Pope Benedict XVI's Nightmare: Justice Corrupted

4/26/2012

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for justice is not only nightmarish when it is acted upon without regard to truth of God, it is also nightmarish when we do it without regard to truth of man. There is, Pope Benedict XVI observes in his Lenten reflection, "a permanent temptation within man: to situate the origin of evil in an exterior cause. Many modern ideologies deep down have this presupposition: since injustice comes 'from outside,' in order for justice to reign, it is sufficient to remove the exterior causes that prevent it being achieved." Rousseau may be the poster boy for someone who succumbed hook, line, and sinker to this temptation.

But this Rousseauian anthropology does not conform to the truth of man or the truth of injustice. "Injustice, the fruit of evil, does not have exclusively external roots; its origin lies in the human heart, where the seeds are found of a mysterious cooperation with evil," Pope Benedict XVI tells us.

A correct anthropology-one that recognizes that man is wounded and that he sins-is needed to avoid a nightmare of justice. This anthropology must recognize that outstanding fact of which G. K. Chesterton quipped in his book Orthodoxy is "the only part of Christian theology which can really be proved," and which anyone "can see in the street."

In his 2010 Lenten reflections, Pope Benedict XVI reflects on the effect of sin on injustice. "[M]an is weakened by an intense influence, which wounds his capacity to enter into communion with the other. By nature, he is open to sharing freely, but he finds in his being a strange force of gravity that makes him turn in and affirm himself above and against others: this is egoism, the result of original sin."

We have to be freed of this inner selfishness, this tendency toward egoism, this hitch in us that overemphasizes our "due" over the "due" of the other. This is not achieved by force, but by grace.
As the Pope explains, the Hebrew notion of justice in the Old Testament-sedaqah-ties in faith in God with justice to the needy. The virtue of justice has therefore an upward and outward valence.

"Sedaqah, in fact, signifies on the one hand full acceptance of the will of the God of Israel; on the other hand, equity in relation to one's neighbor (cf. Ex 20, 12-17), especially the poor, the stranger, the orphan and the widow (cf. Dt 10, 18-19). But the two meanings are linked because giving to the poor for the Israelite is none other than restoring what is owed to God, who had pity on the misery of His people."

In fact, the Pope tells us, there can be no justice unless we experience a sort of internal "exodus." We must be saved from the hand of the "Egyptians" within us, which is to say those tendencies in us that hold as in selfish thrall, and prevent us from being free.

But if God is to set us free from nightmares, he must first hear our cry, which means we must first believe in him. It is God who delivers. It is God who effects that deliverance, but in doing so he demands that we do justice to our brothers, in particular, the poor, the stranger, and the slave.
Indeed, sedaqah has two dimensions, it is a twined virtue. It is impossible to have sedaqah with regard to God and be unjust to one's brother. St. John captures the twined notion of sedaqah perfectly when he says, "If we say we love God and hater our brother, we are a liar." (1 John 4:20). Our Lord captured it likewise when he asked us to pray to God the Father to forgive us our injustices against Him, as we forgive our brothers' injustices against us.

To conform to that divine injunction of loving God and neighbor requires an "exodus," an "exodus" that requires us to cross over the "illusion of self-sufficiency, the profound state of closure, which is the very origin of injustice." We must escape ourselves and reach out to God and to our brother; without crossing over this personal "Red Sea," we never will achieve justice.

How do we break away from the "state of closure," the solipsism or selfishness which prevents our communion with God and with others of our kind? Who is the Moses that shall lead us to the Promised Land?

Jesus is the agent, the "I am" of our "exodus" away from this "state of closure" into justice. The Pope elaborates in his 2010 Lenten message: "What then is the justice of Christ? Above all, it is the justice that comes from grace, where it is not man who makes amends, heals himself and others. The fact that "expiation" flows from the "blood" of Christ signifies that it is not man's sacrifices that free him from the weight of his faults, but the loving act of God who opens Himself in the extreme, even to the point of bearing in Himself the "curse" due to man so as to give in return the "blessing" due to God (cf. Gal 3, 13-14)."

This seems impossible. This seems too good to be true. This does not smell like the justice defined as giving each man his "due." In a sense it scandalizes that sense of natural justice.

The Pope agrees. He asks rhetorically: "What kind of justice is this where the just man dies for the guilty and the guilty receives in return the blessing due to the just one? Would this not mean that each one receives the contrary of his 'due'?"

Indeed, in seeing God's justice in Christ, we confront a paradoxical justice, one that transcends the limits of our experience. In Jesus, "we discover divine justice, which is so profoundly different from its human counterpart."

