Effects of war on those involved

[St_Francis]

From Richard Atkinson, *WW2 History: *
“And then there was the saddest lesson, to be learned again and again . . . that war is corrupting, that it corrodes the soul and tarnishes the spirit, that even the excellent and the superior can be defiled, and that no heart would remain unstained.”

This seems to be a not uncommon view, but I wonder if it is true?

The reason I think it is important is that if it is commonly believed, then it would seem that we have lost sight of what war ought to be about: to fight against an evil in order to protect those who can not protect themselves against that particular evil.

Is this view fairly common? And does it seem as bad to others as it does to me?

 

[bisco1]

i think it’s true, though i have no personal experience. i don’t see how it cannot affect you deeply. however, i don’t think we’ve lost sight of what war is about, it hasn’t changed since the beginning of time.

 

[z_0101]

From Richard Atkinson, *WW2 History: *
“And then there was the saddest lesson, to be learned again and again . . . that war is corrupting, that it corrodes the soul and tarnishes the spirit, that even the excellent and the superior can be defiled, and that no heart would remain unstained.”

This seems to be a not uncommon view, but I wonder if it is true?

The reason I think it is important is that if it is commonly believed, then it would seem that we have lost sight of what war ought to be about: to fight against an evil in order to protect those who can not protect themselves against that particular evil.

Is this view fairly common? And does it seem as bad to others as it does to me?

The effect of war/killing another human upon the human… soul… of the person committing the act has been well documented since the earliest known writings often as battle stress or combat fatigue. Indeed, even documented in the cases of natural disasters.
Here’s a nice little article about the history: Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A History and a Critique

The article doesn’t go back in history as far as I would like as I’ve read some accounts of the old crusades and even wars in China that documented solders suffering from this condition ; however, I think it should provide a good basis for conversation within the thread. The article is well cited and written by a professional in the field.

The CCC addresses war and killing quite well… even in the cases of self-defense and just wars, it notes that the act of killing, even when justified, is a gravely disordered act contrary to God’s will for man- even when such an act is justified, it has an effect upon the soul…(( vatican - CCC - vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c2a5.htm )) I’d like to pull sections out of this; however, I think the entire section really must be read in context inorder to fully understand the Church’s stance.

 

[captainrick]

It changes you, but it doesn’t necessarily “corrode the soul and tarnish the spirit.” One thing it does (if you’re young) is grow you up very quickly!

 

[St_Francis]

Thank you all for your replies–they helped me figure out why I had a problem with the quote.

I agree that being in combat would change someone; I didnmt have a problem with that part of the quote.

What I have a problem with is the idea that is is *necessarily *corroding or corrupting. I do not think that because a person has a huge reaction to a horrific experience (PTSD) that that person has become corrupted.

OTOH, it seemed to me that for at least the WW2 generations, that the experience of being at war instead sharpened their awareness of the fight between good and evil (to this day, Hitler is the one personification of evil everyone can agree on), and that this would actually mean the *opposite *of what the quote says is true.

(I understand that a wide range of people exists, and that some seem determined to be bad or have problems, so I am not making a completely blanket statement.)