Thinking of “justice” as a cardinal virtue may not be the first thing that comes to mind when we hear that word. Rather, we tend to think in terms of the criminal justice system or matters of social equality. While the virtue of justice plays a role in these, it also transcends them. 

 

Justice is really about “giving each their due.” As Christians, we recognize that such a disposition must first include God. Failing to give God what He is due, is a failure of the virtue of justice. 

 

And so what is due God? The first three commandments answer that question clearly. More than anything, we owe God our love, gratitude and respect. Failing to show Him gratitude for His gifts and grace, failing to work on deepening our love of Him, or failing to show respect for the ways in which He works can all be seen as failures of the virtue of justice. 

 

As this virtue grows in us our conscience becomes more and more attuned to these failures as much as the more obvious ones like not keeping holy the Lord’s day by missing Mass or using His name in vain. Justice towards God will always mean that I recognize Him for whom He is and strive to treat Him accordingly in all aspects of my life.

 

But we must also consider what justice means in relation to our brothers and sisters. At the most basic level, it means that I see every other human person precisely as a person — as a child of God made in His image and likeness. 

 

What is sometimes missed when discussing issues of justice is that the first and most essential issue is to recognize who must be treated as a person. As Catholics this means that even an issue like abortion is fundamentally an issue of justice. To deny someone the rights accorded to persons because of where they happen to reside — in a womb — is a far greater failure of justice than a concern over fair wages, jobs or other social conditions. 

 

This is especially the case when the failure to recognize a group of human beings as such makes them particularly susceptible to exploitation and murder without any legal ramifications or recourse. 

 

It is important to recognize that a society which fails to recognize the right to life of all its members as an issue of justice, will inevitably fail to foster justice in other areas as well. 

 

There are certainly many, many issues where the virtue of justice becomes important for Christians to foster — at both a personal and public level. But to do so we must recognize a particular nuance with justice as a virtue. It is sometimes seen as treating everyone exactly the same. 

 

This is likely influenced by the tendency to understand justice in terms of the law, but as a virtue there’s more to it. Sometimes justice does mean equality — but not always. It is more about ‘equity’  — what is proper to each — than strict equality. 

 

A quick example will help. Imagine parents have a teenage son and daughter who will both attend their high school prom. In preparation they buy their daughter a prom dress for the dance. In justice, what is then due the son? If justice meant strict equality, they would buy their son a prom dress too. Fortunately for him, in this case justice would mean they provide him with a tux instead. 

 

Who a person is or is not may be a factor in determining what is or is not due them. Justice before the law may ideally be blind, but justice as a virtue needs to have both eyes wide open to see what another is due. As Christians, it will always mean recognizing the other as being created in the image and likeness of God first and foremost. 

 

All other considerations, in justice, flow from that.