Knowra Christian pacifism Christian pacifism Christian pacifism is the belief that following Jesus is incompatible with violence and warfare. It commonly calls for nonresistance, peacemaking, and refusal of military service.
Sermon on the Mount : A collection of Jesus’ teachings in Matthew 5–7, including commands to love enemies and turn the other cheek. Its commands to love enemies and reject retaliation are central scriptural grounds for Christian pacifism.
Early Christianity : The Christian movement from its beginnings in the first century through the formation of the early church. Early Christian writings and practices provide historical evidence for Christian opposition to military violence.
Leo Tolstoy : A Russian novelist and moral thinker whose later writings advocated Christian nonviolence and resistance to state authority. His interpretation of Jesus’ teachings influenced modern Christian pacifist thought.
Peace churches : Christian communities whose traditions reject war and commonly refuse participation in military service. They embody pacifism through shared teaching, worship, and community practice.
Pacifism : The ethical position that rejects war or the use of violence, either in general or under specified conditions. Christian pacifism is one religious form of a wider ethical position.
Just war theory : An ethical framework that permits war under specified conditions, such as just cause and proportionality. It shares Christian moral concerns with pacifism but allows some wars that pacifists reject.
Tertullian : A Christian author from Roman North Africa whose writings addressed military service, idolatry, and Christian life. His writings preserve influential early arguments about Christians serving in the Roman army.
Adin Ballou : An American Christian minister and abolitionist who advocated nonresistance and founded the Hopedale Community. His writings developed a systematic Christian case for nonresistance.
Christian nonviolence : The practice of resisting harm and injustice without using physical violence, grounded in Christian commitments. It describes how pacifist convictions can guide action beyond simply refusing military service.
Responsibility to protect : An international principle that states and the international community should protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity. Its authorization of coercive protection challenges pacifist refusals of armed force.
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