From the Bishops Measuring Fairness in Life

Jun 18, 2009

"What you measure out to others will be measured back to you.” (Matthew 7:2)

A Common Measure: “Life is unfair!” We often hear this complaint and sometimes make it ourselves. During the games we play as children, in the organizations we belong to or the work we do with others, there are instances when we sense an injustice has been done. It bothers us. And when done to us, it hurts. Whether it’s being passed over for a promotion, or required to work extra hours to make up for someone else’s negligence, or having to sit and listen to someone else receive the praise we know we also deserve, we know that these things can gnaw at our bones.

As Americans with a dedication to equality, we share a particular zeal for fairness. “Liberty and justice for all” is an ideal that permeates much of our culture, be it the norm of due process within our judicial system ensuring one’s right to a fair trial, the laws dedicated to fair compensation and workers’ rights, or the instant replay used in football to ensure that the right call is being made.

From our earliest age, we insist on fairness. “Hey, that’s not fair!” remains the most common and loudest complaint overheard among a group of children when they are at play. When my neighborhood pals and I routinely gathered at the local park to play baseball, we chose sides by “bucking up” — a fast game of chance where two kids throw out their fingers and simultaneously call out a number to see whose guess will match the total number of fingers. This was a “fair” way of determining who would be the first to choose sides so that we could pick “fair” teams — teams with comparable talent on each side. At a young age we understood that our games would not be as enjoyable unless the teams were relatively equal. Of course we all wanted to win, to have bragging rights for the day, but none of us really wanted to win unfairly. To lose a close contest might cause some sore feelings, but it was far worse to be dubbed as someone who didn’t play fair.

I think most of us kids carried this sense of fairness with us through life, even as our childhood baseball games of the 1940s gave way to the substantial struggles for justice in our nation during the 1960s. Then we would hear courageous cries for equality and witness profound transformations in our communities as the civil rights movement clamored for greater fairness and justice. Our country today is far from perfect and we still witness many inequalities. Yet, the ideal of “justice for all” with regard to racial equality is one which, in the wake of the recent presidential election, most of us would agree is more fully realized today than ever before.

The American Measure: Recently, I was called to participate firsthand in our judicial system, to serve with several of my fellow citizens on jury duty. Those who take a dim view of justice in our society or who are cynical about how unfair “the system” is might feel better after participating in such service. Many things struck me about my experience. First of all, those called to serve actually show up. Of course, it is required by law, but I still was struck by the basic willingness of ordinary, busy people to rearrange their lives and, for the meager stipend of $10 a day, devote themselves to the process of deciding what is fair and unfair, just and unjust in the lives of others. No one — be they bishop, CEO, mechanic, homemaker, athlete, or artist — is exempt from this common call to duty. This response in itself reflects a commitment to justice, fairness, and equality, especially when compared to other periods in history.

During the process I was also struck with the profound and demanding ideal in our American system of “innocent until proven guilty.” If we presume someone’s innocence instead of his guilt, we really have to proceed with great care. And just as the judge made clear to our jury, a person may only be found guilty if there is adequate evidence. We cannot condemn someone based on a hunch, hearsay, or on what our “gut” is telling us.

The Divine Measure: We are blessed to be living in a nation that strives for justice and I think we are more blessed when we share in God’s more perfect justice. After reading the parable of the vineyard workers, which portrays God as the “owner of the vineyard,” some of us may respond to the owner’s way of dealing with his workers like young children respond when playing games: “Hey, that isn’t fair!” In fact, from a human perspective, he isn’t fair. Yet when we reflect on it, we thank God for dealing with us differently. Imagine if any one of us actually got what he or she deserved, really had to be held accountable for all the things we failed to do or did wrongly. God would be very busy!

When we are truly honest with ourselves about what we deserve, we are usually less zealous in our cry for strict fairness from God. We enjoy his mercy. I am inclined to agree with Shakespeare when he wrote “Give each man what he truly deserves, and none of us escapes whipping.” Fortunately for us, during our life here on earth, God tempers his justice with mercy and therefore when we ask him to forgive, he does not “grant” what we truly deserve, but grants us his forgiveness.

I remain in awe of God’s goodness. Do you or I really “deserve” to have had Christ suffer and die for our sins? Do we really deserve God’s mercy? Do we have the right to approach the Eucharistic table and receive him in Communion? Not if we believe the words we pray at Mass: “I confess to almighty God and to you my brothers and sisters that I have sinned;” “Lamb of God you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us;” “Lord I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed.”

Recognizing our need for God’s mercy radiates from the same humility that he wants us to bring to our relationships with one another — to our families, our workplace, and our community.

Printed with permission from Parable, magazine for the Diocese of Manchester, NH.

 

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