Exodus 23:2-- Thoughts on the justice project

In verse two of this passage we read the words,

“You shall not follow a crowd to do evil; nor shall you bear witness at a trial so as to side with a multitude to pervert justice.”

This verse reminds me of one of the first movie experiences I remember. It was the old black and white version of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” We all know the story of the deformed, wretched looking man who lived in the Cathedral of Notre Dame. I remember one scene where the hunchback is being mocked and beaten in the city square. He was surrounded by this mob that kind of pushed itself further and further down injustice lane. I don’t remember exactly what they were saying or what caused this incredible injustice. I only remember my feelings as a child. I knew that this poor man hadn’t done anything wrong. I remember his anguish and shame. I thought to myself, “He can’t defend himself.” And the one thought that I remember more than any other was this: “Why doesn’t anybody do something!” Most are mocking, some are turning away in horror and then a few were feeling a sense of pity for the Hunchback but I kept thinking, “Why doesn’t anybody do something!”

I thought of this several times as I worked on this project. It was the outrage of a kid understanding the gravity of an unfair world, seeing the injustice and realizing that no one was going to show up in the hunchback’s defense, and that’s life. As I grew older, I saw the bullies of the real world. I saw people who got sick and didn’t get better. I witnessed the hatred, selfishness and carelessness of my world. And yet I believe that phrase that welled up inside me as a child was God-given. He sees the mess this world is in and he looks to the church and He calls to us, asking, “Why doesn’t anybody do anything about this?”