An Inquiry Into the Accordancy of War with the Principles of Christianity

What is An Inquiry Into the Accordancy of War with the Principles of Christianity about?

An Inquiry Into the Accordancy of War with the Principles of Christianity (1823) is Jonathan Dymond’s systematic examination of whether warfare can be reconciled with the teachings of Jesus Christ. Writing from a Quaker perspective, Dymond methodically examines the New Testament’s teachings on violence, love of enemies, and the sanctity of human life, concluding that warfare is fundamentally incompatible with Christianity. He addresses common justifications for war—self-defense, just war theory, national interest—and finds each insufficient when measured against Christ’s explicit commands. Dymond also examines the social and cultural structures that sustain militarism: the glorification of military heroes, the education of youth in martial values, and the economic interests that profit from conflict. The work is notable for its calm, logical argumentation and its willingness to follow moral principles to their full implications regardless of political convenience. Dymond’s inquiry was widely read by nineteenth-century reformers and peace activists, and his arguments anticipate the systematic moral critique of warfare developed by later pacifist thinkers from Tolstoy to Martin Luther King Jr.