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Navigating Justice And Authority

Navigating Justice And Authority

Last updated on: December 15, 2025 at 2:19 am by Henry Karlson

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Navigating Justice And Authority 2025-12-15T02:19:24-05:00 Henry Karlson

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Paul did not obey all of Nero’s commands, showing Nero’s authority was not absolute. Helen Cook: Statue of Nero/ Wikimedia Commons

I really should not be surprised with the responses I get when I write on social justice. While I expect some push back, what surprises me is the low-quality responses I get from many Christians. I often write on what is happening in the world today, especially in the United States with President Trump, indicating how I find much which is happening stands against the notions of justice I was given when growing up. My father was a law professor who truly believed in equal treatment under the law; he believed the law should be used to benefit everyone. He fought against those who, in positions of authority, used the law to abuse citizens. Similarly, I learned much from my fellow Christians. They told me how bad the Nazis were in the past (and that they wouldn’t have obeyed Hitler if they lived in Nazi Germany). They understood the law, and those in position of authority, did not possess absolute authority. This is why they felt they could choose to reject getting COVID vaccinations, or why they could disobey lockdown orders during the COVID pandemic: they disobeyed authorities as they opened their churches, making their churches superspreaders of COVID. Now, they tell me that we must obey the law of the land whenever I criticize and reject the demands (and actions) of the Trump administration. The same people who made disobeying Obama and Biden an art tell me Paul in Romans demands we obey public authorities. Why didn’t they do so themselves?

I don’t think many of them are being honest with their responses. They think they can do whatever they want, and so disobey the government whenever it gets in the way of their desires, while trying to find ways to force people to do as they want them to do, using the authority of government to do so when someone they support possesses it. They are hypocrites willing to use (and abuse) Scripture when they think they can do so to suit their whims. If it is a president they like, then, no matter how unjust his or her policies are, indeed, no matter how their policies can be shown to be contrary to moral principles found in Scripture and the Christian tradition, I am told that president’s authority is supreme and if I do not obey it, I am disobeying God. However, their actions during the administrations of other presidents prove they do not truly believe this. It is pure sophistry.

Of course, I still try to engage people hoping that the person responding to me is someone who is merely repeating what they heard without actually thinking things through. I respond by showing how such an interpretation of Paul would end up making Paul a hypocrite because he didn’t always obey what Rome told him to do (which is why he was executed). Paul did not want us to think we should obey everything demanded of us by someone in a position of power or authority. Rather, what Paul believed is that there needs to be some authority in society, and the person who had it should use it to promote the common good (justice), and so long as they promote justice, we should obey them. We are not meant to be anarchists. But we are not meant to obey officials who tells us to do things which go against the expectations of justice. From a Christian perspective, which is the one in which I generally write, I indicate that this means we are to follow God’s justice as revealed in and through Jesus (and the rest of Scripture). If some authority would have us act in a way which would undermine God’s justice, we must not obey them (they have lost their authority, which is also why we can say an unjust law is no law).

Thus, when I encounter someone quoting the book of Romans, I ask them if Christians should have obeyed when the emperors outlawed Christianity, telling Christians to renounce Christ and make a sacrifice to Caesar. The answer is no. Paul certainly didn’t. Paul was not a hypocrite, and the problem lies in their interpretation of a verse: Paul is not saying we must obey all authorities without question,

Usually, after saying this, the person talking with me agrees. But they are not done. They next ask the question, what is justice? That seems to be done to create confusion, because, obviously, the question is broad, and it is difficult to answer, as philosophy through the centuries has demonstrated. Since this usually comes from someone who claims to be a Christian, I give a simple response: we are to follow what Jesus taught (and with it, the way the Christian tradition has historically interpreted his teachings). I also suggest that it is easier to deal with particular contexts and to compare various demands and how they relate to what Christ taught us than it is to make general claims. If they are asking in relation to something I wrote, I usually explain that I have dealt with the issue in my text, pointing out what was right or wrong with the government’s actions.

If they want to know more, I tell them that justice is meant for the promotion of the common good (and with that, the good of every person); when dealing with violations of justice, authorities must seek to restore the justice which has been lost instead of merely punishing those who have committed the violation. If some punishment is necessary, it must be proportionate to the violation itself. There are good reasons to forbid jaywalking in a busy street, and so laws against it can be just, but if a law says that when someone jaywalks, breaking the law, they can be taken to a prison cell, tortured excessively, and then executed, that obviously would not be just. Similarly, when dealing with immigration, just saying some migrant “broke the law” (whether or not they did) by crossing the border doesn’t justify inhumane treatment. But that is exactly what is being suggested by those attacking immigrants. Sadly, we now find migrants, many once welcomed to the United States, who did and followed every law (more than the president himself, who is a convicted felon) are going to citizenship ceremonies and being denied citizenship because Trump does not like where they came from! Is that just? No! ICE patrols, taking people into custody because they look foreign, likewise is not just. Inhumane treatment of anyone, especially those being taken in due to the prejudices of someone in ICE, will never be just and so must not be seen as something which Christians accept (indeed, the inhumanity, the injustices, prove Christians must resist what us going on until justice is restored).

I keep seeing how much things have changed since I was young, and how they have changed for the worse. I cannot believe so few remembers how things were just a few decades ago. It is as if I woke up in a mirror universe. I remember, when growing up, talk about how bad the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany were to their dissidents. I remember reading about how Stalin made enemy lists which were used to violate the rights of his critics. I remember Christians telling me how unjust those actions were. Again, the same Christians who understood that, seem perplexed when I point out Trump is wrong when he wants to do the same in the United States. I remember how I was told people needed to carry papers on them, and that authorities could and would demand anyone to show them or be taken in for questioning (or imprisonment). I remember the horror stories we were told to make it clear how bad that was. Now, I hear nothing but we must obey if Trump and his officials tell us that we must always carry proof of citizenship on us. Do I really need to explain to people why this is wrong?

* This Is Another Post From My Personal (Informal) Reflections And Speculations Series

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N.B.: While I read comments to moderate them, I rarely respond to them. If I don’t respond to your comment directly, don’t assume I am unthankful for it. I appreciate it. But I want readers to feel free to ask questions, and hopefully, dialogue with each other. I have shared what I wanted to say, though some responses will get a brief reply by me, or, if I find it interesting and something I can engage fully, as the foundation for another post. I have had many posts inspired or improved upon thanks to my readers.

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