Catholic Church struck by IDF in Gaza
Purple Catholic Saturday Post
Good morning and happy Saturday,
Like most, I was horrified and saddened by the attacks on October 7, 2023. Hamas’ invasion of Israel and the killing and kidnapping of Israeli civilians was completely unjustified.
Using the just war criteria I described several weeks ago, I would argue Israel’s counter-invasion of Hamas was justified. It was launched by a legitimate authority (Israel), it had the intention of rescuing the hostages taken by Hamas and ending Hamas’ authority in Gaza, a good for the people living there.
Once that initial attack happens, Israel has a responsibility to maintain justice in the war. In modern political contexts, this is called jus in bello, or “justice in the war.”
Now, St. Thomas Aquinas, whom I heavily cited in my last essay on the subject, did not fully develop this doctrine. It comes later from another Dominican, Francisco de Vitoria, OP, a theologian and jurist in late fifteenth-century Spain. In his work, De Indis et De iure belli Relectiones (in English, On the Indians and the Law of War), de Vitoria discussed the discovery of natives in the Americas and their rights as persons and peoples.
One of the primary principles of his work is laying out the moral limits of war. He argued that after a just war is declared, there are certain things the combatant must do to remain participating in a just war:*
Noncombatants must not be deliberately harmed
Force must be limited to whatever is necessary to complete the just objective
These points have become the foundation of modern just war theory and were elaborated on and formalized by Francisco Suárez, SJ, and by the Calvinist philosopher Hugo Grotius in the sixteenth century.
Why am I detailing jus in bello? Because this week, Israeli Defense Forces struck the only Catholic Church in Gaza, killing three and injuring more. Holy Family Catholic Church has been a place of refuge for civilians amidst this conflict.
Archbishop Timothy Broglio, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and emeritus of the Archdiocese of US Military Services, called for an immediate ceasefire and said he was “deeply saddened” by the strike. Pope Leo XIV described more forcefully in a call to Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa (Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem); he said “it is time to stop this slaughter.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Pope Leo XIV after the strike. While Netanyahu’s words have not been released by the Holy See Press Office, Pope Leo reportedly told him he urgently needs to protect places of worship in Gaza.
If it were a one-off incident, I might be able to say Israel’s conflict in Gaza remains justified. However, this is far from a single event.
In May 2024, Israel struck a displacement camp in Rafah. In a speech to parliament, Netanyahu said it was a “tragic mistake” and that they would be investigating.
In April 2024, Israel struck World Central Kitchen vehicles, killing seven aid workers. The IDF later dismissed two commanders after the incident.
In February 2024, Israel struck a house that held members of the organization Doctors Without Borders in Al-Mawasi, killing two.
In December 2023, Israel struck the Maghazi camp, killing as many as sixty-eight. An Israeli military official later said the IDF “regretted the harm” it had caused by using the wrong type of munitions.
All of these are unacceptable acts in war, and it is becoming clear to me that Israel’s conflict is losing its status as a just war using the jus in bello criteria, if it has not already.
We must continue to pray for peace in the region and for the release of the hostages.
For further reading:
*de Vitoria had a third point that declared that indigenous peoples have rights and cannot be deprived of land without a just cause. I have excluded it here only because it is not necessary to the topic at hand.
Tomorrow on Death Comes for the Archbishop:
Bishop Jean Marie Latour travels to the more rural areas of his diocese with his Native guide, Jacinto. John Pinherio, PhD, joins me to discuss the history of the Mexican-American War and the anti-Catholic sentiment that drove it.
Paying subscribers get access tomorrow; everyone else will receive it on Wednesday.
Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
This Sunday at Mass, we will hear from Genesis 18:1-10, Psalm 15, Colossians 1:24-28, and Luke 10:38-42.
Here is a calendar for the rest of the week:
Monday, 21 July - Memorial of St. Lawrence of Brindisi, priest and doctor (optional)
Tuesday, 22 July - Feast of St. Mary Magdalene*
Wednesday, 23 July - Memorial of St. Bridget, religious (optional)
Friday, 25 July - Feast of St. James, apostle
*In the current breviary, this is listed as an obligatory Memorial. In 2016, Pope Francis elevated the celebration to a feast day. Its structure for Morning and Evening Prayer in the breviary, however, already followed the norms of a feast day. The only change would be for the Office of Readings, in which the psalms and their antiphons and the First Reading are taken from the Common of Holy Women. For more, see the General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours, paragraphs 228 and 231.
And as for [the seed that fell] in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bring forth fruit with patience.
Luke 8:15
In the news:
The United States
Catholic Charities Fort Worth to continue refugee efforts - Catholic News Agency
Ken Burns calls public media funding cuts ‘shortsighted,’ but vows ‘we will continue’ - PBS News
The Vatican
Vatican official jailed for child pornography returns to work - The Pillar
The World
Two convicted for “money mule” role in Caritas Luxembourg fraud - The Pillar
9 people sentenced to 20 years in prison for murder of Burma priest - Catholic News Agency
Church and state clash over pregnant girls in Congolese schools - The Pillar
Have a good weekend,
Matthew