Compassion is Integral to Justice
A reflection offered by Parishioner & Teller, DIck Fichter
From Living Well in Lent 2023, referenced in this year’s Lenten series, one of the definitions of compassion is the Oxford English Dictionary’s definition as “the feeling or emotion, when a person is moved by the suffering or distress of another, and by the desire to relieve. By this definition, compassion is an emotional response that may or may not be acted on and therefore it is not transactional by nature.
The Cambridge Dictionary defines justice as “the condition of being morally correct or fair:” Justice requires interaction between people, it requires doing the right thing which more often than not becomes defined in transactional terms.
Much of the Law as delivered by Moses in the Old Testament describes a system of retributive justice: an eye for an eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand (Exodus 21:24 NRSV) as a means by which remedies for personal injury are addressed. By plain reading of this legal code, justice is defined transactionally. Yet even within this transactional description of the Law, a judge determines the appropriate punishment for the offense. Thus, it was never left to the aggrieved individual alone to decide and administer the remedy as this would result in a society in chaos, where retribution would easily degenerate into revenge. The Law as delivered by Moses teaches a balance of equivalents that was designed to be combined with compassion by a judge.
While the Law found in Exodus is quite specific in details, the Prophets dealt with the spirit of the Law and God’s desire that humanity not use the details of the Law as an excuse to ignore compassion. For example, the Prophet Micah wrote, “He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8 NRSV). This particular section of Micah (6:6-8) is sometimes referred to as the Micah Mandate and addresses the question of how to restore justice between humanity and God. Instead of seeking a transactional system of physical sacrifices, God calls on humanity to be relational through compassion.
The Prophet Zechariah reiterates the similar theme: “Thus says the LORD of hosts: Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another; do not oppress the widow, the orphan, the alien, or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another” (Zechariah 7:9-10 NRSV).
Jesus, the Word of God made flesh, embodies the compassion and justice discussed by the prophets of the Old Testament. For example, Jesus teaches the crowds and disciples, saying, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others” (Matthew 23:23 NRSV).
Clearly to me, the Bible teaches that compassion in action is justice. And compassion is integral for the true justice God intends for humanity to practice.
Thank you and blessing to you,
Dick Fichter, Church Teller
it continues… TONIGHT and every Wednesday night in March from 7 – 8:00/8:30 PM through Lent: Adult Learning Series with John Rybicki
in person or on Zoom
“A God of Compassion throughout Scripture”
Room 146 or on Zoom
Meeting ID: 849 7351 9512
Passcode: 779218