OpenTheo

The Just War Tradition

March 20, 2024
Life and Books and Everything
Life and Books and EverythingClearly Reformed

Have you ever wondered if King Arthur was justified in cutting off all four limbs of Monty Python’s Black Knight when he refused the king passage? If so, then you’ll want to listen to this episode of LBE with Eric Patterson. Eric is an author, an important leader in Washington, D.C. and an expert in the theology and history of the Just War Tradition. What are the right reasons for going to war? How should a just war be fought? Was the American Revolution a just war (or even a revolution)? What about the firebombing of Dresden in World War II? Join Kevin and Eric and they try to apply the insights of the Just War Tradition to military conflicts past and present.

Chapters:

0:00 Introductions

7:45 A Basic Guide to the Just War Tradition

15:45 What Makes a War Just?

29:45 Sponsor Break | Crossway

30:28 “It’s Only a Flesh Wound.”

35:25 A Just American Revolution?

46:39 MLK’s Just Cause

51:15 Sponsor Break | Desiring God

52:00 Current Events

Books & Everything:

Basic Guide to the Just War Tradition: Christian Foundations and Practices

Just War and Christian Traditions

Humility: The Joy of Self-Forgetfulnes

Ask Pastor John: 750 Bible Answers to Life's Most Important Questions

Share

FacebookTwitterRedditCopy Link

Transcript

More From Life and Books and Everything

Get Married with Brad Wilcox
Get Married with Brad Wilcox
Life and Books and Everything
April 3, 2024
For most of us, getting married and forging a strong family is the best way to build a prosperous, meaningful, and happy life. That's the message of G
The Pastor as Leader with John Currie
The Pastor as Leader with John Currie
Life and Books and Everything
April 17, 2024
With everything the pastor must do—preach, pray, visit, raise money, organize meetings, write emails, study, write, marry, bury, and baptize—does he a
Petrus Van Mastricht's Theoretical-Practical Theology with Todd Rester
Petrus Van Mastricht's Theoretical-Practical Theology with Todd Rester
Life and Books and Everything
May 1, 2024
What are you doing with your life? Todd Rester is using a big chunk of his life to translate a seventeenth-century Dutch theologian's magnum opus (all
Where Have All the Fundamentalists Gone?
Where Have All the Fundamentalists Gone?
Life and Books and Everything
March 6, 2024
With two smart British historians—one from Oxford (Andrew) and one from Aberystwyth (David)--and one curious American pastor (Kevin), you might say th
Our Ancient Faith: Lincoln, Democracy, and the American Experiment with Allen Guelzo
Our Ancient Faith: Lincoln, Democracy, and the American Experiment with Allen Guelzo
Life and Books and Everything
February 14, 2024
He must be one of Kevin's favorite historians and favorite guests, because Dr. Guelzo is back for an unprecedented third visit to the LBE book-cave. A
What Happened to Young, Restless, and Reformed?
What Happened to Young, Restless, and Reformed?
Life and Books and Everything
January 24, 2024
In this extra-long episode, Kevin teams up with Justin and Collin to talk about something they were all deeply involved in: the movement known as the
More From "Life and Books and Everything"

More on OpenTheo

Can You Recommend Good Books with More In-Depth Information and Ideas?
Can You Recommend Good Books with More In-Depth Information and Ideas?
#STRask
January 22, 2026
Questions about good books on Christian apologetics, philosophy, and theology with more in-depth information and ideas, and resources to help an intel
What About Those Who Never Heard the Name of Jesus?
What About Those Who Never Heard the Name of Jesus?
#STRask
December 22, 2025
Questions about what will happen to those who never heard of Jesus or were brought up in a different faith, whether there’s biblical warrant to think
Are You Accursed If You Tithe?
Are You Accursed If You Tithe?
#STRask
December 15, 2025
Questions about whether anyone who tithes is not a Christian and is accursed since Paul says that if you obey one part of the Mosaic Law you’re obliga
What Do You Think About Churches Advertising on Social Media?
What Do You Think About Churches Advertising on Social Media?
#STRask
January 19, 2026
Questions about whether there’s an issue with churches advertising on social media, whether it’s weird if we pray along with a YouTuber, and whether C
What Tools of Reasoning Help You Know What’s True, Right, and Good?
What Tools of Reasoning Help You Know What’s True, Right, and Good?
#STRask
December 4, 2025
Question about what tools of reasoning help us determine whether something is true or false, right or wrong, good or bad before bringing Scripture int
How Should I Respond to an LGBTQ Person Who Says He Feels Good About Who He Is?
How Should I Respond to an LGBTQ Person Who Says He Feels Good About Who He Is?
#STRask
March 2, 2026
Questions about responding to an LGBTQ person who says he feels good about who he is, and whether—since we all have sin in our life we don’t consider
What Is the Role of the Holy Spirit in Our Lives if He Doesn’t Give Us Instructions?
What Is the Role of the Holy Spirit in Our Lives if He Doesn’t Give Us Instructions?
#STRask
February 23, 2026
Questions about the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives, advice for someone who believes in God intellectually but struggles to understand how to hav
The Making of the American Mind with Matthew Spalding
The Making of the American Mind with Matthew Spalding
Life and Books and Everything
February 2, 2026
The United States is unique in how much attention it pays to its founding, its founders, and its founding documents. Arguably, the most famous and mos
Is This an Argument for Relativism?
Is This an Argument for Relativism?
#STRask
March 16, 2026
Questions about whether the fact that the truth about one’s age changes over time is an argument for relativism, and how to ground virtues like courag
How Would You Convince Someone That Evil Exists?
How Would You Convince Someone That Evil Exists?
#STRask
November 17, 2025
Questions about how to convince someone that evil exists, whether Charlie Kirk’s murder was part of God’s plan, whether that would mean the murderer d
Why Is There No Effort Towards a Neutral Interpretation of Scripture?
Why Is There No Effort Towards a Neutral Interpretation of Scripture?
#STRask
March 9, 2026
Questions about why there is no effort towards a neutral interpretation of Scripture that doesn’t take denominational preferences into account, and ho
Lora Ries: Border Security and Immigration Policy
Lora Ries: Border Security and Immigration Policy
Knight & Rose Show
December 7, 2025
Wintery Knight and Desert Rose welcome Lora Ries to discuss border security and immigration policy. They explore Biden's policy changes, like ending R
How Can We Know Who Is Teaching the Same Gospel Paul Taught?
How Can We Know Who Is Teaching the Same Gospel Paul Taught?
#STRask
February 16, 2026
Questions about how we can know who is teaching the same gospel Paul taught, and whether or not Jeremiah 1:5 supports the idea that we pre-existed in
Shouldn’t I Be Praying for My Soul Rather Than for Material Things?
Shouldn’t I Be Praying for My Soul Rather Than for Material Things?
#STRask
February 2, 2026
Questions about whether we should be praying for our souls rather than for material things, why we need to pray about decisions, whether the devil can
Isn’t the Covenant in Scripture Explicitly with Israel and Not the Gentile Nations?
Isn’t the Covenant in Scripture Explicitly with Israel and Not the Gentile Nations?
#STRask
March 12, 2026
Questions about what gives modern Christians confidence that they’ve inherited the Jews’ covenant with God if Scripture explicitly says it was with Is