Includes bibliographical references (pages 323-341) and indexes.
Contents:
Part 1. Restoration and the victim (Luke 10:25-37). A "magnificent little story" and the task of public ethics -- A parable of law, crime, and justice -- Loving life and doing the law -- Victimization and the law of neglect -- The Samaritan and the rule of compassion -- Good Samaritans, bad Samaritans, and modern legal theory -- Part 2. Restoration and the offender (Luke 15:11-32). Offending, restoration, and the law-abiding community -- Offending as relational rupture -- A better justice -- Part 3. Just compassion. Public compassion -- Compassion and the criminal justice system.
Summary:
Two parables that have become firmly lodged in popular consciousness and affection are the parable of the Good Samaritan and the parable of the Prodigal Son. These simple but subversive tales have had a significant impact historically on shaping the spiritual, aesthetic, moral, and legal traditions of Western civilization, and their capacity to inform debate on a wide range of moral and social issues remains as potent today as ever. Noting that both stories deal with episodes of serious interpersonal offending, and both recount restorative responses on the part of the leading characters, Compassionate Justice draws on the insights of restorative justice theory, legal philosophy, and social psychology to offer a fresh reading of these two great parables. It also provides a compelling analysis of how the priorities commended by the parables are pertinent to the criminal justice system today. The parables teach that the conscientious cultivation of compassion is essential to achieving true justice. Restorative justice strategies, this book argues, provide a promising and practical means of attaining to this goal of reconciling justice with compassion.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.