Theories of Justice and Rights
JURI 610
Mona Miller
Professor Hopkins
December 9, 2023
Theories of Justice and Rights
Justice refers to the “relatively rigid application of rules and standards, where right action
might sometimes require more nuanced treatment.”1 Throughout the Bible, God reveals his
perspective on justice. God provides us the consistent message that “justice is not only about
retribution, but also about the flourishing of all people.”2 We can find passages in the bible that
would be both retributive justice and distributive justice. Retributive justice is “concerned with
protecting innocent people and preventing or punishing crime.”3 “How long will you defend the
unjust and show partiality to the wicked? Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause
of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the
wicked.”4 This verse in psalm shows an example of God’s legal concern for retributive justice.
Distributive justice is defined as “fairness and flourishing for everybody so that everybody has a
place at the table and a piece of the pie.”5 Matthew 5-7 is an example of distributive justice when
Jesus teaches his disciples and the cords his sermon on the mount.6 “
[D]o not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish
them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest
letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is
accomplished. Therefore, anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands<and teaches
others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and
teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.<For I tell you that unless
your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly
not enter the kingdom of heaven.7
According to Bethany Hoang and Kristen Johnson, “before it became clear that justice
would be needed to right the wrings ushered in by the fall, even before injustice entered the
1 Brian H. Bix, Jurisprudence Theory and Context 111 (8th ed. 2017).
2 Courtney Jacob What is Biblical Justice? , Groundwork (Sept. 29, 2020), https://groundworkonline.com/blog/what-
is-biblical-justice.
3 Id.
4 Psalm 82: 2-4 (NSV).
5 Id.
6 Id.
7 Matthew 5: 17-20 (NSV).
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world, God loved justice – the flourishing that results from the right ordering of power.”8 From a
biblical perspective, justice is more than just righting a wrong and getting what we believe is
rightfully ours. “Biblical justice is distinct; it’s the justice we find described in the Bible, where
God established what true justice is, and which often calls us to go above and beyond what our
civil law and dictionary definitions require.”9 We should all strive for biblical justice in our
everyday life because it will help us to see the fairness and flourishing God intended for his
creation.
Everyone is born made in the image of God.10
[T]hen God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them
have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over
all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.”
So, God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female
he created them .”11
“Freedom, equality, and dignity are bestowed on all by virtue of being human, made in
the image of God.”12 In the book of Galatians, the Apostle Paul tells us that these rights are not
earned but divinely ordained. Paul understood that freedom is not individualized license, but
freedom gives us the chance to love and serve God and others. “For you were called to freedom,
brothers, and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but
through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single
commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”13 From a biblical perspective, there
is no such thing as “rights”. There is only what God intended for us to have.14 Human rights are
8 Bethany Hanke Hoang and Kristen Deede Johnson, The Justice Calling 40 (2017).
9 Id.
10 The Carter Center, Scripturally Annotated Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
https://www.cartercenter.org/resources/pdfs/peace/human_rights/universal-declaration-human-rights-scriptually-
annotated.pdf.
11 Genesis 1: 26-27 (NSV).
12 Id.
13 Galatians 5: 13-14 (NSV).
14 Compelling Truth, What is a biblical view of human rights? , https://www.compellingtruth.org/human-rights.html.
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the rights we have by nature of being created in the image of God. The only rights we have
according to the bible are “to be able to multiply, use the earth, and to rule over animals.”15 Not
all rights identified by the lifestyle God ordained are universal. Sometimes, even the most ideal
situation will not always guarantee you the opportunity to partake. Rights such as marriage,
family, opportunity to work, and to be part of a group for safety and identity can be taken away
by choosing to live in a sin-filled world.16 Human rights and justice go hand in hand even in the
bible. The bible defines rights by justice in way which people should not be victimized.
According to various verses in the bible, it is a sin to murder, steal, insult someone, kidnap,
commit adultery, lie, disrespect one’s parents, cheat, ignore the needy, rape, use worship space
for business, attack someone, hold a grudge, and mistreat foreigners.17 The bible rarely mentions
what rights we should demand and instead tells us what we are responsible for. We are
responsible to enforce justice and extend mercy. “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the<Lord<require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with
your God.”18 The bible teaches us that is we spent more time focused on what we are supposed to
do, our “rights” would not be an issue.
