Preview
Creation Date
10-15-2026
Description
Thursday, October 15, 2026 | 6:00 PM | Notre Dame London
Mary Ellen O’Connell delivers the 2026 Richard O’Sullivan Memorial Lecture, presented by The Edmund Plowden Trust and Notre Dame London.
Is the Iran War a “just war”? This question has sparked a global debate over the meaning and relevance of the venerable Just War theory. The debate began in April when two prominent American Catholics, Pope Leo and Vice President J.D. Vance, exchanged deeply differing positions on war and peace. This lecture is about those differences.
It looks to the origins of the Just War theory, demonstrating how it developed based on natural law, which gives it its authentic, enduring meaning—meaning that is now codified in the United Nations Charter prohibition on the use of force. This context has been largely forgotten. Politicians resort to war using self-serving interpretations of the Charter or assertions that they are acting for reasons above the law. These decisions have brought about the highest number of armed conflicts since World War II. They are also undermining the very rule of law upon which democracy and social harmony depend.
This lecture is given with the generous support of the Newman Association.
Sponsors:
The Edmund Plowden Trust
The Newman Association
Notre Dame Law School
Notre Dame London