This text is one that the General Board of our church has identified as key to the Mission Imperatives of our church.  Everything we are about has to do with a balance of these three things: doing justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly with God.  The Great Commission found in Matthew 28,  which calls us to share the good news of Jesus Christ,  is bound within Micah 6:8.

Even though this is true, one of the greatest struggles of my life is found in Micah 6:8.  I have long been involved with an inner struggle over justice.  I have even written about this before in an earlier Dawn Breaker.  And, as the struggle continues, I suspect I may write about it again.

Following 9-11 our President and others spoke often of bringing the responsible persons to justice.  Since that day, I have heard others use the term of "bringing people to justice."  It has normally been related to persons arrested for a crime of some kind.  I understand the need for order in society.  But, it seems to me that justice is too often confused with revenge.  People lose a child because of a drunken driver, and they "demand justice."  I suspect that I would feel the same way.  I hope that "justice" would prevail.  However, I hope it would not prevail in the mask of revenger.  My experience with revenge leads me to believe that revengeful victory,  covered by the cause of justice,  is rather hollow.  Certainly, it is not particularly healing.  Will I feel any less violated with the perpetrators of 9-11 when they are brought to "justice?"

To love kindness is not an attitude of revenge.  In addition, the text calls upon us to "do" justice.  Does doing justice mean to enact justice upon others?

Then there is the issue of who decides what is just.  I would like to say, let God do it.  But there are too many people who try to speak for God, and they have differing views of what God wants them to say.  It is a difficult issue.  I think I will try this:

Dawn Breaker #57:   Love kindness, walk humbly with God and trust that this path will lead me to an understanding of doing justice.