"God has paid for us the price of the exchange in His Son, a price that is truly exorbitant. Before the justice of the Cross, man may rebel for this reveals how man is not a self-sufficient being, but in need of Another in order to realize himself fully. Conversion to Christ, believing in the Gospel, ultimately means this: to exit the illusion of self-sufficiency in order to discover and accept one's own need-the need of others and God, the need of His forgiveness and His friendship."

This conversion requires Faith, not emotion based upon sentiment, not science based upon empirical fact. "So we understand how Faith is altogether different from a natural, good-feeling, obvious fact." We can have feelings and be good scientists and be proud. But to have Faith, one must come as a little child, one must be humble.

"[H]umility is required to accept that I need Another to free me from "what is mine," to give me gratuitously "what is His." . . . . Thanks to Christ's action [on the Cross and in the Sacraments of Reconciliation and the Eucharist in particular], we may enter into the "greatest" justice, which is that of love (cf. Rm 13, 8-10), the justice that recognizes itself in every case more a debtor than a creditor, because it has received more than could ever have been expected."

"Strengthened by this very experience," and only within that experience of Faith in the Risen Lord, "the Christian is moved to contribute to creating just societies, where all receive what is necessary to live according to the dignity proper to the human person and where justice is enlivened by love."
Faith in Jesus-which requires a rightly ordered understanding of God and of man (for Jesus is the God-Man)-is therefore the indispensable formula for avoiding nightmares of justice.

Jesus. He is the preventative of Benedict XVI's nightmare. Jesus is the divine "dreamcatcher," the device which allows only good dreams to filter through and protects against nightmares of justice.

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Andrew M. Greenwell is an attorney licensed to practice law in Texas, practicing in Corpus Christi, Texas. He is married with three children. He maintains a blog entirely devoted to the natural law called Lex Christianorum. You can contact Andrew at agreenwell@harris-greenwell.com.
- - -

Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: Justice, Common Good, Social Doctrine, Corruption, sin, Andrew Greenwell, Esq

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1 - 9 of 9 Comments

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1 year ago
Great article. I find that atheists are in hate with God rather than not believe in him. To the atheist moral law is arbitrary. Atheists make it up as they go along and of course it is what suits them best or whatever fits the occasion. They are utterly morally bankrupt.
David Carlon
1 year ago
Amen. Justice begins with man honoring, knowing and loving God...
Pete Brady
1 year ago
Andrew: Yet another really, really fine article. Thank you.
JeanCatherine
1 year ago
Juneau Alaska

I think your a good person but did you ever read the Pope's Encyclical concerning what were talking about? As for who gets into paradise Mother Angelica says sometimes I think: We wont know until we get there will we Juneau? Many blessings to you anyway with all due respect.

See here for link on Spe Salvi:

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20071130_spe-salvi_en.html

Peace to you.
Andrew Greenwell
1 year ago
@Mike:
Perhaps the question is as follows. What is morality? Is morality conformity with some rule of reason, i.e., a law? If not, then the morality you speak of is not morality as I understand it, because if morality is not based on a rule of reason, it must be based upon will and be arbitrary. What else other than will or reason can the moral law be based on? Convention? I don't think convention defines morality at its heart because convention necessarily changes. I find morality and arbitrariness (or convention) are mutually exclusive. If morality is law, then there must be a legislator. The natural moral law therefore witnesses to a Divine Legislator. That's why, traditionally, atheism was seen as a moral lapse, not just an intellectual error. Under the natural moral law we have an obligation to worship God as First Cause and, if He has revealed Himself, to worship God as He has revealed Himself, and when we don't--when we deny his existence either as First Cause or (unless we are invincibly ignorant) as He has revealed Himself--we have violated the moral law. I don't know what Cardinal Pell said, so I can't comment on that, though perhaps he was referring to the invincible ignorance exception.

I do not think that believing in a Divine Legislator and a natural moral law which requires us, in justice, to worship the God who made us is a "carrot-stick" paradigm. Ideally, we obey the moral law out of love for the Creator, and, if we are Christian, out of love of the God who became man and redeemed us from our prior (and future) failures. (It also happens to be good for us, in that it makes us happy, but that's another issue.) When we confess our lapses, we ask God's mercy because "most of all" it offends God "who is all good."

I am a theist, and I likewise "do good for goodness sake," so our moralities share that formula. But within my understanding of "good," I include the worship of God. And as to "goodness," I believe all things have goodness, but only one being is goodness, and that is God. I once disbelieved in God, and so I know that the morality you cherish--do good for goodness sake--can only become enriched when you expand good to include the worship of God, and goodness to include God himself.

