Of the archetypes of people that baffle my mind, justifiers are one such type.

justify, verb

show or prove to be right or reasonable

declare or make righteous in the sight of God.

If the aim of the action is to prove correctness, reasonability, or righteousness in the sight of God; then there must be a why.

What prompt, reason, need is filled by proving right, reasonableness, or theological righteousness? I image a few.

The boss. An un-trusting boss may ask a person to show or prove themselves to be right or reasonable. Perhaps that person has done something to lose trust and actions to gain trust back are required. Depending on how much you need the job, you might need to over-justify to maximize the amount of trust reciprocated back to you.

Peers. Perhaps if you come from a collective-oriented culture, a peer set’s opinion of you may require you to justify. Who wants to be known as that person who is always taking advantage of the system? Or that person who always eats the last chip from a chip bowl? I never want to be the source of a pearl clutch more than I already am.

God. Sure. If you believe in any god and you fear that god, you may want to make yourself righteous before that god. And if you’re going to declare yourself righteous, you better have receipts. That seems an awful way to live — my personal opinion.

Self. Perhaps the justifier doubts themselves. Maybe they constantly ask themselves — are we supposed to be doing this thing? And so they must justify to resolve that doubt. Seems reasonable.

We have some reasons for justification. Let’s talk manner and means.

The Town Square. Public justification is like public flagellation — it requires a display with receipts to demonstrate right, correct, reasonable and righteous behavior and it seems a ritual. I’m observing the town square through how I see the world, I’m sure for the public justifier it’s far less medieval.

To The Self. Probably where the most justification happens — to ourselves. Constantly telling ourselves that we made the right decision and are on the right path. I probably do this to myself a bazillion times a day.

My quibble is not with the justification of the self to the self. My quibble is with the public justification. Do we need it? Do we need to show ourselves right, correct, or righteous? Does the status and perception of others matter that much?

No need to justify yourself to me, friend. I love you as you are, nothing needs to change about you. Except, I would like you to explain why it’s reasonable for you to publicly justify yourself.

Last modified on 2026-02-06