Lent 2026 - Reading #9 - Justice
Reading
Saint Augustine meditates on justice in The City of God, drawing a sharp distinction between the justice of earthly kingdoms and the justice of God: "Justice being taken away, then, what are kingdoms but great robberies? For what are robberies themselves, but little kingdoms? The band itself is made up of men; it is ruled by the authority of a prince, it is knit together by the pact of the confederacy; the booty is divided by the law agreed on." Augustine continues with his famous anecdote: "Indeed, that was an apt and true reply which was given to Alexander the Great by a pirate who had been seized. For when that king had asked the man what he meant by keeping hostile possession of the sea, he answered with bold pride: 'What you mean by seizing the whole earth; but because I do it with a petty ship, I am called a robber, while you who do it with a great fleet are styled emperor.'" For Augustine, human justice, divorced from God, inevitably degenerates into power disguised as law. True justice requires a transcendent standard, not merely the will of the stronger, but the will of the One who made all persons in his image and assigns to each their inviolable dignity.
Reflection
On the ninth day of Lent, we continue with justice and hear Augustine's devastating critique of justice without God. Our journey through the virtues is no abstract exercise, it cuts to the heart of how we live together. Last week's prudence gave us clear sight; this week, justice demands that we act on what we see. Augustine's pirate story is unforgettable because it exposes a truth we would rather ignore: the difference between justice and injustice is not always obvious, and power has a way of clothing itself in the language of right. This is as true in our personal lives as in politics. How often do we dress up our selfishness in reasonable-sounding arguments? How often do we take more than our share and call it earned? Lent challenges us to strip away these disguises, just as it strips away our physical comforts. The Lenten practice of almsgiving is a direct response to Augustine's challenge. When we give to those in need, we acknowledge that what we have is not entirely our own, that justice demands a reckoning with those who have less. Today, ask yourself Augustine's uncomfortable question: In the economies of your daily life, your time, your attention, your money, are you an emperor or a pirate? The answer may depend on which end of the transaction you stand on.