For centuries, the Catholic Church taught that war could be morally justified under strict conditions known as just war theory. But in recent decades, popes have increasingly spoken about war in much stronger terms—sometimes even saying that there is no such thing as a just war.
Does this mean the Church has abandoned its traditional teaching? Or is something deeper happening?
In this video, Pedro Gabriel explores how Catholic teaching on war has developed from the classical just war tradition to the strong calls for peace we hear from modern popes like Pope Francis and Pope Leo XIV. Drawing on documents such as Fratelli Tutti, Pacem in Terris, and Dignitas Infinita, he looks at why the Church has become increasingly skeptical that modern wars can meet the moral criteria that once justified them.
Pedro Gabriel, MD, is a Catholic layman and physician, born and residing in Portugal. He is a medical oncologist, currently employed in a Portuguese public hospital. A published writer of Catholic novels with a Tolkienite flavor, he is also a parish reader and a former catechist. He seeks to better understand the relationship of God and Man by putting the lens on the frailty of the human condition, be it physical and spiritual. He also wishes to provide a fresh perspective of current Church and World affairs from the point of view of a small western European country, highly secularized but also highly Catholic by tradition.
Popular Posts