Ed Cook

On Justice

The general meaning of justice (Gk. dikaosune) in the ethical sense is treating others fairly and impartially.  This applies both on a personal and organization level.  Interestingly, the same Greek word is often translated "righteousness" in the New Testament.

Both Plato and Aristotle included justice in their lists of cardinal virtues.  Plato (Republic) describes justice as the dominant virtue of both individuals and societies.  This means that any ethical matter comes under the realm of justice.

As a virtue, justice is an internal state of a person or organization and does not rely on social, political, or economic norms and is not determined by good consequences (utilitarianism).  Virtue is defined as excellence of character by the ancient Greeks, with the opposite of virtue being vice.

According to Aristotle, there are two aspects of justice:

       1.  Outward -- treating others fairly and impartially.

       2.  Inward -- People should receive benefits according to their merits.  One should seek their fair share and no more or no less.  The opposing pole of justice here is greediness.

Lawrence Kohlberg describes 6 stages of human moral development.  The highest stage is a concern for justice and human rights.

In a report published by the National Organization for Women (www.now.org), there was a substantial differential in men/women earnings in 2004.  The median women's earnings were 76% of that of men.  In the case of African American women, this dropped to 69%, while with Latino women the differential was 58%.  Women were found to be paid less in every occupational category for which sufficient data is available.  If the compensation was equitable, women's annual income would increase by $4000.

A Gender Equity Study has been in process within the Kansas West Conference of the United Methodist Church for several years.  Each year during the past ten years, the base compensation of male pastors exceeded that of women when adjusted for experience.  This differential has increased almost each year of the study and is thought to be based solely on gender.

I find it disturbing that injustice (vice) is overtly being practiced within a mainline Protestant denomination.  The public image of organized religion has been damaged considerably for several years.  Practicing acts of injustice withing the church certainly does not help the image.

On Reverence

Reverence was a very important virtue among the ancients in both the western and eastern cultures.  However, it seems to have lost its value in the current western world.  The importance of reverence is detailed in Paul Woodruff's excellent book Reverence -- Renewing a Forgotten Virtue.  Woodruff is a philosophy and humanities professor at the University of Texas in Austin.  He is an expert on the ancient Greek philosophers and their writings.

Of high importance with reverence is a realization of human limitations.  Associated with this is the ability to be in awe of all that lies beyond our control.  To the ancient Greeks, reverence was the virtue that prevents people from acting like gods.  Human arrogance (hubris) is the opposite of reverence.  Such a person is unable to have feelings of awe regarding things higher than himself or feel respect for those things lower than himself. These two feelings, of course, result in a very limited personal microparadigm.

Reverence, being a virtue, is a component of a virtuous person's excellence of character.  A virtuous person has a much higher strength of character than a non-virtuous person.  Virtues are central to good thinking and action.  A virtuous person does the right thing because it "feels" good to do so.  Paul Woodruff believes the importance of reverence should qualify it as a cardinal virtue, along with practical wisdom, courage, justice, and moderation.  People of different religions may disagree about matters of belief and faith, but reverence is non-debatable and admired by all religions.  As long as those of other religions demonstrate reverence, it is not important that they share anther person's beliefs.

Reverence is a capacity for certain feelings.  The ancient Greeks and Chinese thought that everyone has a natural capacity for virtue, but virtue is not inherent.  It must be developed through teaching or emulation of a highly virtuous exemplar.  Virtue must be cultivated.  All of this, of course, applies to reverence.

Associated with the capacity for a range of feelings with reverence is the continual realization that there is something larger than the person.  This results in feelings of awe, shame, and respect.  Often these feelings are expressed by some sort of ceremony or ritual.  Reverence reminds us of our human limitations.  This "something larger" might include God, nature, the universe, value systems, etc.  It is something one feels, not a particular feeling in itself.Reverence is not limited to theists.  Atheists and agnostics can also be reverent.

As I said, reverence is an ancient virtue and was highly important to the ancients.  However, it seems to have become forgotten (as a virtue) over the years.  This does not mean there are no reverent people living today.  As a virtue, it is simply not cultivated by many.  This is somewhat ironic, as it is essential for any highly functional society or organization.

I have only scratched the tip of the iceberg regarding reverence.  In his excellent book, Paul Woodruff goes into detail with many examples and much interesting documentation.  Highly recommended.