In matters of truth and justice, there is no difference between

"In matters of truth and justice, there is no difference between large and small problems, for issues concerning the treatment of people are all the same." — thus spoke Albert Einstein, the sage of science, who gazed into the mysteries of the cosmos yet never forgot the dignity of man. These words, though calm in tone, blaze like a torch against the darkness of indifference. For Einstein reminds us that truth and justice are not measured by scale. To wrong one person is to wrong humanity; to deny justice in the smallest matter is to corrupt justice in the greatest. Every insult to human dignity, no matter how minor it may appear, strikes at the very fabric of moral law.

In the world of power, men are tempted to rank injustices — to call some “serious” and others “trivial,” to excuse cruelty because it seems small, to justify lies because they seem harmless. Yet Einstein warns us: there is no such hierarchy. The dignity of a single life carries infinite weight. Justice is indivisible. A society that tolerates “small” injustices will soon drown in larger ones, for corruption begins with a single compromise, and falsehood spreads like fire once the first spark is permitted to burn.

Consider the lesson of Rosa Parks, the woman who, in 1955, refused to surrender her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama. To many, it might have seemed a small matter — a seat on a bus, a moment of defiance. But Parks knew, as Einstein’s words teach, that no injustice is small when it degrades the human soul. Her simple act became the spark that ignited the Civil Rights Movement. It proved that the so-called “little problem” of a seat was in truth the great problem of human equality. Thus we see that issues concerning the treatment of people, whether in bus seats or in nations, are all the same.

History repeats this lesson. The fall of mighty empires often began with the neglect of “minor” injustices. Rome, while great in power, corroded from within because it disregarded the suffering of the poor, thinking their cries insignificant compared to the glory of conquest. Yet the dismissal of those voices planted seeds of unrest that shook the empire to its foundations. Small cruelties, ignored by the powerful, became mighty storms. Einstein’s warning rings true across the centuries: to belittle one injustice is to invite the ruin of all.

This teaching is also a call to personal conscience. For what use is it if one condemns the great injustices of the world but permits small ones in daily life? To lie for convenience, to cheat in secret, to treat another with disdain — these are not lesser crimes, but betrayals of truth itself. He who is unfaithful in small matters cannot be faithful in great ones. Justice begins in the heart, in the family, in the smallest dealings of man with man. To live justly in the little things is to build the strength to stand in the great battles of life.

What, then, is the lesson for us, O listener? It is this: never ignore injustice, however small it may appear. Defend the truth in every moment, whether in the grand halls of law or in the quiet exchanges of daily life. Do not let falsehood pass unchallenged, nor cruelty pass unnoticed. For in resisting small wrongs, you strengthen the cause of justice everywhere. In defending the dignity of the least, you uphold the dignity of all.

Practical action follows: speak truth always, even when the cost is minor. Defend those who are mocked, belittled, or overlooked. Treat the poor, the stranger, the weak, with the same honor as the powerful. And when tempted to excuse injustice because it seems small, remember Einstein’s wisdom: issues concerning the treatment of people are all the same. Justice is a seamless garment — tear it at one corner, and the whole begins to unravel.

Thus, Einstein’s words shine not only for his own age but for all time: there is no great and small in justice, only right and wrong, only truth or falsehood. Let us then be vigilant, faithful, and brave, for to defend even the smallest truth is to preserve the very heart of humanity. Truth is strong, justice eternal — and both demand our fidelity in all things.