I appreciate your thoughtful comments, and keep reading (and perhaps even praying!)
Honeybadger
1 year ago
I witnessed injustice at first hand today.

It made me sick to the core and scared witless for any innocent victim who hopes for justice from the so-called justice system.

Bullying, abuse of authority, bad behaviour, misrepresentation of the facts and the sloth brazenly demonstrated by someone whom we trusted to pay close attention to - and question even - the most obvious inconsistencies in the evidence provided. My blood is boiling.

God and Our Blessed Lady help us!
Juneau Alaska
1 year ago
This current pope is hell-bent on demonizing atheism yet just last week Cardinal Pell ,on an Australian show with Prof. Richard Dawkins, said atheists can go to heaven.

Attention! Atheism isn't materialism. Atheism isn't evolution. Atheism isn't any of the bigoted terms often applied to it by people of faith. Atheism has a very simple definition. Look it up.

Furthermore, this article suggests that without God (I presume Yahweh, not Vishnu or Thor or Wotan!), one cannot be moral. What dishonest nonsense. Since when does someone have to believe in moral absolutes vis-a-vis religion to simply hold a moral position? I reject the carrot-stick paradigm of religious morality (do good for a crown in heaven, do bad and your flesh will melt, only to be regrown so it can melt again ad infinitum). I am an atheist. I do good for goodness sake. Tell me what is more moral my way or the fear/punishment faith way? Mike
DLL
1 year ago
Jesus was completely obedient to Divine Justice. Divine Justice is governed by a God of love and mercy,the God of a Holy Kingdom,the Kingdom not of this world. This is the kingdom that gave Moses the 10 Commandments,Heaven above,the place that receives all of our prayers and answers them with a Divine wisdom so that civil,natural and moral laws ultimately become perfected in and in accordance with Divine law. Divine law,common law and civil law forms a trinity a legal system,that must exist in accordance with each other so that justice is fixed in a fairness of legal equity,with doctrines as well as mandates,to insure the administration of justice with a purer sense of mercy and love. God cannot be denied and all must be obedient to God as Christ was,even to his death on a cross. This means that life is defined as love. The great Commandment is that you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,soul and mind and your neighbor as yourself. This is the natural state of simply being and justice is natural to this state of being,that maintains the dignity of every human being. We must pray for a justice of mercy,administered with love and in truth,that preserve the dignity of all with equity and through the love for God and for the health,wellbeing and love for each other. God works with all humankind because love governs the Kingdom of Heaven itself and helps all humanity to learn the lesson of mortal life itself as a lesson of love. Prayer itself is love as well as communication with God the author of life and love and that is the truth. The state of all human existence is related to the way in which we all love and understand our relationship to God as this is integral to the way we love and understand,or fail to understand each other. God and humankind,they are inseparable in Heaven or on earth. Prayer is the communication the link between Heaven and earth. All justice and law must be established and maintained as a lesson of love and mercy. That is what fairness and equity is. Love than becomes ultimately justice for all. When all humankind finally understand this then there will be no such thing as prison as sin itself will have become obsolete. God's will will be finally done on earth as it is done in Heaven. You see Heaven is perfection and purity,the perfect and ideal way of being,our place with God and inseparable from Him and of one mind with Him for eternity. To be of one mind in Christ is to be of one mind with God and that happens when all are obedient to God through the power of the Holy Spirit. This Spirit is the Spirit of God that with the consent of our own free will,seeks to accommodate and to act in accordance with all individuals to purify them now and for eternity. Jesus is knocking at the door to our human hearts so that we will all know that Divine Justice is the Justice that insures peace through love and mercy itself. In God we seek our ideal of freedom knowing that we are inseparable from him and in Him we are free to be with Him,one mind,as He is as He says He is,"I AM",the one true being,who defines each and every human being,that ever was,is,or will be again.!!!!!!!!
abey
1 year ago
The basis of Justice being good over evil or right over wrong & if in today.s world evil is taken for good & good taken for evil, same being the case with right & wrong, what then be the Justice in its application on the basis of twisted understandings.as seen today , due rejecting Biblical guidances but hugging to pagan appeasings to Harlotry, where the truth of pagan beliefs & worships is against true worship of God, 'cause it is not in the truth of God, but against Him, deceitful in nature, in other words Paganism is the Antithesis to all things of God but everything to do with man in the fallen state, which results in mistaken identities with respect to the Truth & hence it becomes to challenging God, like that of Babel trying to get to heaven without the remission of sins, instead of the challenge to oneself for God is with man & not against man. It is through this grave mistake that results in reversing of right & wrong, good & bad, against life & as God is Life it becomes thumbs down for man, to the view of fools who in the pride say god learns from man, the interpretations of man.

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