WHAT IS THE NATURE OF JUSTICE:

In broad terms, it means giving to each person what is due to them, what is fair and right and equitable.
There are many notions of justice and the definitions that we adopt will certainly effect the actions we take as individuals.

1. The Secular Liberal View:
This is grounded in the concept of an individual’s rights.
This ‘rights based’ view of justice comes about from an almost negative view of human beings as being motivated primarily by self interest and from what we could term a ‘contractual’ view of society, which springs from the view that living is about making contracts with each other, because that then gives us the right, or the means, to pursue our own self interest; eg. The pursuit of my ‘rights’ through legal processes and perhaps litigation.
In this context, justice is not a moral virtue, but part of the social system in which human self interest is regulated and controlled, so that social harmony happens and we can live with each other.

2. The Christian View:
This, in part, incorporates the ‘contractual view’, but goes further than just a concept of individual rights.
It has a sense of justice or a ‘spirit of justice’ that arises from a belief and faith in God.
In this view, justice is an expression of love (caritas) and makes other peoples’ rights the central focus of concern, whereas the secular view of justice is primarily about protecting ones own rights.
There is also a Theological Dimension to this, in that we see all people are created in the image of God. We are created as social beings and find our fulfillment in community, in relationships, in mutuality and that we have a responsibility to each individual member of our community.
This view of justice is proactive and consequently, the greater need of the individual, the greater the obligation to find ways to both enhance and protect the worth and dignity of human beings.
This means that our obligations to justice go far beyond the simple liberal view of justice.