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| Section of U.S. Supreme Court Frieze, Adolph A. Weinman |
Matthew 5:38-48
“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.
You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect."
When you enter the actual courtroom of the Supreme Court in Washington D.C. you will find a frieze just below the ceiling. Just like the friezes from several millennia ago the relief's picture the personification of the virtues that the particular culture values engaged in narratives and depicted in Greek godlike form. In addition these figures the frieze also adds the great lawgivers of world history and heroes of jurisprudence throughout the ages. So while the United States Supreme Court Justices are considering original intent and the spirit of the constitution while deciding contemporary legal cases they are symbolically inspired by the greats of Justice's past. This is a perfect place to continue our consideration of last week's focus on biblical intent and the spirit of the law. The Scripture reading for this week is also the second half of last week's reading. You may remember that I toyed with the notion that Jesus could be considered a lawyer, since being a Rabbi he had definite thoughts about the Law (Torah) and even was asked to hear certain cases (such as the woman caught in adultery). Interestingly enough the catalogue of the great lawgivers in the Supreme Court features several historical religious figures such as Moses (Judaism), Muhammad (Islam) and Confucius (Confucius). Jesus isn't pictured amongst these figures. Now I know what you may be thinking: as a contemporary Evangelical I'm supposed to be up in arms that a courtroom isn't honoring our country's great Judeo Christian heritage by depicting Jesus. After saying this I am supposed to kneel and do a Tim Tebow-like touchdown prayer/praise. Well, I'm actually not disturbed by this. Why? Well because I believe that the separation between Church and State is a beneficial protection to the Church...but greater than that is the fact that Jesus greatest concern wasn't the Law in itself. The Law was a means to an end. Even though Jesus was involved with "the law" the ultimate end of his concern wasn't personal justice (yes I understand the theological problems with this statement but just go with me here). It was something above the law
I jokingly referenced being up in arms about me being an Evangelical and being up in arms about not "honoring our country's great Judeo Christian heritage" because as of late we Evangelicals have made an industry of protesting Ten Commandments Monuments being removed from court houses across the nation. Interestingly enough many of them were placed there as a Hollywood publicity stunt to promote the release of Cecil B. DeMille's Ten Commandments movie. I am sure that criminals will feel condemned enough even without a reminder of God's law there. We shouldn't fret over religious monuments being removed from the courts because Jesus' work with the law happens outside of the court. It doesn't even reach the courtroom. When Jesus referenced the Ten Commandments and other parts of the Law in last week's reading he did it with the intention to expand our thinking of fulfilling the Law/Torah. The justice system of any culture is there to punish those who break the law (transgressors and aggressors) and protect/provide justice for their victims. This is where Jesus differs from the classic justice paradigm of law: specifically in Matthew 5:38-48. Jesus makes demands not only of the aggressor but also of the victim. Jesus' focus on the Law was not only how to punish or prevent aggressors but also how to live holy as a victim. It is obvious that those who transgress the Law and act aggressively to their brothers are breaking God's Law but Jesus reveals that the victim himself can also be falling short of living like God. For God is the victim of all of our sins. We don't just sin against our neighbor, community or the law. We sin against God Himself. Reread Matthew 5:38-48 and this time think to yourself, "How does God behave as a victim?"
The answer is that God behaves perfectly. He is perfect in His love, forgiveness and peace. Therefore we are asked to be His children and emulate love, forgiveness and pacifism. That is the perfection that a Christian can practice. This is Jesus' notion of living like God and beyond the law. Being a Christian is about resolving conflicts peacefully as much as possible. And where seemingly impossible is when we remember that we worship a God of miracles.
When you really think about it, these may be Jesus' most controversial teachings. If we were to seriously implement them they would be revolutionary. What if we befriended and worked for the betterment of those who hate us? What if we forgave those who did us grievous err? What if we refused to answer violence with violence? What if we abstained from lawsuits? Crazy stuff, eh? Your initial thought may be, "If Jesus said that we should do it then let's enact some laws that force people to do/not do these things!" That is an option. But the forced following of holiness doesn't always yield a holy heart. Jesus' law isn't fully enacted in legislatures or courtrooms but rather in individuals' hearts. We cannot always force our wills and norms upon our neighbors but we can peacefully show them what a life full of God's love and forgiveness looks like. Our efforts shouldn't be dedicated to erecting monuments of God's judgment on public display but publicly displaying God's mercy in monumental ways.
