Biblical Worldview correctional professional
Christian Worldview refers to a system of ideas and ethics that a Christian believer uses to guide their daily lives. The concepts are essential when Christians face dilemmas and crises in decision-making. Although Worldview can differ from one denomination
to another, some tenets such as believing that humans are sinful, that the Bible is the book of instruction, and that people must serve
God in all walks of life are universal. Christian Worldview makes it easy for Christians to integrate their faith into their daily lives. In the criminal justice system, Christians who uphold Biblical Worldview uphold ethics because it is the prudent thing to do in the profession, but because they believe in pleasing their maker and obeying the scripture. Therefore, Biblical Worldview encourages correctional professionals to pursue restorative justice and avoid the retributive approach that is an old approach to the profession.
A biblical world view can influence professional behavior of Christians working in the correctional department. It is difficult for years of training to wipe out worldviews that a person develops throughout their lives. Intense situations when a Christian has to make a difficult decision, the education may not influence their choices as their faith is ingrained in their systems. Professionals who are consistent in their Christian beliefs strive to be more like Christ in their work stations, and their Christianity can influence their lives. Such a focus on biblical Worldview can guide them when making ethical decisions.
However, modern correctional practices are products of retributive theology. The theory suggests that God is holy and demands for holiness from His followers. He does not allow the yoking of believers with non-believers. Therefore, any person who departs from the set standards receives a punishment that corresponds to their omissions. Agents of God, such as the church, take the same approach to justify the need to punish offenders. The majorities of western societies were founded on the Christian faith and used the tenets of the scripture to establish secular governance systems, including the justice system. The ideas were prevalent in the western world in the middle ages and became the basis for establishing criminal justice systems that persist to date. However, a study of the Christian Bible shows that retributive theology is not consistent with the Bible, especially the New Testament.
Today, the treatment of most offenders in American prisons is not on rehabilitation, but it is on retribution and deterrence in the guiding principle. According to Pillari (2012), there were ninety-seven hundred Americans in correctional facilities in 2005, and one-fifth of them have no chances of parole. A significant proportion is of offenders who committed the crimes as minors but sentenced in adult courts. The current status is a dismay to reformers of the justice system who believe in restorative justice. Advocates of correctional justice suggest that correctional facilities exist to reform and not to punish offenders. It also insists that the institutions exist to uplift and not degrade citizens. It is not for crushing but to develop the worth of a person. As far as juvenile offenders are concerned, proponents of the restorative justice system argue that the minors are not criminals but victims of their environments.
The New Testament encourages modern believers to concentrate on restorative justice, a practice that is gaining prominence in the world today. Biblical worldview opines that it is difficult to correct offenders without loving them. Therefore, it is important for Christians in correctional facilities to understand and make that the fundamental law of life is love. As such, it is impossible to correct offenders without loving them and focusing on the teachings of the Bible to guide their daily activities. The biblical understanding of “justice” does encourage punishment but focuses more on healing, fostering the well-being of the communities, and restoring broken relationships. For example, Galatians 6:1 demands that Christians who live by the Spirit must restore any person who is guilty of an offense while avoiding falling into temptations. The commands are similar to emerging trends in the correctional profession that is encouraging correctional facilities to rehabilitate offenders.
The justice system has to balance the delicate needs in society. On the one hand, there is a need for the system to deter members of society from criminal activities and guarantee public safety in a nation. On the other hand, another section of society demands that the purpose of prisons and other correctional institutions is to rehabilitate and reintegrate offenders into society. Progressives do not insist on the accountability of the individual but focus on criminals and the need to reform them. However, modern society demands tough laws on criminals and their activities. Today, governments respond to increases in crime by enacting tough legislation to ensure that criminals account for their actions and the safety of the public. Although the Christian worldview supports the view of the progressives, governments have difficult tasks of balancing the rights of the accused persons and need to provide public safety. Christian teachings such as social education of the Catholic Church provide sound principles that create a balance between the conflicting approaches to the modern criminal justice system.
Most Christian teachings do not claim to provide a blueprint for reforming the criminal justice systems. However, they give Christians strategies that they can use to redirect their institutions from retributive to restorative tendencies. The rehabilitation and reintegration ideas and the retribution, deterrence, and public safety measures are complex issues in the justice system that Christians must be alive to when working in correctional facilities. The need to move from the current system of punishing offenders is proof enough that the initial strategy is not serving society well. As such, it is critical to develop a new standard that reconciles the two systems. It is critical establish a middle ground to accommodate the conflicting views. The conciliatory teachings of the church come in here to guide society on the best approach to follow.
Contrary to public perception, the conciliation between the competing systems is possible when viewed through Christian social teachings. The foundational teachings of the idea are human dignity, and subsidiarity provides the framework from which a society can rethink its approach to the criminal justice system, especially the correctional aspect. The plan encourages the courts and the full justice to be holistic in its approach to punishing or reforming offenders. The Catholic Social Teaching began during the reign of Pope Leo XIII in 1891 when he wrote and taught about the Condition of Labor (Rerum Novarum). The purpose of the writing was to respond to the growing need for the church to guide society on social issues. Notably, the Rerum Novarum did not start the social teachings since these ideas are already in the scripture. However, it was a significant attempt to explain to the people about biblical teachings by using social challenges that people encounter daily.
The writings of Pope Leo XIII’s writings began as a tradition of popes applying the wisdom in the Christian Bible to address the world’s social problems. From the beginning of the Bible, the book of Genesis notes that God made humans in his image, men and women. The import of this idea is that every person deserves respect as an autonomous being with rights and liberties. More importantly, every individual has fundamental value on account of sharing in God’s nature. In the Christian faith, there is a close relationship between the nature of God and humanity. It is made evident with Jesus Christ taking the human form to save humanity from self-destruction. From these tenets of Christian faith flows the foundational principle of Catholic Social Teaching about ensuring that people live in dignity.
Giving people
dignity is subject to the behavior of the person as well as the response of
society towards people who break the law. The need for human dignity requires a
person to avoid engaging in activities that hurt others. Additionally, it
requires the community to think about the needs of other members of society the
same way they think about their lives. They can achieve this objective by being
compassionate. The second principle of the Christian teachings on social
contact is solidarity. Christian scriptures teach believers of Jesus Christ to
live in unity as members of a family. Notably, Ephesians 4:4-6 explains the
need for integration of the body of Christ is key to the existence of the
Christian faith. Solidarity is a rejection of secular individualism that is
common in modern societies. Christians believe that embracing solidarity and
unity in faith prepares them to serve their God and community better. The
transformation makes it possible to love one another in a way that can support
the reintegration of offenders into the community as long as they are willing
to reform from past mistakes.
Biblical Worldview is a system of ideas and ethics that guide Christians in their daily lives. The concepts differ from one denomination to another although there some fundamental principle. Some of the ideas include the understanding that that human are sinful, that the Bible is the word of God, and people have a duty to serve God in their regular duties. The ideals are essential as they guide believers when under pressure and faced with ethical dilemmas. As such, Christians can use biblical Worldview in their work stations as correctional professionals to change the tradition of retributive practices and adapt rehabilitation as the demanded by the Bible.