Research Paper: Final Assignment
THEO650: Public Theology (D02)
May 7, 2023
Abstract
The Bible, which some may call the handbook of life, covers many areas of our daily lives. The
Bible accounts for pertinent figures displaying love, hate, jealousy, joy, and other human
characteristics. This essay discusses the Bible and Martin Luther King’s view of social justice. In
the Old Testament, each book can provide an example of someone serving justice for the wicked
actions of another. Social justice has become the headliner for many media outlets in America
over the past five years. Topics such as religion, gender, and race have altered the way we have
begun to view others in the country. Due to the constant protest in this country, the United States
government has begun to react to the people's concern. Social is defined as the strict obedience to
the requirements of the law, and agencies should not discriminate based on race, ethnicity, or
nationality.1 In a socially just community, everyone deserves equal financial, civic, and social
opportunities. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. should automatically come to mind when our country
thinks about social justice. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. believe everyone should have equal rights
regardless of race or background. As a believer in God, he understood why social justice in
America during the 1950s-1960s was important to the future of this country. Dr. Martin Luther
King Jr. used the power of God to seek social justice from those who chose oppression over
progression. Dr. King Jr. and Moses’s nonviolence campaign was significant to the success of
the civil rights movement and the exodus from Egypt. While there should be consequences for
those who violate the well-being of others, The Bible states that we are all equal because God is
grounded in divine love, freedom, and harmony.
Introduction
1 Gerard C. Wellman, "The Social Justice (Of) Movement: How Public Transportation Administrators Define Social
Justice," Public Administration Quarterly 39, no. 1 (Spring, 2015): 118.
Social justice discusses the political and philosophical theory that concentrates on the
perception of equality in associations among individuals in society and equal admittance to
wealth, opportunities, and civil social rights in society. The view of social justice first began in
the 19th>century, as there were broad inequalities in wealth and society established through the
social configuration of the era. The prophetic word about social justice is frequently correlated
with liberal sources.2 Social justice has four main principles: access to participation, resources,
human rights, and equity. While protesters and activists meaningfully impact the prevalent
importance of social justice today, the execution of social justice procedures is frequently left to
administrators. These groups are responsible for influential public policies to discourse social
justice issues. As a result, political factors influence the magnitude to which social justice shows
a role in the policies affected by the government and administrators. Social justice initiatives can
be tracked through various government agendas via wealth and income rearrangement and even
sanctioned discrimination against privileged groups. Social justice initiatives are generally
grasped in socialist countries, which mixes them into their economic policies.
Principles of Social Justice
Social justice” was traditionally the rallying cry of the political Left and the theologically
liberal.3 The term “social justice” is unclear and habitually misunderstood by society. Social
justice must provide a defined concept to enhance reality in every aspect of society. These areas
may include education, welfare, and employment. When social justice goals are defined, the
ability to find solutions for change and progress is possible.
Amos 5:18-24 states:
2 Terence E. Fretheim, “What Kind of God? : Collected Essays of Terence E. Fretheim” (Pennsylvania State
University Press, 2015), 274.
3 Andrew Lansdown, “The Bible, Social Justice and the Poor.” Quadrant. 65, no. 9 (2021): 68.
Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord! Why would you have the day of the Lord? It
is darkness, and not light, as if a man fled from a lion, and a bear met him, or went into
the house and leaned his hand against the wall, and a serpent bit him. Is not the day of the
Lord darkness, and not light, and gloom with no brightness in it? “I hate, I despise your
feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. Even though you offer me your
burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the peace offerings of
your fattened animals, I will not look upon them. Take away from me the noise of your
songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen. But let justice roll down like waters,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
Understanding social allows to authoritative figures to correct past wrongs. The Day of
Atonement does not atone for transgressions between a person and his fellow until that person
appeases his fellow.4 Social justice must ponder on the following four principles.
Access
Equality requires all to have access to the same services society offers. Fairness is vital to
everyone in society and will continue to remain vital.5 For the community to serve, a healthy
community must possess the needed resources and distribute them to its people. Access equality
means people can obtain the same valuable education, housing, and food. However, unequal
access to these essential services is common in many communities. Education is a vital example
of access inequality. When only citizens from a certain status can afford competent schools, and
those who do not have money can only choose from a small selection. This inequality may result
in those same individuals being unable to access specific jobs after school completion. In a
4 Aryeh Cohen, Justice in the City : An Argument from the Sources of Rabbinic Judaism (Academic Studies Press,
2012), 136.
