Modern Social Justice (The Bible’s Answer for Justice, Part 7)
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By Ben Quine
God cares deeply about justice. We’ve seen over the past articles that justice is part of His character (Deuteronomy 32:4), that He required justice of Himself for our salvation (Romans 3:23-26), and that He expects justice from His children (Micah 6:8) and from governments (Romans 13:1-7). So how does Biblical Justice compare with the Modern Social Justice movement?
Now that you know what God’s Word says about justice, look closely at the ideas that are being presented in the culture around you and compare them with the Word of God.
Are the messages you hear around you teaching that God gave government the responsibility to enact justice by punishing those who do wrong and commending those who do right? Are they teaching that justice requires every person be treated equally (not that there must be equal outcomes) and that those who commit offenses must personally make them right, and this payment then brings an end to the matter? Are they teaching that government should apply the principles of equality and equal restitution to all areas of law? Are they promoting Biblical values in ways that are consistent with Scripture? Are they teaching the need for Jesus to heal the hurts caused by sins of injustice, and that only Jesus can give us the love required for forgiveness and virtue?
We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5)
It is not enough to hear the Word – we must apply it to every idea around us. We must take every thought captive. We must not be led astray by the current philosophical fads of today:
See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. (Colossians 2:8)
It is essential that we start every position and policy with Scripture and stay true to Scripture. It is essential that we hold every idea in our culture up to the truth of Scripture, and that we are then able to explain why a false idea is false.
Social Justice: Fair treatment of all people in a society, including respect for the rights of minorities and equitable distribution of resources among members of a community. (Dictionary.com)
How does this philosophy align with Biblical teaching?… What Modern Social Justice proposes instead of true justice is equity (forced equality of outcomes), but equity requires injustice, because the only way to achieve equality of outcomes is unequal treatment (which is injustice!). This position is fundamentally wrong because it embraces an anti-Biblical view of justice.
Darity and co-author Andrea Kirsten Mullen have a new book, “From Here to Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the Twenty-First Century,” that analyzes past estimates for reparation amounts and offers new ones. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign economist Larry Neal estimated in 1983 that America owed $1.4 trillion in reparations for Black descendants of enslaved people. Neal based this figure on the amount of wages earned by non-enslaved workers between 1620 and 1840, subtracting costs related to the care of slaves (food, housing, care, etc.). According to Darity and Mullen, that 1983 figure compounded at 4%, 5% and 6% interest by 2019, would be $5.7 trillion, $8.1 trillion and $11.4 trillion, respectively, as per their calculations. (abcnews.com)
How does this philosophy align with Biblical teaching?…
Critical Race Theory, one segment of the Modern Social Justice movement, seeks reparations (or restitution) by the descendants of one skin color group for the descendants of another skin color group.
It argues that America owes, or that White People owe, restitution to Black People for past racist sins. But according to Biblical Justice, a parent’s guilt and restitution are never transferred to their children (Ezekiel 18:20), and guilt is not the result of being part of a group (especially according to “race,” which is not a biblical category!) This position is fundamentally wrong because it embraces anti-Biblical views of guilt, restitution, and race. (See Answers for Difficult Days: Racism).
Social Justice: In modern practice, social justice revolves around favoring or punishing different groups of the population, regardless of any given individual’s choices or actions, based on value judgements regarding historical events, current conditions, and group relations. In economic terms, this often means redistribution of wealth, income, and economic opportunities from groups whom social justice advocates consider to be oppressors to those whom they consider to be the oppressed. Social justice is often associated with identity politics, socialism, and revolutionary communism. (Investopedia)
Compare the following pillars of Modern Social Justice with what you have learned through Scripture:
Social Justice looks for groups that have been oppressed in the past
Social Justice shows favor towards oppressed groups
Social Justice punishes groups that have been historically privileged
Social Justice does this with the goal of equalizing economic outcomes (redistribution of resources) for all society
Social Justice does not take into consideration the individual’s actions, only the group’s
How does this philosophy align with Biblical teaching?…
The Bible champions social justice only when it indicates bringing justice to society, such that everyone is treated with true equality; no one is shown favoritism, and everyone is given the fruit of their own hands.
But today this term has been redefined (though most proponents of Modern Social Justice prefer to never actually define their term “social justice”). When fully defined, Modern Social Justice bears no resemblance to Biblical justice because instead of dealing with individual sin, it generalizes guilt to groups, it shows favoritism and punishes the innocent, it compels unequal restitution, it never brings an end to the payments, and it institutionalizes injustice in the name of “fairness.”
Biblical justice requires treating your neighbor with the respect and equality befitting someone else made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26). It considers that each individual is someone whom Jesus loved enough to die for. Justice demands each person be treated on their own merits — not on the merits of their father, mother, or grandparents (Ezekiel 18:20) — with no regard to their skin color, race, background, religion, gender, wealth or poverty, social status, or any other factor. Justice is not concerned with equal outcomes (Luke 19:11-27), but is concerned with equal treatment (Numbers 15:15-16).
This is why Lady Justice is usually portrayed wearing a blindfold; because she must give equal treatment to everyone, and never show favoritism for any reason (James 2:1-4). The philosophy of Modern Social Justice is false because it rejects these Biblical truths.
As a result of sin, ideal justice is never fully realized on earth — sinful people always mistreat and abuse one another. So God created governments to protect the people (Romans 13:1-4), the rich and the poor (Leviticus 19:15), the strong and the weak, and to institute equal restitution and equal punishments for sin. However, because of the pervasive nature of sin, even a cursory view of history shows that power has consistently been abused by the powerful (like King Ahab and Queen Jezebel). This is why limits need to be placed on the power of human government, why Christians must monitor and hold governments accountable to God’s law, and why government must submit to God’s divine authority when it comes to justice (Daniel 4:17).
One day, Jesus will establish complete justice at his return (Acts 17:31), and he will bring an end to the groaning of creation (Romans 8:18-22). But until then the personal virtue of individuals, not Modern Social Justice, is the primary source of justice in society (we’ll talk more about this in an upcoming article)
Justice is not only entrusted to governments — believers are called to seek justice and show charity as well. (Proverbs 31:8-9, Jeremiah 22:3) If you see people who are in need or who are being treated unjustly, you should act! Act to help the needy and to protect the unborn, the defenseless, the weak, and the oppressed. Act to insure the rich and the poor are both treated equally, given the fruit of their hands, and given a free market in which to work and do business. Act to restore biblical principles that uphold our God-given rights, and see to it that everyone is treated equally under the law.
ABOUT BEN
Connect with him at Cornerstone Curriculum
Ben Quine, the second son of David and Shirley Quine, was blessed to grow up with a Charlotte Mason/Dr. Schaeffer/Biblical Worldview education -- a tremendous gift! Through the years, Ben has served as a Cornerstone consultant, assistant, and co-author. He has written several Bible studies for the Answers for Difficult Days series, which equips churches to address the issues our culture is wrestling with today, from the foundation of Scripture. Ben is also the editor of The Worldview Library, editions of classical literature with student helps that afford the reader a deeper understanding of the concepts presented in each work.
Trained as a classical pianist and instructor, Ben is committed to inspiring his students with the love of great music and equipping them with the tools to perform at the highest level. This training has resulted in his students' successful performances from local festivals and competitions to Carnegie Hall.
Ben loves Shakespeare, Dickens, photography, listening to recordings of "the great pianists", running, biking, and spending time with his wife Julie and their three sons.