John 18, 1-11 + CSDC and CV

John 18, 1-11 + CSDC and CV 

CV 12 c. Social doctrine is built on the foundation handed on by the Apostles to the Fathers of the Church, and then received and further explored by the great Christian doctors. This doctrine points definitively to the New Man, to the “last Adam [who] became a life-giving spirit” (1 Cor 15:45), the principle of the charity that “never ends” (1 Cor 13:8). It is attested by the saints and by those who gave their lives for Christ our Saviour in the field of justice and peace. It is an expression of the prophetic task of the Supreme Pontiffs to give apostolic guidance to the Church of Christ and to discern the new demands of evangelization. For these reasons, Populorum Progressio, situated within the great current of Tradition, can still speak to us today.

Arms of mass destruction, whether biological, chemical or nuclear, represent a particularly serious threat

CSDC 509. Arms of mass destruction — whether biological, chemical or nuclear — represent a particularly serious threat. Those who possess them have an enormous responsibility before God and all of humanity.[1071] The principle of the non-proliferation of nuclear arms, together with measures of nuclear disarmament and the prohibition of nuclear tests, are intimately interconnected objectives that must be met as soon as possible by means of effective controls at the international level.[1072] The ban on the development, production, stockpiling and use of chemical and biological weapons as well as the provisions that require their destruction, complete the international regulatory norms aimed at banning such baleful weapons,[1073] the use of which is explicitly condemned by the Magisterium: “Any act of war aimed indiscriminately at the destruction of entire cities or extensive areas along with their population is a crime against God and man himself. It merits unequivocal and unhesitating condemnation”.[1074] 

Notes: [1071] Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes, 80: AAS 58 (1966), 1104; Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2314; John Paul II, Message for the 1986 World Day of Peace, 2: AAS 78 (1986), 280. [1072] Cf. John Paul II, Address to the Diplomatic Corps (13 January 1996), 7: L'Osservatore Romano, English edition, 17 January 1996, p. 2. [1073] The Holy See is a party to juridical instruments dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical weapons in order to support such initiatives of the international community. [1074] Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes, 80: AAS 58 (1966), 1104.

(John 18, 1-11) Jesus said to Peter, "Put your sword into its scabbard”

[1] When he had said this, Jesus went out with his disciples across the Kidron valley to where there was a garden, into which he and his disciples entered. [2] Judas his betrayer also knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples. [3] So Judas got a band of soldiers and guards from the chief priests and the Pharisees and went there with lanterns, torches, and weapons. [4] Jesus, knowing everything that was going to happen to him, went out and said to them, "Whom are you looking for?" [5] They answered him, "Jesus the Nazorean." He said to them, "I AM." Judas his betrayer was also with them. [6] When he said to them, "I AM," they turned away and fell to the ground. [7] So he again asked them, "Whom are you looking for?" They said, "Jesus the Nazorean." [8] Jesus answered, "I told you that I AM. So if you are looking for me, let these men go." [9] This was to fulfill what he had said, "I have not lost any of those you gave me." [10] Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it, struck the high priest's slave, and cut off his right ear. The slave's name was Malchus. [11] Jesus said to Peter, "Put your sword into its scabbard. Shall I not drink the cup that the Father gave me?" 

CSDC 496. Violence is never a proper response. With the conviction of her faith in Christ and with the awareness of her mission, the Church proclaims “that violence is evil, that violence is unacceptable as a solution to problems, that violence is unworthy of man. Violence is a lie, for it goes against the truth of our faith, the truth of our humanity. Violence destroys what it claims to defend: the dignity, the life, the freedom of human beings”.[1029] The contemporary world too needs the witness of unarmed prophets, who are often the objects of ridicule.[1030] “Those who renounce violence and bloodshed and, in order to safeguard human rights, make use of those means of defence available to the weakest, bear witness to evangelical charity, provided they do so without harming the rights and obligations of other men and societies. They bear legitimate witness to the gravity of the physical and moral risk of recourse to violence, with all its destruction and death”.[1031]

Notes: [1029] John Paul II, Address at Drogheda, Ireland (29 September 1979), 9: AAS 71 (1979), 1081; cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 37: AAS 68 (1976), 29. [1030] Cf. John Paul II, Address to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences (12 November 1983), 5: AAS 76 (1984), 398-399. [1031] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2306. 

[Initials and Abbreviations.- CSDC: Pontifical Council for Justice And Peace, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church; -  SDC: Social Doctrine of the Church; - CV: Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate (Charity in truth)]