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This academic paper was written for my Crim 339 course (Professional Ethics in the Criminal Justice System) - February 5, 2009
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INTRODUCTION
In this paper I will attempt to discuss the linkage between justice and morality. I will also attempt to support my position, relying on philosophical concepts, more specifically, Christian values. For the reader to have a better understanding of my views, I will first attempt to define the meaning of justice and the meaning of morality, and then I will attempt to show how the philosophical concepts I am relying on links the two.
DEFINITION OF JUSTICE
According to the Oxford Canadian Thesaurus (2006) and Roget’s Thesaurus (1987), there are many definitions of justice. One set of definitions alludes to being virtues, having integrity, uprightness, and right standing morals. Another set of definitions alludes to the courts, such as impartiality, fairness, neutrality when a judge is deciding on a case before him or her.
DEFINITION OF MORALITY
Just as there are numerous definitions of justice, there are also numerous definitions of morality. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary (1974), the Oxford Canadian Dictionary (2005), the New Webster’s Dictionary (1991), the Oxford Canadian Thesaurus (2006), and Roget’s Thesaurus (1989) morality is defined as having right moral conduct, being virtuous, knowing the difference between right and wrong ethics, being of good character, honesty, and ethically sound.
According to the Ethics Resource Center (2005) “The Macquarie Dictionary (1981: 614) defines ‘ethical’ as ‘pertaining to or dealing with morals or the principles of morality; pertaining to right and wrong in conduct; in accordance with the rules or standards for right conduct or practice’. Ethics are standards of conduct that guide decisions and actions, based on duties derived from core values, fundamental beliefs or principles, defining what we think is right, good, fair and just, and demonstrating behaviours that tell people how to act in ways that meet the standard our values set for us” (as cited in Thoms, 2008; p. 419).
Thoms elaborates on the Macquarie Dictionary definition by explaining that “ethical behaviour is concerned with ‘ought’ and ‘ought not’ and implies there are standards which may extend beyond what is required by law” (p. 419).
PERSPECTIVE
As the reader will see from the above definitions justice and morality go hand in hand. The Holy Bible, which is based on Christian beliefs, outlines and teaches what justice and morality is. It is these teachings that I will rely on to support my position that our criminal justice system is used as a vehicle for society’s moral undertaking.
KEY ISSUES
According to Hitchens (2007), if there is no God then no one should be obliged to “behave ethically”, because mankind “cannot teach morality in the absence of God”. He is correct in this assumption because when Moses went to meet God on Mount Sinai, Aaron and the House of Israel, began to have doubts about Jehovah, and did things as they saw right in their own eyes (Exodus 32, Holy Bible).
Hirshfield (2008), on the other hand alleges that morality cannot be put on a “scale” nor can it be “felt as right or wrong.” She goes on to say that “it is simply what happens.” She also alludes that “morality and justice is the experience of a correct order.” Again, according to Christian values and beliefs, she is deeply incorrect in her position. Jehovah, the Judeo-Christian God created feelings so that mankind could feel the sense of what is right and what is wrong (p. 127).
Hirshfield goes on to say that morality and justice are based on a “sense of fairness”, an “impulse to collaborate and assist”, and “empathy.” This is where the emotions Jehovah created fit in, for without a sense of fairness, an impulse to collaborate and assist, or to feel empathy there is no justice, there is no morality (pp. 128-129).
Simone Weil (as cited in Hirshfield) stated that “the laws of right behavior are first attributed to the divine.” Weil’s position, in my view, strongly supports what the Holy Bible teaches where the source of morality and justice come from. (p. 129).
The link, I believe, that lies between justice and morality is love. This can be found in the following statement given in Sophocles' Antigone when she (Antigone) “defends her desire to bury her brother with a simple statement: ‘I share my love, not my hate’. Her father ordered that her brother not be buried as he committed an act of treason by attacking the city. But she felt an injustice. Her love for her brother was so strong that she disobeyed her father’s order, which she felt was an injustice. It is my argument that it was her love that is the linkage to justice and morality (Hirshfield, p. 130).
