Sunday, July 31, 2011

Air Force Uses Christian Just War Theory As Part of Ethics Training

Controversial reporter Jason Leopold in a posting Wednesday on Truthout  says that U.S. Air Force training for missile officers includes a mandatory session led by chaplains discussing St. Augustine's Just War Theory.  He links to an extensive Power Point presentation  that includes slides asking "Can a person of faith fight in a war?" and "Can war be just?"  Those questions are answered in part with Biblical references. Mikey Weinstein, president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, says he has been contacted by Air Force officers who want to have the Christian themes removed from the nuclear weapons ethics training course.

UPDATE: Truthout reported yesterday the Air Force has announced that the Nuclear Ethics and Nuclear Warfare module has been removed from the training curriculum after the publication of Truthout's earlier report on it.