Article 11. Whether the act of justice is to render to each one his own?

Praised be Jesus Christ!

I am going to attempt to explain what I think St. Thomas is saying in these articles in very simple terms. I am not qualified for this, so keep that in mind when you are reading. I will most likely make some mistakes, and if I can't figure out what he is saying I may have to just skip that sentence, section, or even the whole article.  I will try this out and see how it goes.  Below is my first attempt at this.

In the Immaculate Heart,
Jared


Objection 1:
Justice is not to render to each person their own because St. Augustine says giving to the poor would be an act of justice. When you give to the poor you are giving what is not theirs. Therefore justice is not to render to each one his own.

Objection 2:
Tully (Also known as Cicero 106–43 b.c, Roman philosopher) says that generosity is a form of justice. When we are generous we give to others what doesn't belong to them, therefore justice is not to render to each one his own.

Objection 3:
Justice is not only about giving out material things but also repressing bad actions such as adultery, or murder. Rendering to each his due seems to describe the giving out of material things, so to render to each one his own is not a good way to describe an act of justice.

On the contrary, St. Ambrose says that justice gives to each his due.

I answer that, Each mans own is that which is due to him.  Strictly speaking justice is nothing else than to give to each his due.

Reply to Objection 1: Justice is a cardinal virtue so other secondary virtues, such as mercy, and generosity are connected to it.  

This suffices for Objection 2

Reply to Objection 3: Aristotle says that when speaking about justice "profit" is used for what is excessive and what is deficient is called "loss." Justice is commonly used when speaking about buying and selling, where the expressions "profit" and "loss" fit well, yet they are transferred by Aristotle to all other matters involving justice. Thus we can use "to render to each one his own" when describing justice.

Original article found at: http://www.newadvent.org/summa/3058.htm#article11