5 Walter J. Houston, Justice: The Biblical Challenge (Taylor & Francis Group, 2010), 1.
discriminatory society, an individual’s race and sexuality can also reduce the number of
opportunities they will experience. Equal access for all levels of the field for everyone.
Equity
Equity is dissimilar to equality. If social justice were only involved with equality, a just
society would not be the outcome. For example, if two people apply to a health insurance plan.
The benefits are the same and equal, but one of the two individuals has a chronic illness.
Assuming they chose a basic healthcare plan, having a similar plan may cause substantial harm
to the person who is sick because the insurance may not cover the chronic illness. An equitable
healthcare plan should consider the differences between people's health statuses. Equity alters the
healthcare benefits of the person to suit the needs of the person who needs the most help. The
concept of equity should be implemented in social justice to provide help to those in need of
essential services.
Participation
Participation is also a vital principle for social justice. Society must allow everyone to
express their concerns and contribute to decision-making. If people in a community are
negatively impacted, they must be key members to achieve social justice. Unjust societies only
allow a selected group (i.e. city council) to make all of the decisions while ignoring the opinion
of others. They must eliminate hurdles and obstacles to enhance participation to provide a
socially just society. Social justice in communities should encourage people to voice their
opinions.
Human Rights.
Human rights are the most similar of the four principles mentioned regarding social
justice. The four principles of social justice can’t exist separately from each other. For a just
society to exist, it must protect everyone’s civil, political, economic, cultural, and social rights.
These rights include the right to life, free speech, the right to vote, a fair trial, etc. Authoritative
leaders must be responsible for disregarding or failing to protect these rights. Fighting for human
rights can be the most potent principle for social justice because human rights protection to the
livelihood of the citizens.
Social Justice in America
Inequalities in income are recognized in the ownership of capital and other assets, access
to several services and benefits, and the personal security that money can buy, are growing.
There is also more inequality in the dispersal of opportunities for compensated employment, with
failing unemployment and underemployment in many parts of the world affecting a
disproportionate number of people at the lower socio-economic scale. The inequality gap
between the rich and poor communities, measured in terms of national per capita income, is also
growing.
Economically
Social justice is vaguely understood as the fair and benevolent distribution of the benefits
of economic growth; nevertheless, it is essential to attach some fundamental qualifiers to social
justice. Presently, maximizing economic growth seems to be the major objective. Nevertheless, it
is also crucial to confirm that development is maintainable, that the integrity of the natural
environment is respected, using non-renewable resources is justified. Future generations can
benefit from a beautiful and friendly community. To obtain economic and social justice, the right
of all human beings to profit from a safe and enjoyable environment includes the fair distribution
among ethnic and social groups of the cost of protecting their communities and developing
security technologies for manufacture and secure resources for consumption.
Politically
Political justice shapes the extent a governing body should reveal in influencing the basic
structure of the community. In unjust societies, multiple ideals may compete to decide what is
best for the community. Sometimes these decisions are without the involvement of the
individuals receiving unjust treatment. Political injustice in society tends to make decisions that
negatively affect one group for the sake of another. In America, African Americans, Muslims,
Jews, LGBT, and disabled persons may feel the negative impacts of political discrimination.
Social Justice in the Bible
The Bible possesses many examples of social justice. The Bible instructs us to seek
guidance from God to understand the standards of right and wrong efficiently. Looking to God is
a lifestyle that incorporates serving people and living in a manner pleasing to God. Social justice
is an addition to God’s love and responsibility in protecting and guarding those who need
protection. Social justice is one of the essential issues in the Bible. God designed the world and
everything living on Earth. The life of all the people is God’s most profound desire. The Bible
frequently introduces scenarios of his chosen people encountering oppression and turning to God
in prayer. Those who know God’s name put their trust in him, and in return, God will not discard
those who seek him. (Ps 9:10). Isaiah and Amos preached prophecies for the poor and the
disregarded, belonging to the lower social groups. God favors a peaceful social order throughout
the Old and New Testaments. We can look at various aspects of the background for social justice
set out in the Bible and see how the instructions of the Old Testament are developed in the
principles of Jesus.
