Truth and Justice

"Truth, Justice, and the American Way!" Yes, we all know the cliche like the backs of our hands, espoused by comic book characters like Superman and Captain America. But America has no real claim to truth and justice. They are universal. Moreover, anyone who follows politics knows that we haven't been the best examples of these ideals to the outside world and not even to ourselves. However, I didn't start writing this to blab about politics. I'll let those who care about such things do that. Instead, I want to explore the relationship of truth and justice.

What is justice? Simple. A criminal or wrongdoer is forced to face the consequences of his actions. This can be accompanied by mercy, like the way Jesus treats us and forgives us our sins. It can also be without mercy, like the State's way, where the criminal may face jail time or possibly the death penalty, depending on the severity of the crime.

Truth is somewhat self-explanatory. For right now, however, since I like to work with defined ideas, truth is a complete absence of deception.

We must have both of these ideas working together in order to find true justice. I know; "Wow, Nati! I never knew that before! Thank you so much for making that clear once and for all." But trust me, I have a reason I say this.

Justice, when not served with truth, is vengeance. It is taking the idea of pure justice and twisting it to fit our needs. Revenge is bending justice inward towards ourselves in a selfish attempt to get it when we think no one else can get justice for us.

A good example of this is in the movie Hard Candy. (I do not recommend this film in the slightest; I'm simply using it as an example.) At the end, a teenage girl convinces a man to commit suicide after getting him to admit to killing her friend. After lying to him throughout the film, she tells him she will erase the evidence of his crimes. When he steps off the roof to his death, she leans over, looks at his body, and then says, "...or not."

She got revenge. She used deception to get close to him, to get him to confess, and to convince him to commit suicide. That movie left me with a bitter taste in my mouth. She twisted justice to get her own way, and in the end found bittersweet revenge, not justice.

Justice must always be served in truth. Always. Both truth and justice are parts of God's Character and it maligns Him when we attempt to deceive in order to get justice. God will not tolerate that, which is why when we get revenge, it often returns to claim a sizable chunk of our backsides. He will not be mocked and that is what revenge is. It is telling God, "You aren't good enough for me, so I'll get justice my way!" It won't work.

God knows what He is doing, and he will serve justice rightly when it is due. Do not seek it out for your own purposes and get revenge. Trust God, and serve Him to your utmost, letting the Perfect Judge serve Justice.

Holy is He, and worthy of praise.