I'm not sure how I'll explain that in this country that says it loves its children, close to half the people living in poverty are children - even though they're about a quarter of the general population. I'm not sure how I can explain our nation's behavior in the Gulf War, where we targeted waste water treatment plants, wells, and other facilities the civilian population requires to live. And yet that is exactly what we did. It is a fair question to ask how we should explain President Clinton's behavior to our children. But real justice involves redress, and heavy lifting.
Real concern consists of the kind of justice the Bible is talking about.
There is a theme to the justice the Old Testament talks about, and I think Jesus draws it out more explicitly than anyone. At the heart of so many of Jesus' parables is the joy of reconciliation, of restoring what was broken, of finding our best selves in the act of mending. There are no better synonyms for the biblical word justice than reconciliation and solidarity, for that is what Christ asks of us. It's hard to do, to put aside our fear and trust someone else, or put their interests ahead of our own. It's difficult to see our own ambitions and goals in the context of the whole community.