“Why does the Pope need to condemn the war in Iraq,” a correspondent asks, “if he has already condemned ALL war? He condemns abortion, right? So by your logic he would have to condemn each individual abortion.”
Intentional abortion, the Church teaches, is always intrinsically wrong. But war? In certain limited circumstances, elaborated in the just war doctrine, war can indeed be justified. To quote John Paul II himself, “We know well that peace is not possible at any price.” If some wars are permissible while others are not, then no one, not even the New York Times, can say the Pope has condemned the war in Iraq unless the Pope has condemned the war in Iraq. Which he hasn’t.
For a fine succinct overview of what the Pope has said, look here.