Benedict XVI and the Vatican’s nuclear diplomacy

Abstract

Within the framework of this text, the author seeks to verify the usefulness of the cate[1]gory “atomic diplomacy” for the study of the Catholic Church’s attitude to the problem of nuclear weapons. In addition, he seeks an answer to the question of whether the Catholic Church practiced nuclear diplomacy during the pontificate of Benedict XVI? In this context, a subsidiary question arises, which can be formulated as follows: Is the category of nuclear diplomacy useful for the study of the Catholic Church’s attitude toward nuclear weapons? The last problem faced by the author is the question of situating Benedict XVI’s reflection and teaching on nuclear weapons within the continuum of the development of the Catholic Church’s social doctrine, and clarifying whether in Benedict XVI’s teaching can be seen a harbinger of the radical changes in the Church’s stance towards nuclear weapons that manifested themselves during the pontificate of Francis?