Prelude. On May 31, 2020, in Silver Lake Village, Ohio, a vigil was held in honor of George Floyd. The organizer, religious leader Brad Jagger, communicated the expectation: no signs, no chanting; in other words, this was not a political event but a spiritual and religious gathering. And the conclusion, he “prayed for everyone from George Floyd to the police and everyone in between.”
In my opinion, that attitude is the prerequisite for genuine transformation.
Watch the 10:34 video or listen to the audio file?
I distinguish four kinds of justice: divine justice; the justice that is destined to prevail on this planet when the kingdom of God has come in its fullness; the justice that is already now established by political communities at any level; and evolving justice.
Divine justice. The Creator is the supreme lawgiver. His laws are inherent in the cause and effect operations in energy and matter; in human beings, the golden rule of treating others as we want others to treat us is inherent in our moral intuition; the spiritual level operates according to the laws of love.
Destined justice. When the kingdom of God comes in fullness, antagonism and divisions between different groups in society will be past history. Economic inequality and unfairness will be gone. And nations will no longer act solely in pursuit of their own self-interest.
Established justice: may be found here and there in political communities at any level from local to international, intelligent laws are on the books, written by uncorrupted legislators, interpreted in courts led by judges with integrity, where enforcement is fair and effective.
Evolving justice.
- Evolution progresses most enduringly and effectively when self-assertion and defensiveness are minimized; they both obscure the fact of the sovereignty of God and the truth that we are all family.
- Fields of experience and expertise: perspectives are drawn from everywhere; expertise should be sought in history, law, sociology, psychology, ethics, ethics, philosophy (where the assumptions in science, often unconscious and sometimes biased, are identified, and balanced by scientific work (if it is available) that operates with different assumptions). Some resources in ethics and political philosophy are available here: On John Stuart Mill’s Utilitarianism, Kant’s ethics, and Hegel’s Philosophy of Right.
- It takes wisdom to see what goals are timely to work for; don’t tackle too much at a time.
A closing meditation by Nathalie Baloglu
In my thoughts I keep asking myself how can we humans become blind and let ourselves be guided by hate.
When I feel that too often I am guided by hate, anger, and negativity.
Dear Father:
If love can see, then let me see.
If love is righteous, then let me act.
If love is healing, then let me be your patient.
Amen
Photo credit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Itojyuku_themis.jpg
A jyuku is a cram school in Japan; this one is in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan. The name of the school begins with Ito, which is a family name. This statue evidently belongs to this school. Themis is the Greek goddess of justice (Roman: Iustitia).
