My children are now grown or nearly grown but I remember clearly one of the great cries of childhood, "It's not fair!" This cry of protest can be easily evoked in any group of children - even two will do - by giving one of the crowd a larger piece of cake. The magic of this is that the piece of cake need not actually be larger as long as at least one of the crowd perceives that it is. Or has more interesting frosting. Or is more desirable in a way that you have not even imagined. The cry goes up - "It's not fair"- railing against gross injustice.
Continuing with the idea of trivial, first-world crises, the cake scenario is a perfect example. However it does serve to illustrate an almost innate desire for justice we have even at a young age. Even recognizing that "it's not fair!" is, when translated, only "I don't like it", nonetheless the appeal is for justice or fairness. At an early age we have a sense that things should be "fair."
And for most that continues into adulthood. Many fight for societal justice in the face of many great injustices. There are heroes of this fight - famous, like Rosa Parks, and unsung like folks I know who intentionally move to the poorest part of town to get involved in those communities. The fight for justice is often quiet and gracious like this. But it is also often strident and loud. The Arab Spring is an example of the latter.
But I always come back to the cry, "It's not fair!" The protest is to address the problem we see in the world or in our social structure. The problem outside of ourselves. I was arrested when I read this in the psalms last week:
For the Lord is righteous; he delights in righteous deeds, and the just shall see his face.
(Psalm 11:8 1979 American BCP translation)
It is not those who fight for or care about justice who shall see his face, but those who are just themselves. This is not a critique of the brave and loving souls who strive for justice in the world. It is a part of our Christian lives. In my Anglican tradition one of our baptismal promises is to strive for justice and respect the dignity of every human being. But while I am striving for justice, am I just myself? It is always easier to see the problem that "they" have.
Before we give vent to our anger at injustice around us, perhaps we should begin with the injustice within us. Jesus tells us to take the log out of our own eye before we take the speck of dust out of our brother's.
What Psalm 11 did for me this past week is to make me ask not, "Is it fair?" but rather, "Am I fair?" A good question to ask.
Excellent!
ReplyDelete"Dear sirs, I am."
ReplyDelete