"Love is bound to power as it is bound to justice," said Regina Schwartz, Northwestern University English professor and doctoral graduate from the University.
During this first lecture of the Love and Justice lecture series, which was held Feb. 2, Schwartz discussed the intrinsic nature of love in relation to the U.S. legal system. Objectivity is usually considered to be an integral ideal of this system, as justice is thought to be dealt impartially to all members of society.
But love and emotions, Schwartz argued, can and perhaps should play a role in the legal system.
The series is sponsored by the English and religious studies departments, as well as the Institute of Advanced Studies in Culture. The Institute is an interdisciplinary research center comprised of current scholars and alumni of the University who debate contemporary political, moral and social issues affecting society.
During the hour-long lecture, Schwartz discussed the boundaries of human thought regarding justice, law and love and explored these trends throughout history. The ancient Hebrews, she noted, abided by God's laws, which contributed to the strength of their legal system. Thus, justice can be preserved through a philanthropic act of love, she said.
Schwartz used particular narratives from the Hebrew Bible as evidence for her thesis, attempting to explain how biblical justice can be found within the law. There once was a time, she said, when "law and justice were not separated, where the vision of law and justice were so radically identical that separating them was unthinkable."
In Schwartz's view, the divine form of justice comes from an active form of love. This display of love creates a world that enables people to comprehend the needs of others and then meet the unsatisfied needs of others who cannot be served by the legal system, she said.
"The biblical understanding of justice is not merely divine wrath but an understanding of justice as love, which in the Bible, has to take action, [which manifests] in taking care of people in need," Schwartz said.
Using these Bible narratives, Schwartz attempted to illustrate a period of time during which law was constituted of divine power and the wrath of God. She then contrasted it to today's world, which many people may think is completely just, but does not necessarily share the same ideals as the Hebrew text.
Graduate Arts & Sciences student Ryan McDermott said he "really appreciated how [Schwartz] was able to draw together many historical periods to talk about a very important contemporary issue."\nSeveral audience members found themselves in agreement with Schwartz by the end of the lecture.
"I was struck by [Schwartz's] emphasis on the idea of universal procedures of law," 1992 University alumnae Jenny Gladding said. "It seemed that the procedures are a way of protecting us from the various cultural interactions of justice that may clash with another."
She added that Schwartz's idea that "love is certainly not just a feeling, but an act" fascinated her.
"Loving justice does not command one to love the mortal monster. Again, there is nothing feeble about the love of command," Schwartz reiterated. "What the gift of justice does is to present one with the harsh reality, for better or for worse, that only [through] giving to those in need, [can we] help create a just world and only this can begin to relieve despair"
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