Realizing a mission: Teaching justice as "right relationship"

St. John's Law Review, Summer 2000 by Araujo, Robert John

As a Roman Catholic priest, I often hear the confessions of people seeking God's absolution; yet, I have a confession to make. In 1972, when I was halfway through law school, several of my classmates and I took a study break to see Francis Ford Coppola's adaptation of Mario Puzo's novel The Godfather.'

In the opening scene of the film, Bonaserra, an undertaker, seeks a favor from Don Corleone. Bonaserra's daughter, a recent victim of violence and attempted sexual assault who nonetheless retained her honor and virtue, convalesces in the hospital. The undertaker wants the Don to kill the two young men who tried to rape his daughter. He implores Don Corleone for justice-that is, revenge. The Don reminds Bonaserra that his daughter is still alive and that murdering the perpetrators would not be justice. The Godfather and the undertaker compromise: the two boys responsible for the assault will suffer as Bonaserra's daughter has.2

Don Corleone and Bonaserra agreed that making the attempted rapists suffer as their victim had was justice. Was that justice? More importantly, what is justice, and what is the role of the Christian academy regarding it?

Notions of justice range from the inscription above the portal of the United States Supreme Court, which proclaims "Equal Justice Under Law," to John Rawls's "justice as fairness."3 There is also the ancient wisdom of the Prophet Micah: "You have been told, 0 man, what is good, and what the LORD requires of you: Only to do right and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God."4 This insight offers more than mere concept. It contains the counsel of God and how the Almighty expects us to conduct our affairs, both interior and exterior, as individuals who are not only teachers but also members of the human family. As such, we find ourselves in relationships with many others. God's justice is not just for one or for some; it is for all. If each of us is created in the image of God, then is not each of us entitled to God's justice?

At the heart of seeking, teaching, and doing justice is the realization that all is dependent on the transcendent truth that is God.5 This justice is viewed from a different perspective than a purely human one. Many of us consider ourselves to be people for whom faith in God is important. What makes a Catholic lawyer's vocation different from that of so many other people of faith is that the vineyards of labor principally relate to the legal academy and the profession of law. Unlike many of our secular colleagues who profess to seek justice, we are a people who pray. Prayer can supply answers to questions about how we may act justly, love tenderly, and walk humbly with our God. The voice of God is not necessarily found in thunder, earthquake, or fire. It is often found in the quietest of places,6 and that is where we search for true justice.

"True justice" is different from the justice that so many others have attempted to seek or define, as a real case illustrates. After the United States Supreme Court decided United Steelworkers of America v. Weber,7 in which the Court upheld a racially-based preferential training program,8 Judge Gee, the lower federal court judge who wrote the earlier opinion reversed by the Supreme Court, noted his "personal conviction that the decision of the Supreme Court in this case is profoundly wrong."9 He disagreed with the Court on two points: (1) the plain meaning of Title VII, as corroborated by its legislative history, indicated that racially-based hiring practices are prohibited;10 (2) that the "Constitution is color-blind, and neither knows nor tolerates classes among citizens."11

While he believed that the Supreme Court's opinion was "gravely mistaken,"12 Judge Gee hastened to add that it was neither immoral nor unjust because "in some basic sense it may well represent true justice."13 Unfortunately, Judge Gee did not identify what true justice is.

Might we, of the religiously affiliated legal academy, be in a vital position to help determine what true justice is? If so, how might we incorporate it into our teaching? In many ways, our work in our educational institutions frequently presents us with the need to concentrate on matters of faith and justice. As fellow workers in the Lord's vineyard, we are involved in both reflecting upon and teaching justice. We who labor in these schools are united with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is God's work in this world with which we identify. As God's disciples, we are asked to cooperate with others so that we can influence in a positive and faithful way, the structures of society where decisions are made and values are shaped.

Most of our personal work in this regard is indirect: we are teachers. Yet, as teachers, we spend much of our time working with those who will be shaping the future. We might profit from the dialogue between Thomas More and Richard Rich found in Robert Bolt's play, A Man For All Seasons.14 Richard Rich is ambitious and wants to go to King Henry's court to have access to power, privilege, and prestige.15 More counsels Rich to become a teacher, for he knows power and the corruption it can bring.16 When Rich protests and rhetorically asks, "who would know it?" More replies: "You, your pupils, your friends, God. Not a bad public. . ."17