NATIONAL CONFERENCE OE CATHOLIC BISHOPS



EACE
The National Conference of Catholic Bishops meeting in Washing-

ton last year said in their statement on Peace issued on November

18, 1966, "There is a grave danger that the circumstances of the

present war in Vietnam may in time diminish our moral sensitivity

to its evils." The intervening time and the reactions of responsible

segments of our society have proved that the moral sensitivity of

the American people has not diminished but in fact increased and

intensified. We interpret this as a witness of the ever-deepening
yearning of the American people for peace and an increasing

horror of the evils of war.

This longing for peace bas been expressed in extreme reactions

for and against our presence in Vietnam. This has resulted in con-

siderable division among our people. Our deep concern for our

people on the battlefield as well as on the home front forces us to

plead for more rational debate and greater solicitude for mutual

understanding. In the longing for peace we ought not to forget

our moral and civic responsibilities. We embrace with great com-
passion the peoples of the lands who suffer the hardships of pro-

longed war.

We acknowledge gratefully the repeated efforts of our govern-
ment to negotiate a termination of conflict. Despite the rebuffs to

these efforts, our government is urged to continue with even

greater determination and action in the cause of negotiation. We
extend this plea to the governments of the world and urge them

to join earnestly in the search for a just and lasting peace.

We wish it understood that we are not pleading for peace at any
price— we are pleading and praying for that peace recently
described by Pope Paul as "never to be separated from justice

for nations nor from freedom for citizens and peoples."November 16, 1967