A more humane justice requires openness to the culture of forgiveness

At a time when uncertainty, social conflicts and mistrust reign supreme in our lives, the Holy Year represents – for believers and non-believers alike – an occasion for renewal that prompts reflection on whether words like mercy, forgiveness, love, truly describe our lifestyles. In particular, an area where the answer to these questions could contribute to increased public awareness, triggering maturation processes at institutional level under the banner of inclusion, is the realm of justice.
 The occasion for such a challenging reflection is given us with the exhortation that Pope Francis addressed to states and governments in his Message for the World Day of Peace 2016, urging national leaders to make “concrete gestures, courageous gestures of concern for their most vulnerable members, such as prisoners, migrants, the unemployed and the infirm”. The Holy Father addressed a special thought to those detained, first by calling upon institutions to adopt concrete measures for the improvement of their living conditions and to assure that penal sanctions are effectively aimed at rehabilitation. The Holy Father then renewed his appeal to abolish the death penalty and to consider the possibility of an amnesty. That of Francis constitutes

the wish that forgiveness shall not be confined to the private sphere, and that it will encompass the institutional realm, triggering the establishment of relations based on harmonious coexistence.

The Pope’s appeal is in full harmony with those conveyed by his predecessors on this specific theme, but which, on the occasion of the Holy Year dedicated to Mercy, evidently takes on a special significance for each one of us. In fact, since man was created in God’s image and likeness – a principle whence stems the integral vision of the human person and of human development, expressed in Church social doctrine, reaffirmed in Evangelii Gaudium as well as in the encyclical Laudato Si’ – this implies the need to relinquish all visions of justice confined to mere reciprocity, strictly pertaining to the realms of contracts and remuneration, and embrace instead its authentically human significance, open to forgiveness. In the Christian understanding, f”orgiveness neither eliminates nor diminishes the need for correction, precisely that of justice, nor does it overlook the need for personal conversion” (Francis, May 30 2014). Unlike the logic regulating contractual exchanges, forgiveness extends further, seeking to re-establish relations and reintegrating people into society. In fact, according to the magisterium of John Paul II, “justice is not limited to establishing what is right between the parties in conflict but looks above all to re-establishing authentic relationships with God, with oneself and with others. Thus there is no contradiction between forgiveness and justice. Justice, […] seeks to reintegrate individuals and groups into society, and States into the community of Nations. No punishment can suppress the inalienable dignity of those who have committed evil. The door to repentance and rehabilitation must always remain open.” (Message for the Celebration of the World Day of Peace 1997). Thus Francis’ appeal to consider the possibility of granting an amnesty in the year of the Jubilee of Mercy, should not be understood as a form of surrender to evil, but rather as a sign of trust in mankind: a clear expression of sensitivity aimed at encouraging those in prison to be committed in their personal rehabilitation in view of a positive reintegration into society. It is but another part of the great challenge that this pontificate calls upon everyone to face, “so that the measures adopted against evil are not satisfied by restraining, dissuading and isolating the many who have caused it, but also helps them to reflect, to travel the paths of good, to be authentic persons who, removed from their own hardships, become merciful themselves” (Francis, cit.).
According to the teachings of the Social Doctrine of the Church, it should be reflected in criminal and penal systems that draw inspiration from the respect of human dignity, understood as the limit to arbitrariness and excessive public powers, as well as a guiding criteria in the prosecution and punishment of all activities constituting attacks on the dignity and integrity of the human person. In this direction, Pope Francis said, “is the difference between an inclusive and an exclusive society, one which does not place the human person at the centre and disregards the leftovers that are no longer needed”. (final cit.).