Bernard J. Verkamp

Bernard Verkamp examines the moral ambiguity of soldiers who kill during war - more specifically, he focuses on their plight upon return to civilian society afterwards. He finds that in medieval time ritualistic penance was almost invariably imposed upon the men and that this helped reintegrate them into their old surroundings. He sees this not just in terms of cultural reassimilation but particularly in terms of spiritual healing. He observes that as societies became secularized the connection between temoral authorites and spiritual ones became more distince. Leaders could no longer authoritatively declare a war to be divinely sanctioned. By the twentieth century, Verkamp finds that soldiers are entirely bereft of spiritual succor. He attributes problems experienced by men returning from the great wars that plaugued the last century to the lack of relief that penance formerly provided.

The book is flawed in that it does not look beyond the realm of Christianity. It assumes a Christian God and goes no further. Moreoever, in the analysis of the twentieth century it barely looks at the experiences of British, Russian, French or German soldiers -- instead it is entirely American in perspective. To support his thesis, a wider range of evidence would bolster the position he takes.… (més)