Over the last week I’ve heard from Catholics around the archdiocese puzzled or angered by the Church’s resistance to the current war in Iraq.  All of these people are clearly committed to their faith, and many have family and friends serving in the military.

Fueling some of their frustration is a statement by one U.S. Catholic bishop last month, who described any invasion of Iraq as gravely immoral.  He warned that any material cooperation with such a war, or military service in it, would be the equivalent of aiding an abortion and therefore mortally sinful.

That particular bishop spoke from sincere personal conviction.  His comments, though, do not reflect the view of the American bishops or the teaching of the wider Church.  Nor do they bind the conscience of Catholics. 

The teaching of the Church on "just war" is not the same as her teaching on genocide, abortion or euthanasia.  The latter three crimes are always deliberate attacks on the human person and are always grievously wrong.  In contrast, war may be legitimate or illegitimate according to conditions clearly outlined in Catholic tradition.  And that’s where the dispute over Iraq lies: in whether those conditions for legitimacy were met before hostilities began.

I’ve already written and spoken about Iraq many times.  It’s no secret that I disagree with this war.  But I also respect and agree with Archbishop Edwin O’Brien of the Military Ordinariate when he reminds us that in a case like the Iraq conflict, faithful Catholics can legitimately trust our national leaders, and can legitimately choose to support and serve in this war. 

Having said that, let me offer a few more personal thoughts. 

An imprudent war is a bad war, and one of my biggest reservations about this war, all along, has been its prudence.  There is no question that the Saddam Hussein regime has repressed the Iraqi people, developed illegal weapons and repeatedly violated international agreements.  But I'm not convinced -- I'm still not convinced -- that we really know what we've gotten ourselves into. 

The resistance encountered so far from Iraqi military and paramilitary forces troubles a lot of people.  Maybe it shouldn’t surprise anyone, because the regime has seen this war coming for many months, with plenty of time to prepare.  But it also seems to suggest an overconfidence on the part of American planners that could have a very bitter price in lives.

I also have very divided feelings about embedding the press so deeply into this effort.  The American people clearly need to know about the conduct of this war, and the U.S. news media are the best in the world – surely the most professional and the most committed to honesty and fairness.  But, by their nature, the media need urgency and drama to attract viewers and compete with each other.  They gravitate to some stories and overlook others.  As a result, they risk influencing the campaign in serious and unsettling ways.

Finally, I've thought from the beginning that Americans are dangerously naive in assuming a hunger for secularized, Western-style democracy in Iraq, or large groups of welcoming Iraqis who see us as liberators.  

It’s very possible that the regime has cowed the population into resisting coalition forces.  In the murder of American and British POWs, the Saddam Hussein regime reveals itself for what it is – a collection of gangsters.  But I doubt that we really understand the way Arab culture works or the nature of Islamic solidarity.  And that could prove to be very costly, especially if Syria or Iran enters the war.  The conflict could easily become even more terribly ugly.

Of course, these are my own personal thoughts, and not the teaching of the Church.  I am not a pacifist, and Catholic teaching about war is not pacifist.  Now that the battle is joined, I hope we can end the brutalities of the current Iraqi regime quickly and successfully, because I believe American motives are essentially good. 

But I don’t think this war will be clean or quick.  And that makes our prayers this Lent – for peace, for the men and women in our armed forces, and for the Iraqi people -- even more urgent.