Social justice is justice applied not just in individual relationships but across social systems. Social justice envisions a society in which every person is given an equal opportunity for a dignified human life. It’s about insisting on basic human rights and rectifying inequalities in society. From a religious point of view social justice is rooted in the notion that we are all created equal. According to some religions our equality in creation is based on being created in the image of God. It is this notion of a common human family that transcends barriers of nationality, race, gender and religion that binds us all together in pursuit of what is in the common good.
Beyond this, social justice is not only concerned with the human creation, but also the entire non-human creation as well. Therefore, as Buddhist monk Bhante Chao Chu says, “We must be mindful of the present and future impact of our actions.”
The concept of social justice is as old as history. Anytime injustice has prevailed there have been people and movements who have called for change; to bring about equity and justice for all people. In the Abrahamic tradition (Jews, Christians and Muslims) the notion of justice goes back to Moses and the Prophets.
Social justice is not tied to any one political ideology or party. Social justice is about people and our shared responsibility to care for one another and to be responsible citizens of the earth.
Finally, the impulse to create and sustain a just society is not limited to people of faith. Millions of people who consider themselves agnostic or athiest also share a vision for a just and equitable society and do remarkable work to that end. However, because of recent attacks on faith groups who speak about and work for social justice, our purpose has been to lift up the central role social justice plays in a variety of the world’s religions.