Daniel 13 : 1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62 / John 8 : 12-20 (2023)
The name Daniel in Hebrew means "My God is judge" or "My God is justice".
And true to his name, the prophet Daniel brought about God's justice and saved the innocent Suzanna from being executed.
When we talk about God's justice, we often see it as judgment, as in punishment for evil and vindication for good.
Indeed, the two evil men in the 1st reading got what they deserved for trying to harm an innocent woman in order to cover up their evil deeds.
In that sense, it is true that justice means judgment.
But God is a judge, not merely in the sense of passing sentence over our evil deeds.
The biblical understanding of God and His justice is that He looks at the good we do and the good that we are capable of doing.
Because God, in His justice, is essentially mercy and love.
He affirms our goodness with His mercy and love.
With His mercy and love, He increases our capacity for goodness.
Jesus is the true light that brings about God's love and mercy to us.
Let us open our hearts to the light of Christ and reflect it to others in order to help them do good and increase their capacity for goodness.