Westminster Conference 06 E

The second session of the second day of the Westminster Conference was a highly topical look at the Puritan doctrine of just war. The speaker was Dr Ken Brownell of the East London Tabernacle. This was quite a masterful sweep through the history of just war theory beginning with Augustine and his successors and going on to Aquinas, the Reformers and the Puritans themselves, using William Gouge as the main example. There is no Puritan work that deals directly with the subject but in several places they discuss the issues.
Gouge added to Augustine's requirements of just cause, legitimate authority and right intention, that of war always being a last resort. Other Puritans added proportionality and willingness to end enmity at some point. Although the Reformers seem to have thrown off notions of holy war against infidels of a physical sort the Puritans arguably drifted back into that way of thinking for some time. This was one of several interesting themes picked out. Another was the development of Calvin's idea that in extremis there was a place for revolt against tyrants. This obviously had bearing on the events that led to the death of Charles I, something the Puritans were divided over.
In conclusion we were urged to know our history, be sure of our criteria and to seriously reflect on the new challenges this modern world brings. The Puritans can be of great help to the developing world on these issues although their hermeneutic was inadequate at certain points. Their holy war ideas were misguided but their clear pastoral concern for all caught up in war is something to be emulated.