Earlier this week, Pax Christi USA joined with other faith-based organizations in issuing a joint faith statement on the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons. The statement begins:
The continued existence of nuclear weapons forces humankind to live in the shadow of apocalyptic destruction. They embody the obscene proposition that the mass slaughter of innocents can be justified. Their use would not only destroy the past fruits of human civilization, but would leave present and coming generations facing a mutilated future.
The moral insights of our traditions teach us that this threat is unacceptable and must be eliminated. A clear understanding of the political and technological realities, and the undeniable dangers of nuclear proliferation and terrorism, convinces us that the complete prohibition and elimination of nuclear weapons is the only way to decisively remove this threat.
The work of realizing a world without nuclear weapons can only succeed if it is firmly rooted in a forthright acknowledgment of the humanitarian impact of the use of nuclear weapons…