When you enter the actual courtroom of the Supreme Court in Washington D.C. you will find a frieze just below the ceiling. Just like the friezes from several millennia ago the relief's picture the personification of the virtues that the particular culture values engaged in narratives and depicted in Greek godlike form. In addition these figures the frieze also adds the great lawgivers of world history and heroes of jurisprudence throughout the ages. So while the United States Supreme Court Justices are considering original intent and the spirit of the constitution while deciding contemporary legal cases they are symbolically inspired by the greats of Justice's past. This is a perfect place to continue our consideration of last week's focus on biblical intent and the spirit of the law. The Scripture reading for this week is also the second half of last week's reading. You may remember that I toyed with the notion that Jesus could be considered a lawyer, since being a Rabbi he had definite thoughts about the Law (Torah) and even was asked to hear certain cases (such as the woman caught in adultery). Interestingly enough the catalogue of the great lawgivers in the Supreme Court features several historical religious figures such as Moses (Judaism), Muhammad (Islam) and Confucius (Confucius). Jesus isn't pictured amongst these figures. Now I know what you may be thinking: as a contemporary Evangelical I'm supposed to be up in arms that a courtroom isn't honoring our country's great Judeo Christian heritage by depicting Jesus. After saying this I am supposed to kneel and do a Tim Tebow-like touchdown prayer/praise. Well, I'm actually not disturbed by this. Why? Well because I believe that the separation between Church and State is a beneficial protection to the Church...but greater than that is the fact that Jesus greatest concern wasn't the Law in itself. The Law was a means to an end. Even though Jesus was involved with "the law" the ultimate end of his concern wasn't personal justice (yes I understand the theological problems with this statement but just go with me here). It was something above the law
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| U.S. Supreme Court frieze detail |
“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.
You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect."
The answer is that God behaves perfectly. He is perfect in His love, forgiveness and peace. Therefore we are asked to be His children and emulate love, forgiveness and pacifism. That is the perfection that a Christian can practice. This is Jesus' notion of living like God and beyond the law. Being a Christian is about resolving conflicts peacefully as much as possible. And where seemingly impossible is when we remember that we worship a God of miracles.
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| U.S. Supreme Court frieze detail |
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| Justice statue outside of the U.S. Supreme Court |
Romans 13 1-7
Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.
Just out side of the U.S. Supreme Court building you will find a statue of the personification of Justice. Actually you will find a statue of the same theme outside of most courts around the U.S. and the world. Some call her Lady Justice while some refer to her as Justitia. She is usually pictured holding the scales of Justice, a sword (of Justice) and occasionally blindfolded (to show impartiality...the whole "Justice is blind" thing). Much like a few of the images in the interior frieze, Lady Justice has her roots in Greek Mythology. Yes the Courts with pre-Christian imagery for you to become irate about! While I am an advocate for Christianity, I understand the representation varied representation of non-Judeo-Christian images in our courts...because our laws and government aren't just based on a Western religious view. There's a lot of Greek, some Roman a few pinches of France from its non-theistic years, etc. We also live amongst citizens of every belief and none at all. We shouldn't try to triumphantly cram our religious culture down their throat. That doesn't make converts, it makes slaves. So how does a believer live in the secular, pluralistic society that American government has always tried to be? We can find our answer in the Bible. Some of the earlier Christians found themselves in predicaments similar to ours. St. Paul was a citizen of the Roman Empire (a civilization that obviously didn't have a Judeo-Christian base to its legal system). In Romans 13 St. Paul writes about how Christians should respond to a government/justice system that isn't made up of believers. The gist of his argument is that we obey the law and not be trouble makers. The government authorities that are over us are out their to maintain the peace. Are their situations when we should disobey the government to obey God? Yes! But whenever possible we should live in peace with our government and neighbors because they are our brothers and God's creation. We minister to them by our holy, peaceful and helpful behavior. We obey the civil law and go beyond it by living out the Law of Love the Christ commands us to live.
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| Supreme Court frieze detail, Moses |
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