This post will take a look at the dark side of the social justice movement from a Christian worldview standpoint. We will discuss how Christianity and the social justice movement compare and contrast.
What is Social Justice?
The United Nations definition of social justice describes it as the fair and compassionate distribution of the fruits of economic growth. The development of the concept mirrored the rise of the socialist/Marxist theories in western Europe in the 1800s. Therefore, it shares a philosophical foundation with standard socialist theory such as the ideas of wealth redistribution and equality of outcomes. On the surface these types of idealistic notions seem harmless and may even seem based on Christian principles. For example, Christ commands us to take care of the poor and oppressed, but does he necessarily advocate for equality of outcomes. That concept, the equality of outcomes, represents the very heart of socialism and social justice. Does that concept have basis in Christian theology? One only has to look at the parable of the talents to understand that God does not share that particular philosophy. In fact, He states that to him who has shall more be given and to him who does not have, even what he thinks he has shall be taken away. God never intended people to be equal in output and outcomes. He loves us all but we all have different functions and therefore different needs.
Not a Tame Lion
The title of this section will not make sense unless you know that it is a quote about the great lion, Aslan, in C. S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia. This allegorical story states that the great lion, Aslan, is good but he is not a tame lion. Of course, Aslan represents Jesus in these stories, but what does that mean? C. S. Lewis was trying to convey that God's goodness transcends our thoughts of goodness. God does not fit our ideas of good. He is not tame. This concept most accurately describes how social justice and Christianity part ways. Our God is an all consuming fire. We often forget about his holiness and only concentrate on his kindness. However, many verses talk about the kindness and severity of God. One cannot truly understand His kindness without also understanding His severity. Our God does not take any sin lightly. He does not wink at it. He also does not change His mind. The concept that God evolves with the flow of the history of man constitutes one of the great heresies of our time. "I am the Lord God, I change not." Only focusing on His kindness leads many Christians to look at situations through a skewed lens. A Christian must filter everything through the Word of God. We cannot excuse sin just because it causes suffering. Sin always causes suffering. God built that into the universe. We have not been put on this earth to bring about utopia. We have been put on this earth to draw all men unto Him. He told us that this world is fallen and only He can fix it. Until we start our presuppositions from that point, we will always deviate into heresy.
Moral Norms vs Social Norms
One of the main pillars of the modern progressive movement and social justice advocates involves the concept of social norms. What are social norms and how do they contrast with moral norms? To answer that question one must first understand the philosophical foundation of the progressive movement. Remember everyone has a worldview and that worldview dictates the philosophical foundation of the concepts that derive from that worldview. The philosophical foundation for progressives is relativism. Truth, justice, and all the underlying concepts derive their meaning from the culture in which they arise. Relativists do not believe in set right and wrong standards. A culture can set those standards based on the wants and needs of the individuals of that culture. On the other hand, moral norms or standards are set by an outside force such as a religion. These standards do not change over time with the evolving of the culture. Social norms do change almost constantly. Christianity has as its basis the Bible which functions as the standard for all norms. The surrounding culture does not dictate the norms of the Bible. They do not change. People living by social norms must constantly keep track of what is and is not acceptable at any given time. What has been acceptable can suddenly change leaving its followers scrambling to learn the new standards. (Pronouns anyone?) Therefore the concept of social justice must also constantly change with the underlying social norms. To live your life based on social norms is to live your life on a ever changing foundation. For me, I say, "On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking sand."
Free Speech vs Hate Speech
Another contrast between Christianity and the social justice movement involves the concept of free speech. The heritage of our country has long protected speech even offensive speech as encapsulated in our First Amendment. Traditional liberals used to defend this freedom to a fault as long as the standard of offense came from the right. Left-leaning offensive speech falls under the protection of the First Amendment. However, now we have a situation in our country where the standard of offense comes from the left. Does speech that offends the left get the same treatment as speech that offends the right? No, NO, NOOOO!!! Social norms and free speech do not coexist with one another very well. Social norms dictate that culture define our ideas of what is and is not acceptable. Therefore, when the left controls the culture, speech that offends the left falls into the category of unacceptable. Unacceptable speech threatens the social norms and is thus labeled as hate speech. Moral norms are not affected by what is and is not acceptable in the culture. Offensive speech to the right brings with it consequences in how people relate to one another but it does not threaten the norm itself. The norm is set in stone and cannot be swayed by public opinion. In order to rule by social norms, the left must squash all dissent to maintain its control. This explains why conservative speech and Christian speech threatens the left so much. True free speech threatens the lefts power base. It cannot be allowed.
God's Justice vs Social Justice
Now I will look at the last contrast between God's definition of justice and social justice. I left this one for last because a culture's definition of justice flows from the standards and norms of that culture. God's justice flows from moral norms (Bible). Social justice flows from social norms (political correctness). These two standards of justice cannot coexist because they are built on different foundations. Christians that follow after social justice either do not have a working knowledge of the Bible or have fallen for the fallacy that the Bible does not have to be the standard for our lives. A person with a working knowledge of the Word of God and that fully understands God built His justice into the fabric of the universe cannot reconcile social norms for the standard of his/her life. Ever wonder why so many people are beginning to despise political correctness? Living by shifting standards presents the most exhausting way to live possible. People may have hated moral norms because they did not want to admit that certain acts are sin, but at least under moral norms the rules always stayed the same. If you fail to get the memo on the latest change in social norms, you will find yourself on the wrong side of the mob. Eventually most everyone finds themselves on the wrong side of the mob. Ever wonder why we have so much despair in our country today? God's justice functions like those pesky boundaries that little children outwardly despise but inwardly they give a sense of order to their universe. It brings peace. Social justice functions like a permissive parent that wants to be the child's peer instead of a parent. Outwardly the child seems to like the situation but inwardly they have no sense of bearing. They do not understand the rules. It brings despair.
Conclusion
Now let's bring this into the early childhood arena. Should a Christian early childhood educator teach social justice? I hope by this point in this article you understand that the answer to that question is no. Do not teach these precious little ones that they have to live on shifting sand. Teach them the standards that will bring them peace and not despair. Stand firm on what you know is right. Will it cost you? Probably. Do it anyway!!
I hope you have enjoyed this post. Goodbye and God bless!!
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