Justice and Righteousness

A Biblical perspective by George Katchanov

T

he recurring motifs of justice and righteousness are perhaps some of the most persistent themes of all time, whether we choose to confront the postmodernist ideology of our world or to engage ourselves in a sociological survey of the Biblical realm. The problem of injustice outlines a cycle of self-annihilation that humankind continues to stubbornly and ignorantly make itself the victim of.

The mystifying absurdity of a society oppressing its own members on the periphery is, at the very least, perplexing, and it no doubt identifies the confrontational stance that we, as the people of God, need to take against the present reality.

Sadly, the common response to the reality of injustice gives no hints of the readiness to confront. We close our eyes; we plug our ears; we move to isolated, quiet towns in our materialistic pursuits, thinking that the completeness of life will endow upon us only if we arrange for the “great escape” to take place. We escape the present reality only to find out that it patiently waits to ambush the subsequent generations with far more costly outcomes, igniting another Holocaust, another Armenian Genocide, another Cambodia, another Chechnya.

It’s imperative to our discussion to note that the theme of community life is perhaps one of the most predominant ones in the context of the Biblical discourse. The pervasive themes of justice and righteousness in the Hebrew Bible are always understood in the context of a relationship. In fact, the primary function of the court system in ancient Israel was to cultivate and to restore the well being of the community by imposing retribution on the person committing a felony. Exodus 20:16 prohibits one from bearing false witness against his neighbor, thereby restraining a possibility of injustice to occur within the court system.

In this sense, justice resembles the grid against which the wellness of a community is to be measured. To enter in a relationship in ancient Israel meant to assume certain responsibilities and obligations, which varied depending on the type of relationship. Accordingly, to fulfill the assumed responsibilities and obligations in the context of one’s relationship meant to exhibit righteousness. The prophetic literature accounts for numerous instances of Israel’s worship being unpleasant and insulting to God because their outward conduct failed to meet the standards of justice and righteousness as those on the periphery of society were marginalized (Amos 5.21-24). Isaiah 1:15-17 indicates God’s rejection of Israel’s celebrations and prayers, offered with hands full of blood of the oppressed. The legitimacy of Israel’s relationship with Yahweh, therefore, solely depends upon the intentional expression of justice and righteousness within the life of a community.

The authors of Say to This Mountain, Mark’s Story of Discipleship present an intriguing interpretation of the gospel of Mark through the sociological spectrum. They maintain that the well-known account of the widow’s offering in Mark 12:41-13:2 is indicative of the exploitation of widows. From the authors’ point of view, Mark is “ever class-conscious,” hence his readiness to point out the difference in sums of money offered by the rich and the widow (vv. 41-42). Yet what follows in verse 44 is perhaps the purest example of the prophetic indictment pronounced on the scribal class for “devouring widows’ houses” (Mark 12:40): “But she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

According to the authors, “The temple, like the scribal class, no longer protects the poor, but crushes them. His attack on the political economy of the Temple and its stewards complete, Jesus exits the Temple grounds for the last time in disgust (13.1).”

In the midst of affluence, it is very easy to become self-indulgent and numb to the condition of the needy. Humankind is prone to assuming the “see no evil, hear no evil” position when a disaster is taking place. The greatest paradox of all is the inexplicable, historically consistent stillness and ignorance of the church in response to countless outbursts of injustice. Furthermore, on several occasions we observe not only the compliance of the church, but also its active participation in the exertion of injustice. The Spanish Inquisition, Martin Luther’s despicable The Jews and Their Lies treatise published in 1546, or, even more recent, the passive inactivity of the Russian Orthodox Church in response to the outburst of racial discrimination against the representatives of the people of the Caucases - these are only a few of the innumerable examples. Throughout history, the church is guilty of either passing by the marginalized or of participating in “devouring widows’ houses” (Mark 12:40). Perhaps now is the time to penetrate the numbness fossilized through centuries of self-indulgent ignorance. Perhaps now is the time to cease the apathetic stillness.

“For I the Lord love justice” (Isaiah 61:8), says Yahweh, and accordingly, as Richard Shultz truthfully notes, “God expects all to whom he has delegated authority to execute justice.” This concept is well illustrated in Genesis 18:19, when Abraham is required not only to practice justice, but to teach it to his children in ways alternative to those of the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah. For only such just behavior ensures the continuance of blessing upon the nations and the descendants of Abraham. It seems that the fulfillment of the promise by God was contingent upon Abraham’s faithful exhibition of justice in daily living and his effort to pass on the understanding of justice to his descendants.

Given that the church is the mouthpiece of God on earth and the direct representation of His authority, perhaps it is time to live up to this responsibility. As the body to which God delegated His authority, we need not only to practice justice faithfully in our daily living, but also to advocate it to subsequent generations. The health of the worldwide community cannot be restored unless the church ceases to shy away from tackling the so-called “controversial” passages in the Bible and boldly speaks the truth on behalf of God. Our God is Yahweh, the God who loves justice. If the church truly loves God it will learn to love justice with the passion reminiscent of Yahweh’s. If God advocates justice, we must assume this same responsibility.

Jesus’ reaction to the poor widow’s offering denotes that in His daily walk He was driven by compassion toward the plight of the marginalized. Jesus penetrated the numbness of the social context of His day by immersing the community in the harsh reality they refused to acknowledge, the very reality that deems inhumane treatment of those on the periphery of society abnormal. To become compassionate means to inwardly embrace the condition of the marginalized by making their plight our own. More precisely, to become compassionate means, as Walter Brueggemann says, to “internalize the pain” of the marginal ones, for the “capacity to feel the hurt of the marginal people means an end to all social arrangements that nullified pain by a remarkable depth of numbness.”

Following the example of our Savior today, the challenge we encounter is that our ministry is to be driven not by self-affirmation, but by justice and compassion. Until we choose solidarity with the marginalized, we will not fully comprehend their condition, nor will we exhibit the capacity to advocate justice. Only the internalization of the present reality of injustice can lead to external restoration.

Writer: George Katchanov attends the College for Officer Training in Winnipeg, Canada and is a member of the Heralds of the Good New session. He has been appointed to the Multicultural Family Centre in Winnipeg, where he will assume his position at the end of June. He was born in Russia and later moved to the United States where he was introduced to The Salvation Army. His interests include the Old Testament and multicultural ministry. George also enjoys writing, playing guitar and reading for leisure.

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