This week I was struck by the fine distinction made by the Vatican permanent observer to the United Nations, Archbishop Francis Chakullatt. He said that when we separate reason and truth from law, the rule of law becomes “rule by the law”!

When I read that, I immediately remembered a testimony I heard once of a young mother. She was sharing how she had hit her daughter in the mouth for saying a four letter word, while ordering her not to repeat that word. Her daughter, a five year old child, was prompt to respond to her: “But you say it too!”

A perfect example of rule by the law. She is her mother; she has authority over her daughter; but her rule is devoid of reason and truth. She should have blamed herself for hearing her daughter say that word. If she had the least common sense, she would have realized who taught her daughter how to speak (badly!). If she were to be true to herself, she would have behaved differently in front of her daughter in the first place. What is unworthy to her daughter, is unworthy even to herself.

That is precisely the meaning of the rule of law. There is a rule that governs each and every individual in society, independent of his sex, age, cultural background and status. Legislating so that you can have a weapon by which to rule over others leads to the most terrifying and disgusting dictatorship and tyranny. Sometimes it is said that cunning legislators always leave a loophole in every law. Such loopholes are very often beyond the sight of common people, but not hidden from those who design it. Whenever such thing happens would be cheeky, untruthful.

Mons Chakullat, although He represents God, and whenever He is in front of all the representatives of nations, His very person makes them think of God, does not even mention God in His argument. His argument does not antagonize those who do not believe in God. He appeals to human reason and to all the seekers of truth. Man has already have a dignity of his own, even before he puts himself in relationship to God. Man’s true dignity lies in his intellectual faculties and in his ability to seek and recognize truth. For man to betray reason and truth is to despise his own dignity and to give in to a power struggle whereby ruling by the law leads the way to the most atrocious destruction of man.

The example of that young mother – who happened to be humble enough to recognize the truth and come back to a reasonable and educational relationship to her daughter – is one example for us to see (if we want to see) how easy it is for everybody to rule by the law within the circle where he is vested with some authority. Her example, and the many other examples each one of us can surely give, illustrate our contribution for a culture whereby the rule of law gives way to the rule by the law, on a collective, national and international level. And this for our very determent.