Free speech is a contemporary legal issue facing the United States today. You have most
likely heard someone say, “I have a first amendment right to freedom of speech.” The first
amendment guarantees freedom concerning religion, expression, assembly, and the right to
petition. Recently, there was a case that made national news in Colorado. 303 Creative v. Elenis
ruled that wedding websites are a form of speech and Colorado’s anti-discrimination law cannot
force a designed to express something they do not wish to express.19 The ruling further expressed
15 Id.
16 Id.
17 Id.
18 Micah 6:8 (NIV).
19 303 CREATIVE LLC v. Elenis, 143 S.Ct. 2298 (2023).
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those certain businesses can refuse some services to LGBTQ+ people or any customer that they
may not wish to serve. Justice Neil Gorsuch states “the first amendment envisions the United
States as a rich and complex place where all persons are free to think and speak as they wish, not
as the government demands. Colorado cannot deny that promise consistent with the First
Amendment.”20 In 2016, Lorie Smith sued Colorado and challenged its Anti-Discrimination Act.
“The law states businesses open to the public cannot refuse services to customers based on
sexual orientation, race or disability.”21 Smith based her argument on the fact that the law forced
her to express support for something that violates her religious beliefs in violation of her
constitutional rights. The court agreed with her and stated, “First Amendment extends to all
persons engaged in expressive conduct.”22 According to Justice Sonia Sotomayor, this is the first
time a court has granted a business the right to refuse service to members of a protected class.
Sotomayor went on to say that “the decisions logic cannot be limited to discrimination on the
basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.”23 “The decision threatens to balkanize the market
and to allow the exclusion of other groups from many services. A website designer could equally
refuse to create a wedding website for an interracial couple, for example” Sotomayor said.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser was not happy with the court’s ruling and stated that
Colorado will continue to hold accountable those who engage in unlawful discrimination. Weiser
stated, “This deeply concerning opinion is far out of step with the will of the American people
and American values. The opinion represents a radical departure from decades of Court
precedent and fails to uphold the principle of ‘Equal Justice for All’ inscribed on the U.S.
20 Devin Dwyer and Alexandra Hutzler, In sweeping decision, SCOTUS rules for Christian web designer’s free
speech rights over LGBTQ+ protections, ABC News (Jun. 30, 2023, 12:53 P.M.),
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/supreme-court-rules-website-designer-case-involving-free/story?id=99239572.
21 Id.
22 Id.
23 Id.
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Supreme Court building.”24 The ruling even had President Biden speaking out on the issue.
“While the Court's decision only addresses expressive original designs, I'm deeply concerned
that the decision could invite more discrimination against LGBTQI+ Americans," he said. "More
broadly, today's decision weakens long-standing laws that protect all Americans against
discrimination in public accommodations – including people of color, people with disabilities,
people of faith, and women.”25 Justice Neal Gorsuch says the first amendment showcases the
United States as a rich and complex place where all people are free to think and speak what they
want and not as the government demands.26 Most states have laws that prohibit discrimination
against LGBTQ+ people in public places such as retail stores, restaurants, hotels and movie
theaters. These public accommodation laws are meant to ensure equal access for protected
groups. The court’s ruling distinguished businesses that use “expressive designs” or “expressive
activity” from other places of public accommodation that do not carry free speech protections.
The court concluded that Smith’s website designs were original and customized creations, rather
than an ordinary commercial product.27 A professor at Rutgers Law School named Katie Eyer
stated this only applies “where businesses offer services that are effectively its own speech, and
where accepting a particular customer would require it to articulate a message that it disagrees
with.”28
With all of the freedom of speech issues facing the world today, people may find
themselves asking about the biblical view on freedom of speech. Christians know that all of our
“rights” come from God. It has been proven in the past that several of our founding fathers were
24 Id.
25 Id.
26 Leah Shepherd, Supreme Court Rules Free Speech Rights Supersede LGBTQ+ Protections, SHRM (July 5, 2023),
https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/legal-and-compliance/employment-law/pages/supreme-court-lgbtq-
protections-religious-rights.aspx#:~:text=The%20ruling%20in%20303%20Creative,protects%20LGBTQ%2B
%20individuals%20from%20discrimination.
