Wednesday, September 23, 2009

ordinary justice

"We all want to be big stars, but we don't know why and we don't know how.
But when everybody loves me, I'm going to be just about as happy as can be.
Mr. Jones and me, we're gonna be big stars. " Mr. Jones by Counting Crows

I am so not on board with being ordinary, average, or regular.  When the authors of the book Justice in the Burbs (pg 27) start equating justice with things like mercy, compassion, being fair and living by the Golden Rule, that seems like a weak definition to me.  But, in the very next sentence, they highlight a few individuals that we all pretty much recognize as being synonymous with justice:  Mother Teresa & Martin Luther King, Jr. That's  more like it.  Being fair sounds boring, but being part of something that changes the world, now that sounds exciting, challenging, special.  The cognitive dissonance I'm experiencing, is that I'm beginning to realize that all this changing the world stuff starts out as justice lived out in ordinary, average, regular, everyday lives like mine.

my Justice in the Burbs book study notes
chapter 1: life in an ordinary world
- why did you pick up this book?  somebody lent it to me
- what has been your experience so far with issues of justice?  working on justice is frustrating, slow, educational, inspirational, lonely
- how would you define justice?  joining your voice and actions with others in the pursuit of fairness and equity for all
- is justice - however you define it - possible?  maybe someday, need to be willing to take baby steps

chapter 2: hearing the voice of justice
- does God care about justice?  absolutely. how should that show itself in our world? empathy for those who suffer injustice and an understanding or self-awareness of how our actions and/or inactions contribute to that suffering
- what do you believe the Bible says about living justly?  it is the only way to achieve the kingdom of God
- how does the model of Jesus relate to living justly?  love your neighbor, stranger, outcast, sufferer more than yourself
- how can you live in light of the whole Bible in the American suburban world? is it even possible - it seems like something's gotta change

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