Most reasonable men have come to regard war as a "necessary evil." But is it really "necessary"? Is it historically inevitable both today and in years to come? And in what ways is it "evil"? Can certain wars be morally condoned? These are the central questions this comprehensive, realistic appraisal of war and contemporary morality seeks to answer. -- Jacket front flap.

I. The moral problem of war -- II. War deterrence, and revolution in contemporary Catholic teaching -- III. A realist approach to war -- IV. Alternatives to war: state of the question -- V. Nuclear war and deterrence: the moral issues -- VI. The prospects for arms control and disarmament -- VII. Revolutionary war and intervention -- VIII. The laws of war -- IX. War and the Christian conscience.