Just Society
In the book of Exodus, the authoritarian oppression of God’s chosen people in Egypt is
the standard of politically-motivated social injustice. God observes the oppression with the
highest compassion. During those days, the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned
because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God.
God heard their groaning and remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God
saw the people of Israel and knew (Ex 2:23-25). God hears the moans of his people and
establishes the principle that Israel will live as a free people. The Ten Commandments are a
guide the Israelites must follow to prevent wickedness. Achieving freedom through following
God is essential for a society that values the life and nobleness of fellow humans. This does not
necessarily mean that all human beings were created equal.6 For example, the institution of the
Sabbath is a tool for equaling social differences, which grants servants and strangers the
opportunity to rest together with others in society (Ex 20:8-11).
Love
The Bible's fantastic future for society is embedded in a desire for an ideal community of
love. John 3:16 states, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever
believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Isaiah expresses this in the images of the
peace between animals
Isa 11:6-9 states:
The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the
calf, the lion, and the fattened calf together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow
and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw
6 John Collins, What Are Biblical Values? : What the Bible Says on Key Ethical Issues, (Yale University Press,
2019), 180.
like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the cobra's hole, and the weaned child shall
put his hand on the adder's den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,
for the Earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
The greatest gift god gave us is love. In a society without love, justice would never exist. It is
unfortunate when a community is led by someone who has been taken off their path and chooses
hate over love. The results are never good when leaders favor a wicked lifestyle. When we
pursue love, our ability to give enhances tremendously.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Views on Social Justice
Dr. Martin Luther King was a man that possessed many fantastic characteristics. Dr. King
was nonviolent, loving, professional, and, more importantly, a leader. Dr. Martin Luther King is
one of the most famous faces of the Civil Rights era. His efforts to highlight the grand aspects of
the fight for human rights during the 1960s. A kernel view of the Poor People’s Campaign was
its recognition that poor communities of color and some poor whites were more susceptible to
financial exploitation because of their spatial remoteness.7 Dr. King Recognized that oppression
of human potential transcended race and proclaimed plans for a Poor People's Campaign. King
dreamed of changing the fading alliance of those favoring inequality with a compelling,
multiracial union of poor people to oblige Congress to pass an economic bill of rights under the
slogan "Jobs or Income Now.”8
This initiative was designed to request that the government
provide sufficient employment opportunities, unemployment benefits, and education for all
citizens to improve disadvantaged Americans' social-economic circumstances.
Bible’s Views on Social Justice
7 Sylvie Laurent, King and the Other America : The Poor People's Campaign and the Quest for Economic Equality,
(University of California Press, 2019), 220
8 Thomas F. Jackson, From Civil Rights to Human Rights: Martin Luther King, Jr. , and the Struggle for Economic
Justice (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2009), 329.
The fundamental belief is that God calls for justice because the name of God and
righteousness are virtually interchangeable.9 Jesus further enhances the view of the Kingdom of
God, targeting his lessons concerning social justice. He expresses a political principle in Mark
10:42 which states, “And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who
are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority
over them.” The world is created because God judges with equity.10
Conclusion
Living as Christ lived is the key to achieving justice. Christ came to us to help us seek
salvation obtained by having faith and being righteous. In today’s society, most people view
righteousness in the Bible, they view righteousness regarding private morality, such as daily
prayer and Bible study. God has repeatedly shown us that he will always seek justice on our
behalf. He has sent many great men and women to us who are always looking for ways to fight
social injustice.
Bibliography
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Collected Essays of Terence E. Fretheim /. Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns, 2015.
Cohen, Aryeh. Justice in the City. Boston: Academic Studies Press, 2012.
Collins, John. What Are Biblical Values? What the Bible Says on Key Ethical Issues. New
Haven: Yale University Press, 2019.
Houston, Walter. Justice the Biblical Challenge. London: Equinox, 2010.
9 Jennings, Theodore W. Jennings, Outlaw Justice: The Messianic Politics of Paul (Stanford University Press,
2013), 42.
10 C-L. Seow, Divine Justice in the Book of Job, The Cambridge Companion to the Hebrew Bible and Ethics (New
York :: Cambridge University Press, 2021), 257.
Jackson, Thomas F., and Martin Luther King. From Civil Rights to Human Rights Martin Luther
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Seow, C-L. Divine Justice in the Book of Job. The Cambridge Companion to the Hebrew Bible
and Ethics. New York :: Cambridge University Press, 2021.
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