Wednesday, February 2, 2011
An Aim For My Life
Tweet
I have never read much by John Dominic Crossan, but his recent post on the Huffington Post Religion page was a solid read. His article is entitled: "With Liberty and Justice for All: Why the Bible Promotes Equality." It is an explanation of what the exactly is meant by the biblical concept of "divine justice" and from where that concept originated in ancient communities.
I have never read much by John Dominic Crossan, but his recent post on the Huffington Post Religion page was a solid read. His article is entitled: "With Liberty and Justice for All: Why the Bible Promotes Equality." It is an explanation of what the exactly is meant by the biblical concept of "divine justice" and from where that concept originated in ancient communities.
A few of the lines that stood out to me:
"The most serious and far-reaching misunderstanding of that biblical tradition is to interpret divine justice as retributive rather than distributive, as if it meant a proper punishment for some rather than a fair share for all."
"the biblical tradition does not proclaim "social justice" but "divine justice" -- which is something like social justice on steroids."
"But what if some of the children were starving and others were over-fed? What if some received food while others did not? What would you think of that householder -- then or now? That is the mega-model or mega-metaphor underneath the biblical tradition's understanding of its God. That is why the biblical God can demand of the powers-that-be, the rulers of this world, that they,
Give justice to the weak and the orphan; maintain the right of the lowly and the destitute. (Psalm 82:3)
You can see from those parallel verses that "justice" is "the right" of the dispossessed. Distributive justice is not gift, charity, or handout in a world that belongs to us but the simple right of all in a world that belongs to God."
I been deeply struck by the justice themes in Scripture. Divine justice is close to God's heart, and may even be at the very center of the kingdom of God, the very thing that God is doing in the world around us. Crossan's words are helpful on a couple of accounts:
First, "Divine justice" doesn't have to mean punishment. Unfortunately, we often use "God's justice" as a battering stick over the heads of those we believe are "wrong" in whatever situation. We are so convinced that we are righteous and it is our job to dole out judgment and justice. But if justice is about sharing, as Crossan points out, then justice is my responsibility, but in a very different way.
Second, the goal of distributive justice is not a handout and is not to be equated with the negative American concept of "social welfare." I believe that our social welfare programs are failed attempts at trying to properly achieve distributive justice. It is a lofty goal! But not one that we should give up on. Rather, we must continue to search and find ways to "Give justice to the weak and the orphan, to maintain the right of the lowly and the destitute." This is God's command to all of us, and his will for the world that is his own. And he has made it the right of all his children, all people on earth.
So what does that mean for me? It means I'm continually more and more excited about being connected with the social work field. The first core value of the National Association of Social Workers is "Social Justice." That is a complex concept, and not all would define it as Crossan does here, but I see an important intersection. I believe that social workers are really trying to do what Crossan is talking about, trying to be good "householders" in the global "house."
I'm excited about my role in that profession, and for myself, I will continue to try to adopt and internalize the heart of God, one that desires and works for justice for all.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment