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The Korean and Vietnam Wars both had tenets of Christian Just War of jus ad bellum and
jus in bello. Both wars were undeclared, and the American people did not really understand the
nature of these wars. The Korean War was defined as a commitment to capitalism and the
freedom of democratic government and human spirit. 1 America went to Korea with good
intentions, but this war is overshadowed by the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War was a
continuation of the action in Korea to fight communism. These wars had both just and unjust
actions, but the Vietnam War deviated the most from Christian Just War. This paper will analyze
what Christian Just War is, how it is interpreted with these two wars, and why the Vietnam War
deviated more from this tenet.
What is Christian Just War? The Just War theory is originated in Christian theology.
Saint Augustine is the known as the father of such a theory on war and justice. St. Augustine
referred to the Bible for wars as necessary to rid of evil. This theory is to discuss war in a moral
fashion. Jus ad bellum in this theory is the “just cause.” The just-war tradition holds ‘just cause’
to be the premier requirement for a just war.2 The assumption of this just-war theory is that jus ad
bellum conditions must fully be understood prior to initiation of war against an enemy and to
remain in jus ad bellum throughout the entire engagement. The Christian Just War can be defined
as those which avenge injuries, if some nation or state against whom one is waging war has
neglected to punish a wrong committed by its citizens, or to return something that has wrongfully
taken.3 In readings it is shown that Saint Augustine indeed gave more attention to jus ad bellum,
however it is accepted that war, in order truly to be just, must be fought in a just manner.4 What
1 Robert F. Ritchie, A History of Warfare in East Asia. Available from: Liberty University Online
Bookshelf, Kendall Hunt Publishing, 2022.
2John M. Mattox, Saint Augustine, and the Theory of Just War. (London: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.,
2009). Accessed July 1, 2022. ProQuest Ebook Central.
3 Mattox, Saint Augustine, and the Theory of Just War, 45-46.
4 Ibid, 60.
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that means is that war can bring many horrors to the battlefield and it is suggested that, when
given the choice, the evil effect of war should be minimized and that brings in a principle of jus
in bello which brings in proportionality. It is urged that the participants in war should not bring
on unwarranted violence and suffering. Overall, the goal is to lead the enemy back to the
advantages of peace.5
How was Christian Just War interpreted in the Korean War? With North Korea invading
South Korea, the south had the right to act in self-defense. The onset of the Korean War clearly
meets the criterion of just cause. In 1950, North Korea launched a full-scale attack on the South.
For South Korea, it was evident that they had no other option but to fight back, because what
happened was clearly a declaration of war. The other issue was that North Korea was marching
down the peninsula at such a pace that the South was in no shape to negotiate with the North.
The South’s response was in a manner of last resort.6 Jus in bello or the proportionality piece of
this war was that this was a hard, tough fight to halt an invasion, but also to push the enemy back
to the north. In the Korean War, both North and South Korea had similar military options at their
disposal with South Korea having the United States as the main ally and the North having
assistance from China and Russia. There is no doubt that North Korea was crueler in general, yet
the South and its allies acted no differently than their enemy presenting doubt that some of these
acts of war were just or not. One of these concerns of jus in bello was the Jeju Uprising where
protests eventually escalated into a full-scale armed insurgency in Jeju Island. This tragic conflict
resulted in an estimated 25,000 to 30,000 deaths, 40,000 political refugees, and the destruction of
5 Ibid, 61.
6 Hoeun Choi, Just War or Not: A Reassessment of the Korean War. International Journal of Social Science
and Humanity 4, no. 3: 230.
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95% of the villages situated in the middle of the island.7 Overall the Korean War does not
necessarily have a definite answer to whether this war was just or unjust, as this is based on
perspective. Obviously, there are just actions based sorely on the fact that an invasion happened
but this war occurred during the onset of a Cold War between the Russians and Americans and
as much as the United States desired to protect their ally in South Korea, it can’t be dismissed
that their interests in the Korean War went further than a mere self-defense of an ally nation.8
How was Christian Just War interpreted in the Vietnam War? The criteria for jus ad
bellum can be argued that the conflict does meet the criteria. To be specific the United States had
a policy to contain communism and spread democracy. They believed they had a moral
obligation to resist totalitarian Communism and the effects of evil that it brings. It was morally
just for the United States to get involved with Vietnam for the goodwill of the world and to
prevent the destruction of Communism.9 In a 1959 speech President Eisenhower said, “The loss
of South Vietnam would set in motion a crumbling process that could, as it progressed, have
grave consequences for us and for freedom.”10 Did the United States really have just cause to
enter the Vietnam War? Vietnam had not shown any aggression toward the United States and
their involvement does not meet the requirements of just cause and in all actuality, they did not
conduct themselves in accordance with the tenet of jus in bello, where civilian casualties and war
atrocities clearly violate this tenet and bona fide conduct in war that reflects such a tenet.
Jus ad bellum provides guidelines for gauging whether a war is just or unjust while jus in
bello draws out what proper conduct in war is. Jus ad bellum does not insinuate jus in bello.
7 Soul Park, The unnecessary uprising: Jeju Island rebellion and South Korean counterinsurgency
experience 1947–48, Small Wars & Insurgencies, 359.
8 Hoeun Choi, Just War or Not: A Reassessment of the Korean War. 231.
9 Eric Patterson, Just American Wars: Ethical Dilemmas in U.S. Military History, 1st ed. (Routledge,
2018). https://doi-org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.4324/9780429457302
10 Patterson, Just American Wars: Ethical Dilemmas in U.S. Military.
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Likewise, jus in bello does not warrant jus ad bellum. It is always possible for a just war to be
fought unjustly just as it is possible for an unjust war to be fought justly.11 For a war to be
declared by a proper authority, have good intention to rid of evil, and to have a chance of being
successful can undoubtably be considered as “Christian Just War.” Both wars had just and unjust
actions, jus ad bellum and jus in bello, but fundamentally, the actions of the United States in the
Vietnam War were more unjust on the authority of Saint Augustine’s Just War theory and
between these two wars that are labeled as a fight against communism, the Vietnam War
deviated the most from Christian Just War.
11 Gene Hu. The Vietnam War: Just or Unjust?, Stanford.edu. 2022.
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Bibliography
Ritchie, Robert. A History of Warfare in East Asia. Available from: Liberty University Online
Bookshelf, Kendall Hunt Publishing, 2022.
Mattox, John. Saint Augustine and the Theory of Just War. London: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc,
2009. Accessed July 1, 2022. ProQuest Ebook Central.
Choi, Hoeun. Just War or Not: A Reassessment of the Korean War. International Journal of
Social Science and Humanity 4, no. 3.
Park, Soul. The unnecessary uprising: Jeju Island rebellion and South Korean
counterinsurgency experience 1947–48, Small Wars & Insurgencies.
Patterson, Eric. Just American Wars: Ethical Dilemmas in U.S. Military History, 1st ed.
Routledge, 2018. https://doi-org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.4324/9780429457302
Hu, Gene. The Vietnam War: Just or Unjust?, Stanford.edu, 2022.
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