수메르 우루-이님기나 법과 히브리법의 사회정의의 고찰

The laws of Uruinimgina is the oldest and first legal collections that concern social justice in the ancient Near East, though not given in casuistic form. Urinimgina/ Urukagina (c. 2351-2342 BC) was the ruler of Lagash. His reforms became the backbone of mīšarum in Akkadian later, which includes three types of provisions: 1) adjustments to royal administrative machinery, regulating and abolishing official malpractices and extortion, 2) fixing and reducing of taxes for various activities, 3) manumission of slaves, releasing debt-slaves. The law lists royal propaganda which he did for gods and temples based on divine election by Ningirsu, the tutelary deity of the city to be the king and to establish the divine laws. He reformed the bureaucracy not to oppress and extort the people, and reduced and abolished various taxes, declaring the temple estates are divine property. He made a compact with the patron deity of Lagash not to allow marginals, widows and orphans to be handed over to the rich. It seems that the laws is geared to solidification of royal power through social reforms. The motif of social justice is well attested in all Hebrew religion and institutions. Abraham, the father of Hebrew nation, came from Ur, the cradle of Sumerian culture in Mesopotamia. Lagash was a city state of Sumerian civilization, which is located in southern Mesopotamia together with Ur. The Laws of Uruinimgina set some directions of reforms for social justice. The spirit and meaning of social justice in the Laws of Uruinimgina is well expanded and implemented thoroughly in the later Hebrew culture. Exodus is the call for reform against Egyptian model of despotism and monopoly of riches and power: the land was distributed to 12 tribes; national powers are dispersed to kings, priests, elders and the people. Religion and cultic matters are absolutely in the hands of the Levites. The motif of social justice is the foundation of all Hebrew laws, aiming to provide the quality of life to the poor in the land. Sabbatical year stipulates the rest of land, remission of debt, and reading of Torah with abundant blessing from God on the seventh year cycle, while the Jubilee commands the return of land to original owners, release of slaves, and remission of debt based on divine ownership of the land every fiftieth years. The social justice in land laws is geared to freedom, emancipation, equality, reconciliation, and restoration with new start for life. The social justice in Sumerian laws by Uruinimgina is a torch light in ancient Mesopotamia, while that of land laws in Hebrew Bible seems to be bright shining light which shows divine care for both humanity and the nature. The issues of social justice continue evermore in human history, an open question even today.