27 Id.
28 Id.
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greatly influenced by Christianity such as Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, John Jay, Roger
Sherman, and John Witherspoon. The bible starts out with the book of genesis and the story of
Adam and Eve which can teach us a lot about free will. In genesis God tells Adam and Eve,
“You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and
evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”29 God warns Adam
and Eve that their actions will have consequences and allows them to make the decision. This
demonstrates that the Bible supports the idea that we have the freedom to say what we want but
also that there may be consequences for things said. Nowhere in the Bible does it mention free
speech outright, but it does provide us a guideline for what we should and should not say. “These
guidelines are rooted in the idea that sinful behavior leads to bondage whereas obedience to
Christ leads to freedom.”30 But the bible teaches us not to curse, lie, deceive, use filthy language,
use slander or any evil talk that tears others down. Many people believe participating in some of
those actions are part of their right to freedom of speech. “Influential people often lie in order to
win the appeal of an audience, some businesses use deception to gain more profit, entertainers
use explicit language, and the porn industry twists reality.”31 The Bible encourages us to speak
truthfully, build others up with words, and use our mouths to praise and worship God instead of
using destructive language. The bible also teaches us that we need to speak up for what is right.
There is a great example of this in the story of queen Esther. Esther must save the Jewish people
by going before the kind and asking him to spare them even though he has not summoned her.
Back in those times, it was against the law for Esther to speak to the king without his permission
but with some encouragement from her cousin Mordecai, she ends up speaking the truth. “For if
you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but
29 Genesis 2:16-17 (ESV).
30 What is a biblical view on freedom of speech? , Compelling Truth, https://www.compellingtruth.org/freedom-of-
speech.html.
31 Id.
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you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the
kingdom for such a time as this?”32 Sometimes the bible and its contents can make it hard to
decipher when to exercise your freedom of speech. You can find advice in Ephesians. “Let no
corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the
occasion, that it may give grace to those whose hear.”33
Although the bible does not really mention climate change, it is another issue facing the
whole world. A group of youths in Montana recently fought for, what they believe to be, their
human right for a clean environment. The plaintiffs argued that the State of Montana was
“violating their constitutional rights by permitting fossil fuel development without considering
its effect on the climate, harming them both mentally and physically.”34 The Judge ruled that the
state was “violating their constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment as well as their
rights to dignity, health and safety, and equal protection of the law.”35 The ruling uses an article
of the Montana Constitution to justify the decision. The Montana Constitution says, “state and
each person shall maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment in Montana for
present and future generations.”36 During the trial, several of the plaintiffs testified about their
climate related injuries. Two of which are brothers suffering from respiratory diseases due to the
wildfire smoke making their asthma worse. Testimony was given from climate, energy and
medical experts who all gave the court evidence. The ruling is an “important precedent that could
inform a growing number of national and international cases seeking to increase climate
ambition and hold governments and businesses accountable for human rights harms cause by
32 Esther 4:14 (ESV).
33 Ephesians 4:29 (ESV).
34 “This is about our human rights:” U,S. youths win landmark climate case, United Nations (Aug. 29, 2023),
https://www.ohchr.org/en/stories/2023/08/about-our-human-rights-us-youths-win-landmark-climate-case.
35 Id.
36 Id.
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climate change.”37 The United Nations Environment published a report that shows people are
turning to the courts to help combat the climate crisis. Climate change effects the enjoyment of
several human rights including “those to life, water and sanitation, food, health, housing, self-
determination, culture and development.”38 Benjamin Schachter is the Environment and Climate
Change Team leader at UN Human Rights. He states, “A safe and stable climate is integral to the
effective enjoyment of a wide range of human rights, including the right to a clean, healthy and
sustainable environment,” Schachter stressed. “States, therefore, have a human rights obligation
to prevent the adverse effects of climate change and ensure that those affected by it, particularly
those in vulnerable situations, have access to effective remedies and means of adaptation to
enjoy lives of human dignity.”39 Like I stated previously, climate change is not discussed in the
bible. But as believers, we should take care of the planet and do what we can to help the earth as
God’s good stewards. 2 Peter 3:10 informs us, “But the day of the Lord will come like a theif.
The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and
everything done in it will be laid here.”40 God gave us dominion over the earth therefore it is
important for us to take care of the environment.41 I would argue that taking care of the earth
could be seen as a god given right. It is the place he created for us to live and if we do not take
care of it, it affects our life. God gave us the great responsibility of caring for the environment so
we should participate in activities such as recycling and cutting down on fossil fuels. God asks us
to stand united so if other people are concerned with climate change, we need to stand together.
It is our right and we deserve justice for this issue. People should stand with youth on this issue
and help to make the world a better place for all of us.
37 Id.
38 Id.
39 Id.
40 2 Peter 3:10 (ESV).
41 Vivian Bricker, What does the Bible say about Climate Change? , Christianity.com (Sept. 16, 2021),
https://www.christianity.com/wiki/christian-life/what-does-the-bible-say-about-climate-change.html.
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