In our effort to push back against critical social justice, Christians can't forget to clearly articulate the biblical case for justice. Monique and Krista have each chosen three issues to highlight that they think are a current injustice, according to God's standards.
Discussion about Injustice
In an effort to bring clarity to current examples of injustice--from a Biblical standard--the ladies each chose 3 areas to address:
Krista's Top Pick:
#1. Three-tiered justice system: meaning, there are different sets of rules and punishments depending on who you are and what group you belong to.
**First Tier = the rich, corporate, and political elite: let's keep people out of jail, let's make a deal, corporate bailouts for the rich, politicians and/or their children avoiding jail time; this goes across color lines
**Second Tier = leniency/merciful prosecutions for certain people; regular people that have some degree of wealth/privilege; rush to treat these people with compassion and mercy; historically speaking this has been shown toward white people (possibly a shift happening toward minorities?)
**Third Tier = poor and working class people; historically, this has been black and brown people, possibly some poor white people; can also include PREDATORY PROSECUTION, which is targeted toward a particular group.
Scripture:
Exodus 23:1-3: “You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. 2 You shall not fall in with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, siding with the many, so as to pervert justice, 3 nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit."
Exodus 23: 6-8: 6 “You shall not pervert the justice due to your poor in his lawsuit. 7 Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and righteous, for I will not acquit the wicked. 8 And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and subverts the cause of those who are in the right."
Deuteronomy 1:17: "You shall not be partial in judgment. You shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be intimidated by anyone, for the judgment is God's. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it."
Image of Lady Justice:
*She wears a blindfold to weigh evidence blindly, with impartiality
*Wields the sword to inflict punishment based on the evidence
Monique's Top Pick:
#1. Payday loans--a type of short-term borrowing where a lender will extend high-interest credit based on your income. Its principal is typically a portion of your next paycheck. Payday loans charge high-interest rates for short-term, immediate credit. They are also called cash advance loans or check advance loans. From Investopedia: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/payday-loans.asp
**Payday loan establishments are often predatory in their approach to the poor.
**Centralized in areas of extreme poverty/low socio-economic status (SES), which often includes high minority rates. It can *LOOK* like racial disparity/racial targeting, but it's actually based on class status.
**Market revenue was $20.5 billion in 2022
**Consumers get stuck in a vicious cycle of living from loan-to-loan
**Interest rates can be upwards of 400% from standard loan rates
**16 states have banned these types of predatory lending places
**Documentary, "The Ordinance" mentioned by Krista:
Scripture:
Proverbs 14:31: 31 "Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him."
Galatians 6:10: "So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.:
**As Christians, we need to use our voice, our vote, and our dollar to speak out against policies that hurt image-bearers.**
Krista's #2: Eminent Domain
Eminent Domain is an exercise of the power of government or quasi-government agencies (such as airport authorities, highway commissions, community development agencies, and utility companies) to take private property for public use. Sometimes these entities may propose to use their eminent domain authority to take public housing property.
From U.S. Dept of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/centers/sac/eminent
**This is basically a government-endorsed theft issue!
Scripture:
Exodus 20:15: "You shall not steal."
1 Kings 21: Naboth's vineyard was stolen from him.
Stealing private property is a violation of God's justice standard.
Monique's #2: Welfare
Article on the Welfare to Work program in California: https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2023/06/calworks/
Welfare keeps people trapped in a poverty cycle! Many times people's quality of life declines once they begin receiving aid, especially when people are only receiving and NOT contributing to society.
Humans were meant to work as part of God's created order!
Scripture:
Ephesians 4: 28: "Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need."
Genesis 1: 26: "Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.'”
**Krista did a recent livestream regarding the importance of teaching children the value of work. Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/live/V5GhaTPdSGY?si=M6Y9V8ofdxPU-xRw
Krista's #3: Human Trafficking
Short on time to discuss this further, but more content coming soon in the month of October!
Monique's #3: Abortion & Planned Parenthood/Prostitution
Short on time, but more on this topic coming on Off-Code!
Resources mentioned:
Stay Tuned! Monique and Dr. Joe Miller will be doing a 6-week series on worldview, based on the book, The Universe Next Door by James Sire
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