Morality and the
Conduct of War
The
early Christian Church had no state and no armies and no tradition of militancy
– quite the opposite. Like its founder (in most of his words and deeds) it was
largely pacifist in its attitude to conflict. That all had to change when
Christianity, courtesy of the Emperor Constantine, became the state religion of
a decidedly militaristic state – Rome. Military victories were attributed to
divine assistance, with the clear implication that war and Christianity were
perfectly compatible.
