Moral Clarity in Nuclear Age 0840758790

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Foreword by Billy Graham Introduction by William F. Buckley, Jr.

Also by Michael Novak: A New Generation: American and Catholic (1964) The Open Church (1964) Belief and Unbelief (1965) A Time to Build (1967) A Theology for Radical Politics (1969) The Experience of Nothingness (1970) Politics: Realism and Imagination (1971) All the Catholic People (1971) Ascent of the Mountain, Flight of the Dove (1971) The Rise of the Unmeltable Ethnics (1972) Choosing Our King (1974) The Joy of Sports (1976) The Guns of Lattimer (1978) The Spirit of Democratic Capitalism (1982) Confession of a Catholic (1983) Fiction The Tiber Was Silver (1961) Naked I Leave (1970) Editor The Experience of Marriage (1964) American Philosophy and the Future (1967) Capitalism and Socialism: A Theological Inquiry (1979) Democracy and Mediating Structures: A Theological Inquiry (1980) The Corporation: A Theological Inquiry (With John W. Cooper) (1981)

MORAL CLARITY IN THE

NUCLEAR AliE Michael l\lovak

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Thomas Nelson Publishers

Nashville • Camden • New York

Acknowledgments The author is grateful to the following organizations: ''Moral Garity in the Nuclear Age" is reprinted from Catholicism in Crisis, vol. 1, no. 4 (March 1983), and National Review (April 1, 1983), with the permission of the editors. ''The Geopolitical Situation" is reprinted with the permission of the Institute for Foreign Policy Analysis, Inc. ''The Bishops Speak Out" is reprinted from National Review 0une 10, 1983), with permission. The Scripture quotations in this publication are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyrighted 1946, 1952, © 1971, 1973.

Copyright © 1983 Michael Novak All rights reserved. Written permission must be secured from the publisher to use or reproduce any part of this book, except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles. Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by T homas Nelson, Inc. and distributed in Canada by Lawson Falle, Ltd., Cambridge, Ontario. Printed in the United States of America. ISBN 0-8407-5879-0

CONTENTS Foreword by Billy Graham ......... ............ 8 Introduction by William F. Buckley, Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Author'sPreface...................... 16

PARTl Chapter 1 Moral Garity in the Nuclear Age .... 23 Appendix Co-Signersof "Moral Garity in the Nuclear Age" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

PART2 Introduction ......................... 81 Chapter 2 The Geopolitical Situation: A View from Europe ........................... 83

Chapter 3 Rescued from Disaster: The Bishops Speak Out ............. 106 Chapter 4 Just and Unjust Negotiations ........ 125 Notes

So That Our Children Will Enjoy Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

FOREWORD Probably no document in recent decades com­ ing from an American religious body has capti­ vated as much public attention as the 1983 Bishops' Pastoral Letter on War and Peace. To some extent that was to be expected, of course, since Roman Catholics constitute the largest single religious group in the country. In addition, the pastoral letter may break new ground for the Bishops Conference by delving into areas of complex public policy and political controversy. In the past, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops has tended to confine its interests and public statements mainly to spiritual concerns and issues that clearly were moral in nature. This led some to wonder if the pendulum was about to swing to the other extreme and the Bishops Conference would now imitate some of their Protestant counterparts and become overly ab­ sorbed in political activism at the expense of spiritual guidance. But the real reason for the unprecedented interest in the pastoral letter, aside from the media's obsession with a few controversial 8

Foreword

points, is that it is a highly significant statement on Jh� 11}9�,t _gitjc� politicc:11 _�u�d. moral is5-ue gf �ur ti11:w-the problem or nuclear weapons of mass aestruction. However, this urgent problem also raises profound moral and spiritual ques­ tions as well-questions Christians must not ignore if they are to be faithful to their calling to be followers of Jesus Christ in today's world. I am pleased Michael Novak's essays on this subject are being reprinted in book form. Ill� ?eserve ,.�_der, QJet1l,atip:r;t and" careful_, s�dyby Christi�!!s 9£ �:v�ry: backgroJ1nd who are seeking fo 'grapple with this complex issue. They are not only readable and logical, but seriously deal with the issues from a distinctly Christian point of view. His essays clearly point out the major world problems and dilemmas raised by the develop­ ment and deployment of weapons of mass destruction. Mr. Novak's essays are far more than a com­ mentary on the bishops' pastoral letter. To be sure, they will be a useful introduction to that complex document, but beyond that, �-pr�-:­ ie12!.a?rillictnt cljs,c;ussion of.the whole question of !!).Orality �d_ nuclear strategy. Of course, not everyone will agree with his perspective or every detail of his argument, but his views cannot be ignored by anyone who claims to be dealing seriously with this issue. His awareness of the dangers our world faces and his burden to bring the light of Christian teaching to these dangers come through on every page. The e'ssays in this volume are important for 9

Moral Clarity in the Nuclear Age another reason, however. Novak rightly points out that the basic problems of our time-and of our individual lives, I might add-are fundamen­ tally spiritual in nature. For too long modem man has tried in vain to solve his problems without God, but ��E!� humanity seeks tq liv� apart fr