we do not preserve peace but instead allow injustices to go unchecked.

The peace agreement between the Colombian government and the FARC is slightly over a year old, but there are a number of issues that will continue to be a concern from a practical and moral perspective.

St. Thomas Aquinas knew more than his modern emendators do about grounding his just war deliberations—and much else—in the cardinal moral virtue of prudence.

Jean Bethke Elshtain (1941-2013) was an American political theorist, ethicist, and public intellectual who made scholarly contributions to various debates, and especially on the just war tradition.

Iran’s destabilizing actions across the Middle East require powers like the United States to maintain moral bridgeheads against it.

The First Marine Division’s paragon of virtue, Chesty Puller, upheld the standards of just warfighting and respect, if not love, of the enemy. We pray his progeny leading the defense of our nation today will do the same.

This essay provides a brief overview of the just war tradition and then applies the framework to the problem of contemporary terrorism.