The Rights of God

This past week, we have seen large groups of barbarians, propelled by what they claim is righteous indignation, spread like marauders over American cities, wantonly destroying property, committing theft, robbery and even murder. After several days, they left enormous devastation. It was said again and again that "the protesters" actions were caused and, at least partially, justified by "systemic injustice" against their group. The problem with the argument can clearly be seen in the virtue of justice itself. Justice is the only virtue that is absolutely objective. We know that its essence is rendering to every person what is his or her due. Thus, if I take something from a person, who has a right to that thing, a debt is created. The virtue of justice can only be satisfied by paying that debt, no more and no less. If I take twenty dollars from you, then you are entitled to receive twenty dollars back.

The virtue of justice is also personal. It is only possible for a group to have claims in justice in so far as that group is made up of individuals. A class action lawsuit, for example, seeks justice for a group of individuals who have been similarly wronged. Each individual in the group must prove that the proceeds of the lawsuit are owed to him in justice. It is always nonsense to speak about justice or injustice in vague or ill-defined terms, because justice is objective. If there is a debt, it has to be satisfied, but an objective debt cannot be based on my perception of others' behavior, much less on envy.

The virtue of justice is the reason why the sin of gossip, for example, should be so scary to us. If I take twenty dollars from you, I can discharge that debt by paying you twenty dollars. But if I deprive you of your good name (your reputation, which you have a right to), there is an objective debt just as real as if I had taken your money. But how do I pay that debt? Are we not left with a debt, which can never fully be repaid? Fortunately, Catholics believe in the existence of Purgatory, where such debts can be fully satisfied, when our souls pass through a purifying fire on our way to God.

We human beings are very preoccupied with our own rights. Occasionally, we might remember to think about the rights of others. Nevertheless, we often forget the rights of God. We often forget that we are capable of doing injustice to God Himself and that we often do. We often forget that sins like looting, rioting, stealing, murder, but also even gossip, are offenses not just against our neighbor, but also against God, Whose rights are much more expansive that the rights of our neighbor.

Why are God's rights more expansive than our rights or those of our neighbor? Firstly, because God is the Creator. If I create a book, for example, and someone steals it and publishes it under his own name, then that person has committed injustice. Well, God is not only the creator of one or two things, but the Creator of all things. As Saint John tells us, "all things were made by Him, and without Him was not made anything that was made." Secondly, God's rights are also more expansive than ours or our neighbors', because only God is All-Good. It is inevitable that, because of our sinful nature, we wrong others as well as being wronged by others. Only God, being All-Good, wrongs no one, but permits Himself to be wronged by His own creatures. He permits Himself to be wronged by His own creatures to a point, that is. For those who have believed in Christ and kept His commandments, the divine decree requiring damnation has been remitted due to the sacrifice of Christ. In other words, Christ's sacrificial death on the Cross leaves us with merely temporal debts to divine justice, debts that must be repaid either here or in the purifying fire that awaits us as we go to God. 

Yet, for those who reject God, refusing to acknowledge His rights over His creature, divine justice can only be satisfied by everlasting condemnation, because this is the only outcome that is consistent with the proportionality of justice. What was offered to us was infinite Good (God Himself), and we rejected infinite Good, deserving everlasting loss. This is precisely what the Lord means in the Gospel reading today when He says, "He who denies Me before men, I will deny in the presence of my Father and the holy angels."

Today is the Sunday of All Saints. Saints are those who confessed Christ before other human beings. The saints are those who, with true love for God, tried to win others to the love of God too. Their love for God meant that they were concerned first and foremost with the rights of God, often becoming forgetful of their own rights in the process.

The challenge of the recent events of this past week and more is for us to focus on the rights of God, rather than on our own. Let's remember the very solemn warning that the Most Holy Mother of God gave when she appeared in Fatima, Portugal: "Human beings must stop offending God, Who is already very much offended." At the same time, we should remember that we have the ability by our actions to repair the offenses that have been given to divine justice. We should offer special prayers, fast (tomorrow, by the way, Petrivka, the annual fast before the Feast of Ss. Peter and Paul on 29 June begins), and do other good works to appease the anger of God, which has so rightly been inflamed against us.