The wise shall shine...

“But the wise shall shine brightly
like the splendor of the firmament,
and those who lead the many to justice
shall be like the stars forever." (Dn 12:3)

This verse from our scriptures this past weekend speaks of wisdom leading to justice and those who seek the wisdom of the Lord and act upon it leading may to justice and in doing so shining brightly like stars. What is necessary to do this? If anything, in a world of moral relativism and wishy-washiness, to seek the wisdom necessary to lead others to justice really requires an uncompromising conviction of faith and moral values on each of our behalves. The sort of conviction I am thinking of reminds me of the character: Walt Kowalski from the movie Gran Torino.

In Gran Torino we find Walt, a retired Ford auto worker and Korean War Veteran whose wife has just died living in a neighborhood that has gone from great prosperity to despair. The neighborhood is not what it used to be, now mostly immigrants from Asia and infested by gangs, you could say Walt was out of place. Walt is also a person that tells you how it is, or at least speaks with an unfiltered mind, even saying to the young priest in the movie: “The problem is I think you're an overeducated, 27-year-old virgin who knows nothing about life or death and holds the hands of superstitious old women and promises them eternity."

What we also know about Walt is that he is bitter and crusty, and nothing ticks him off more than when people do not do the right thing, do not take care of themselves, do not take of each other, and do not take care of others. The selfishness of his grandaughter and the violence of the gangs drive him crazy. Now we could easily lable this as well, crude? But! Not to justify some of Walts less than admirable language or drinking, Walt does in the end have a point. For Walt was uncompromising in his values and in his convictions about right and wrong, about doing the right thing and standing up for what you believe in. This is the lesson we should take from Walt.

If we are to be the lights, the stars, the ones burning brightly leading others to justice, then we should have that same conviction of faith and values Walt Kowalski had. Walt's firm convictions helped neighborhood boy, Tao become a man rather than get sucked into the gang his cousins were in. Walt teaches Tao the value of an honest days work and about taking care of family and neighborhood - to stand up for what is right. Walt out of his firm convictions, also stood up for Tao's sister Sue. Lastly, Walt brought justice through his convictions to Tao and Sue and also their cousins in the gang. Walt in many was is a star. If we wish to be the same for others, then we too, again must have that same sense of conviction and fight for what is right, what is just.

Ultimately then, where do we find ourselves in relationship to justice? Are we burning brightly like stars in the Book of Daniel? Or do we find we need to get going on this?