Abstract
On 7 July 2017 at the UN headquarters in New York the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted, the first multilateral legally-binding instrument for nuclear disarmament negotiated in the last twenty years. The very signing of the Treaty must be seen as an extraordinary achievement because it represents a historic step in the seven decades long debate on nuclear weapons. One of the most significant achievements of the decade-long campaign is the engagement of civil society and non-state actors to such a degree that it was recognized through the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). The crucial supporter of the campaign and a powerful moral voice in the discussion has been that of Pope Francis and the Holy See’s representatives. While the Holy See’s engagement in the problem of disarmament has been an essential element of Catholic Social Teaching for many decades, never before has a pope condemned the possession of nuclear weapons so clearly and so firmly. This article aims to present the teaching and involvement of the Holy See in the process of introducing and developing a concept of nuclear disarmament in which civil society and non-state opponents of the nuclear weapons stand against the most powerful states of the contemporary world.
Highlights
While the idea of nuclear disarmament may seem very unrealistic in a world burdened by the existence of about 15,000 nuclear weapons, it has been slowly drawing the attention of a widening body of engaged advocates
The problem of the existence of nuclear weapons and the limitations of their proliferation has been discussed since the Second World War, but the recent rise in the discussion on global nuclear disarmament has been only a decade long
The strong voice of the pope on the issue of nuclear disarmament is an integral element in the holistic, positive vision of peace that has been elaborated within the framework of Catholic Social Teaching alongside other problems that have increasingly come to the fore over the last few decades
Summary
While the idea of nuclear disarmament may seem very unrealistic in a world burdened by the existence of about 15,000 nuclear weapons, it has been slowly drawing the attention of a widening body of engaged advocates. For Pope Paul VI the issue of disarmament was mainly connected with the problem of human development He rejected the reliance on nuclear weapons and defined the peace created by nuclear deterrence as “a tragic illusion”. Civil society, which is “lots of things, from the business sector to NGOs to coalitions and campaign”, is in many ways “an amplification of the moral compass, needed to guide decision making to put the collective good at the forefront” [Snyder 2017] In this changed discourse on nuclear weapons, the result of the concentrated effort of civil society, international organizations and some governments, the voice of the pope, a widely recognized moral authority, furthers the development of the concept both in normative and practical ways. The alternative to this way of thinking is the integrative power, based on building a community of interests: “together we can do something that is better for both of us” [Boulding 1989: 25]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Annales Universitatis Mariae Curie-Skłodowska, sectio K – Politologia
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