The scene from Antigone supports the position that Jasper (1998) believes that “emotions are linked to morality” (as cited in Blackstone, 2009, p. 91). And love, is an emotion created by the Judeo-Christian God, Jehovah. For one participant in Blackstone’s research, “doing good means leading a fulfilling life that reflects her individual values and beliefs” (p. 102).
The Judeo-Christian beliefs and values offers a wealth of instruction and guidance for justice, morality, and virtuous behaviour such as the Ten Commandments: “You shall have no other gods before me, You shall not make for yourself an idol, You shall not take my name in vain, Remember the Sabbath, and keep it holy, Honor your father and mother, You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not give false testimony, You shall not covet what is not yours” (Exodus 20, Holy Bible), and the Fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” is God’s description of justice ad morality (Gal. 5:22, 23, Holy Bible).
A question arises out of Laitinen’s (2009) article; is there a link between respect, esteem, love, justice, and morality? Laitinen states that “when such interpersonal rights and valid claims are violated that the case is one of moral wronging” (p. 22).
Another question arises out of Laitinen’s article: Why be moral? (p. 24). My answer to that question is this: it is morally right to treat others with respect. It is morally wrong to treat others disrespectfully. This is the crux of ethics.
CONCLUSION
As I stated in online discussions, I disagree with the position that "law is in essence independent of morality." My position is based on my religious beliefs, more specifically my beliefs that law is not independent of morality, but rather stems from the 10 commandants and the Mosaic laws.
According to my religious beliefs, God Jehovah saw his people Israel acting in the most deplorable immoral way since the Ark. So, God called on Moses to meet him on top of Mount Sinai and gave Moses the 10 commandments - Jehovah's laws of morality.
The purpose of the 10 commandments, according to my religious beliefs, is meant to teach us the difference between what is morally right and what is morally wrong. This, in my view, is the foundation of morality. Also, according to my religious beliefs, the Mosaic laws, which is the foundation of all laws, also expounds on what right and wrong morality is.
It is because we (mankind) don't know what the difference is between what is morally right and what is morally wrong that God Jehovah gave Moses the 10 commandments as well as the wisdom to draft the Mosaic laws. As a note, Moses was also, according to my religious beliefs, the founder of the court system that we use this day. It is for these reasons that I believe that law is, in essence the very foundation of morality. It is for without law that morality does not exist.
REFERENCES
Blackstone, A. (2009). Doing Good, Being Good, and the Social Construction of Compassion. Journal Of Contemporary Ethnography, vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 85-116. Retrieved January 21, 2009, from Academic Search Premier Database.
Hitchens, C. (2007). Finding Morals Under Empty Heavens. Science & Spirit, 18, p66-66, 1p. Retrieved January 21, 2009, from Academic Search Premier Database.Holy Bible – New International Version (1986). Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman & Holmman Publishers.
Hirshfield, J. (2008). Justice: Four Windows. Virginia Quarterly Review, 84, p126-137. Retrieved January 21, 2009, from Academic Search Premier Database.
Laitinen, A. (2009). Recognition, Needs and Wrongness: Two Approaches. European Journal Of Political Theory, 8, pp. 13-30. Retrieved January 21, 2009, from Academic Search Premier Database.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary (1974). New York, NY: Pocket Books.
New Webster Dictionary (1991). Miami, Florida: P. S. I. Associates, Inc.
Oxford Canadian Dictionary (2005). Don Mills, On: Oxford University Press.
Oxford Canadian Thesaurus (2006). Don Mills, On: Oxford University Press.
Roget’s Thesaurus (1989). Miami, Florida: P. S. I. Associates, Inc.
Thoms, J. C. (2008). Ethical Integrity in Leadership and Organizational Moral Culture. Leadership, 4, pp. 419-442. Retrieved January 21, 2009, from Academic Search Premier Database.