Pope Leo XIV inaugurates the judicial year of the Vatican Tribunal (@VATICAN MEDIA)
Pope: Justice in the Church is ministry in service of
people of God
Pope Leo XIV opens the judicial year of the Vatican
Tribunal, and recalls the deep bond between justice, charity, and societal
stability.
By Devin Watkins
At the opening ceremony of the Judicial Year of the Vatican
City State, Pope Leo XIV expressed his gratitude for the “discreet and quiet”
work of the judicial system.
In his first address to the Vatican judiciary, the Pope
noted that authentic justice cannot be based simply on positive law, but must
rather be understood as the “exercise of an ordered form of charity”.
Drawing heavily on the teachings of St. Augustine, Pope Leo
said justice is a cardinal virtue that lies at the heart of personal and
communal life.
“When love is rightly ordered—when God is placed at the
center and one’s neighbor is recognized in their dignity—then the whole of
personal and social life regains its proper orientation,” he said.
The order of love, he added, gives rise to the order of
justice, since authentic love is never arbitrary or disordered, but recognizes
the truth of relationships and the dignity of every person.
“Theological wisdom has expressed this relationship with the
affirmation that caritas perfecta, perfecta iustitia est (‘perfect
charity is perfect justice’), because in the fullness of charity justice finds
its most authentic fulfillment,” he said.
Justice requires us to respect the rights of every person,
leaving space in ordered relationships for the highest fruit of love to be
born.
“Justice, when exercised with balance and fidelity to the
truth, becomes one of the firmest factors of unity in the community,” he said.
“It does not divide; rather, it strengthens the bonds that unite persons and
helps to build that mutual trust which makes ordered coexistence possible.”
Opening ceremony of
the inauguration of the Vatican's judicial year in the Hall of Blessings
(@VATICAN MEDIA)
Turning to the role of justice and law in Vatican City
State, Pope Leo XIV said the judicial process contributes to upholding the
credibility of institutions, beyond merely resolving disputes.
The conditions required to fulfill this task, he added,
include observance of procedural guarantees, judicial impartiality, right to
defense, and reasonable duration of proceedings.
Quoting St. Augustine, the Pope said, “Without justice, one
cannot administer the State; it is impossible for there to be law in a State in
which there is no true justice.”
By carefully examining the facts of each case, the Vatican
judiciary fulfills its ecclesial mission to serve the people of God, since
every proceeding and judgement must reflect the “search for truth which lies at
the heart of the Church’s life.”
Pope Leo XIV concluded his address to members of the Vatican
judiciary by recalling that authentic justice provides a factor of stability
and trust within society.
“May justice always be illumined by truth and accompanied by
mercy, since both find their fullness in Christ,” he said. “Law, thus applied
with uprightness and ecclesial spirit, becomes a precious instrument for
building communion and strengthening the unity of the people of God.”
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