Justice 06/01/08
T.F.S.
Three, five, and seven
3 5 7
By Ed Halpaus, Grand Lodge Education Officer.
Number 124 –
This publication, while it is printed with the permission of the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of A.F. & A. M. of Minnesota, contains the writings and opinions of Ed Halpaus and is not in any way the opinion of the Grand Lodge of Minnesota.
“Life is like playing a violin solo in public and learning the instrument as you go along.” Unknown
Justice
“Justice is that standard or boundary of right, which enables us to render to every man his just due without distinction. This virtue is not only consistent with Divine and human law it is the very cement and support of civil society; and as justice in a great measure constitutes the real good man, so should it be the invariable practice of every Mason never to deviate from the minutest principles thereof.”
There is an important lesson hidden in that paragraph from the degree work of he First Degree of Freemasonry; it’s in plain sight, but sometimes overlooked.
Recently in a phone conversation one of my Lodge Brothers[i] mentioned a rhetorical question about justice; since then the cardinal virtues, and especially the virtue of justice has been on my mind. Because of this I began some enjoyable research for personal satisfaction, but as I got into it - the germ of an idea, to do more research, and following up with an article about it, began to grow. Hopefully what follows will give us all a reason to study and ponder justice a little more than we have in the past. The following is some information, and my ideas on the cardinal virtue of justice; I hope it is helpful to you in clarifying what you understand about the cardinal virtue of justice.
One of the first places to look for information on justice is in the ‘Great Light’ of Masonry; The Holy Bible: Isaiah 28:17 says something that might catch the eye of every Freemason; “I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line.”[ii] One Bible Commentary says about that scripture, since Isaiah is quoting God; God will test men’s response by the standard of justice and righteousness.[iii] There are numerous passages of scripture in the Great Light of Masonry where references to justice can be found: An enjoyable time might be had if one will take the time to look them up and read the commentaries relating to them; a good study bible is helpful, (I like the Life Application Study Bible,) but ‘on-line’ www.searchgodsword.com is a very good place to go for comprehensive study bibles, concordances and bible dictionaries.
Another place to look for information, in addition to the ritual of Freemasonry, is the dictionary. Cardinal (with a small ‘c’) is described as meaning; prime importance, chief, principle, or fundamental, as in the cardinal virtues; looking further for the word virtue, as found in one old dictionary, the four cardinal virtues are listed in this order; justice, prudence, temperance, and fortitude, these are followed by the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity.[iv] Looking still further under the word justice we find it includes the quality of being just, which includes, the qualities of righteousness, equitableness, moral rightness, and lawfulness. Also included in the definition are truth, correctness or propriety, and the moral principle determining just conduct.[v]
The study of this cardinal virtue is enjoyable. Many times, when people think of ‘justice’, they will connect it with judgment followed by consequences; I, however, look at it differently: To me the cardinal virtue of justice is different from the bar of justice, and while it is in the make-up of our human nature to be critical and to use good judgment in the various situations in our life, it seems, to me at least, that it is not possible to talk about justice, as a cardinal virtue, without also considering ‘giving and receiving.’
It is advisable in the study of this virtue to consider the tenets of Freemasonry; Brotherly Love, Relief, and Truth. To render, (as in the Masonic paragraph about justice, above,) is to give; to give back or to restore. To render justice means to give, or give back, to everyone what is his[vi] just due without distinction, which means without division or separation: That is, Masons won’t see their fellowman receive his just due differently, because of the Mason’s personal opinion or who the recipient appears to be. Whether friends, acquaintances, or strangers, Masons employ the virtue of justice equally, with brotherly love towards all. It is similar to the teaching of “Give and it shall be given unto you,”[vii] meaning if we are critical instead of being compassionate we will be likely to also receive criticism from others when receiving our due. If this kind of attitude were to prevail in Freemasonry then maybe our fraternity would not be the kind of fraternity that it is. Justice is, most certainly, a standard and boundary of right; when we read some of the definitions of it - we will notice that justice is not separate from the tenets of Freemasonry; Brotherly Love, Relief, and Truth: they are interconnected.
“Experience is the hardest kind of teacher. It gives you the test first and the lesson afterwards.” Unknown
From the Great Light of Masonry: “Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous. Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and posses the land your Lord your God is giving you.” Deuteronomy 16:19-20 NIV
Juris præcepta sunt hæc, honesta vivere, alterum non lædere, suum cuique tribuere = (Latin) = These are the precepts of the law, to live honestly, to harm no one, to render to each his due.
“Experience is a good school, but it’s not very strong on vacations.” Unknown
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With “Brotherly Love”,
Ed Halpaus
Grand Lodge Education Officer
“Always two there are, a master and an apprentice.” Yoda
[i] Brother Elliott Saxton, a member of our G.L. Education Committee and avid Masonic Student
[ii] New International Version [NIV]
[iii] The Interpreter’s one-volume Commentary on the Bible – page 348
[iv] New Century dictionary 1948 edition Volume 2 page 2152
[v] Ibid Volume 1 page 888
[vi] This is the generic his – meaning both male and female.
[vii] From the Holy Bible – Luke 6:38 the commentary connected with this verse and the one preceding it says we are to love others and not judge them.
Labels: Masonic Information