oa In Search of a Perfect World: The Jewish Quest for Justice

The Jewish passion for justice begins with the insistence that a better world is possible. The Jewish Bible (the Tanakh) is bookended by two visions of perfection: the Garden of Eden of the Book of Genesis, and the vision of a rebuilt Jerusalem and the renewal of a divine covenant in the Book of Nehemiah. Much of the rest of the Bible, as well as the legal and narrative tradition that follows, concerns itself with how to go about creating a society reflected of the divine vision of a perfected world. This tradition is encapsulated in precise laws that outline every aspect of how employers and workers should behave toward one another; how to create a fair system of justice; how best to steward our financial resources; and how to protect the most vulnerable.