Abstract
The years 2001–2002 brought not just one but two major blows to American Catholics. A few short months after the trauma of September 11, the sexual abuse scandal exploded, beginning in Boston, and spread quickly throughout the country. While these events may seem unrelated on the surface, there was in fact a curious connection: the Catholic bishop who, as head of the Committee on International Justice and Peace of the U.S. Conference of Catholic bishops, was charged with formulating a response to September 11 and the prospect of war in Afghanistan was none other than the infamous Cardinal Bernard Law of Boston.
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Notes
The author wishes to acknowledge the research assistance of Michaela Letourneau in preparing this essay.
See, e.g., George Weigel, Tranquillitas Ordinis: The Present Failure and Future Promise of American Catholic Thought on War and Peace (Oxford, NY: Oxford University Press, 1987)
Tames Turner Johnson, “The Broken Tradition,” The National Interest 45 (Fall 1996): 27–36.
George Weigel, “Moral Clarity in a Time of War,” First Things 129 (January 2003): 20–27
William T. Cavanaugh, “At Odds with the Pope: Legitimate Authority & Tust Wars,” Commonweal 130, no. 10 (May 23, 2003): 11–13
The use and justification of torture by the Bush administration has been documented extensively by Tane Mayer in The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals (New York: Doubleday, 2008).
See Michael Howard, “What’ s in a Name? How to Fight Terrorism,” Foreign Affairs 81, no. 1 (January/February 2002): 8–13.
For some efforts to develop a theory of jut post bellum, see Mark J. Allman and Tobias L. Winright, “Jus Post Bellum: Extending the Just War Theory,” in Faith in Public Life, College Theology Society Annual Volume 53 (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2008), 241–264
Brian Orend, “Justice after War,” Ethics & International Affairs 16, no. 1 (Spring 2002). 23.
Gerard Powers, “Our Moral Duty in Iraq; How Would U.S. Withdrawal Affect the Iraqi People?” America 198, no. 5 (February 18, 2008): 13–16
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© 2009 Matthew J. Morgan
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Johnston, L. (2009). The Catholic Conversation since 9/11: A Moral Challenge. In: Morgan, M.J. (eds) The Impact of 9/11 on Religion and Philosophy. The Day that Changed Everything?. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230101609_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230101609_8
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