CND a moral voice

CND must be saved from becoming political: its strength can lie only in its being an entirely moral voice. Suppose that by means of spending large sums we could develop highly selective nuclear arms. Such arms would be moral from the point of view of their being selective, but what about the morality of tremendous spending on, arms in a world scourged by poverty?
How sad if Christopher Rails is right, April 22: "that arms reduction talks are a non-starter, because, if our diplomat was to be believed, the USA simply does not trust the USSR to keep its side of any bargain".
Damian Goldie London SW20.
TO HEAR proponents of mass destruction by nuclear weapons, protesting that their Catholic faith is offended by mass abortion, fills me with dismay. Both are subjects of Christian concern and religious guidance, whilst their political and moral sensitivity brings them well within the scope of the Church's influence, as they affect the sanctity of human life.
Surely, that is of vital concern to the Church. To permit of priests protesting and demonstrating against abortion and to forbid such action against the bomb, is illogical and insincere.
The whole affair appears to be a joint United Kingdom-United States effort to destroy the western peace movements and CND. As I applauded the US bishops' earlier pronouncement on their attitude to the bomb, so was I shattered, a week or so later, when 1 read in your
columns, of their rather pusillanimous volt-face. Now, the Church in this country is reacting similarly by her reaction to the smears and dirty tactics of our government.
Mrs Charlotte Thomas Cirencester.
NUCLEAR weapons are a moral issue and have become political mainly through the Conservative government. The Dutch bishops in 1969 told their people that their concern for peace should be reflected in their political convictions.
My political convictions are coloured by working in a developing country where I saw children die from relatively minor illnesses, and from my work during the past seven years with the unemployed.
1 invite those "Influential lay Catholics who are said to have expressed concern to the Cardinal to come to Merseyside and hear what many Catholics say about nuclear deterrence.
Anne McCann Liverpool. THE WHOLE episode reminds us of what may have to be faced by anyone courageous enough not to "pass by on the other side." When we do things for others we lay ourselves open to all mariner of unexpected trials.
On one hand we sec our gentle Cardinal. alert in his duty to counsel fair play and avoid scandal, submitting to the simplistic publicity in the media.
On the other, we have the brave Monsignor. already shouldering hysterical calumny, now having to hear the sudden shock and continuing agony of misleading suspicion from some of his fellow Catholics.
Since Cardinal Hume and Mgr Kent can take the necessary knocks. I anticipate that their good relationship will develop.
Chester Michael Pulliam YOU PUBLISH many letters on peace, both from unilateralists and Multilateralists. What strikes me most forcibly are the correspondents on both sides absolutely convinced they are right. The only certainty about the whole issue is that there is no certainty. The observance of humility and charity on both sides would do much to improve the correspondence.
Manchester G E Webster YOU RECENTLY published an article by Jerry Filteau entitled "How the US bishops changed their minds on the Bomb" and Mr Filteau attempted to demonstrate some sort of change of mind on the part of the US bishops by juxtaposing and comparing successive drafts of parallel texts of their pastoral letter on war and peace.
It seems to me that Mr Fifteen's headline is very misleading indeed for a careful reading of the texts provided by Mr Filteau (without. of course, any comment) does not indicate any change of mind at all on the part of the US bishops. What there is, is a refinement and further elaboration on the principals of a just war which leaves their position virtually unchanged.
On just war theory the bishops in their third and final draft retain the argument contained in the first two that "Fundamental to the just war tradition the presumption must be in favour of peace". As in the first. the third draft states quite categorically that a "set of rigorous conditions" must be met if the decision to go to war is morally permissible.
The bishops are very careful to say that just war theory has evolved as an effort to prevent war and in stating this they arc clearly aware that a rigorous application of these principles would exclude all possibility of initiating a nuclear exchange with a potential enemy. On war as a last resort the bishops are just as lucid and coherent. In their third draft as in drafts one and two they reiterate that war may only be undertaken as a last resort "after all our efforts at negotiation and settlement have been exhausted". Mr Filteau has entirely ignored the bishops' important statement in their third draft which in effect warns that nations are rarely the best judges of their own case.
Have we forgotten the Falklands war? They write "when any nation or people perceives conflict between or among other nations as advantageous to itself, the attempt is to prevent rather than advance peaceful settlement". The bishops therefore urge mediation by some supranational body.
The nuclear debate is too important and too immediate to allow such a misleading headline to go unchallenged and it would be a pity if the American bishops were to think that the Catholic press in this country was misrepresenting them. Denis Geraghty OP Catholic Chaplaincy, 23 George Square, Edinburgh INSTEAD of opposing Bruce Kent we should be encouraging him. It is only when the Catholic Church takes the lead in such moral issues that we can claim to be working for peace.
Tom McGee Stockport.
CARDINAL HUME appears to make a distinction between the moral implications of nuclear arms and the political aspect of CND.
Surely there is a major misunderstanding here? CND and its members are concerned about the moral implications but the movement has always been intimately involved with politics since it aims to change the views of people and parties. The decision to allow Mgr Kent to take the position three years ago having been made an opposite decision could lead to most unfortunate misunderstandings by Catholics and non-Catholics.
M Senegles Cumbria.
IF IT WOULD be sinful to use nuclear weapons of mass destruction would it not be a sin to possess them in readiness or especially to acquire many more of them? The danger lies in people panicking and pressing the button.
Edmund Smith Hartlepool.
IF CHRISTIANITY were to be faithfully applied in today's international struggle (devoid of political animosity, unproven political fears, and finite judgments) it would do far more to win respect and defence for our own way of life than political and military confrontation. Materialistic concepts of spiritual things can only create spiritual and material confusion.
. Edith Hedger