--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Restorative justice is not a replacement…" description: "\"Restorative justice is not a replacement of retributive justice, but a complement. It seeks the rehabilitation of the wrongdoer and the repair of the v..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/lewis-b-smedes-4850_complement_restorative-justice-is-not-a-replacement_1284788.png" --- # Restorative justice is not a replacement of retributive… ![“Restorative justice is not a replacement of retributive justice, but a complement. It seeks the rehabilitation of the wrongdoer and the repair of the victim's injury.” quote by Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/lewis-b-smedes-4850_complement_restorative-justice-is-not-a-replacement_1284788.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/lewis-b-smedes-4850_complement_restorative-justice-is-not-a-replacement_1284788.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6e/lewis-b-smedes-4850_complement_restorative-justice-is-not-a-replacement_1284788.png) > “Restorative justice is not a replacement of retributive justice, but a complement. It seeks the rehabilitation of the wrongdoer and the repair of the victim's injury.” [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Restorative justice adds healing and accountability to punishment, aiming to repair harm for both victim and offender. **In simple terms:** It complements punishment with repair and rehabilitation. Key Takeaway Use justice to restore relationships. Themes justice rehabilitation repair accountability Mood reflective hopeful Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - court sentencing - community mediation - school disciplinary processes - victim‑offender dialogue Key Concepts restorative justice rehabilitative theory Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance punishment and repair? - What limits exist for restorative approaches? A Different Perspective May not satisfy those seeking strict retribution. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Complement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complement/) [Injury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/injury/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Justice Complement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice-complement-4164016/) [Justice Replacement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice-replacement-4164015/) [Rehabilitation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rehabilitation/) [Repair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/repair/) [Replacement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/replacement/) [Restorative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/restorative-457720/) [Restorative justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/restorative-justice/) [Retributive justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retributive-justice/) [Seeks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seeks/) [Victim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victim/) ## Related quotes > [We seek a restorative justice, not a retributive justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/we-seek-a-restorative-justice-not-a-retributive-justice/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [There are two forms of justice. There is what is called retributive justice and there is restorative justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/there-are-two-forms-of-justice-there-is-what-is-called-retributive/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [The reason I namecheck restorative justice so much is because that, to me, is the utopia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-quinn/the-reason-i-namecheck-restorative-justice-so-much-is-because-that-to/) [Zoe Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-quinn/) > [Concrete, Steel & Paint portrays the core values of restorative justice-respect, responsibility and relationships-expressed through art. it is art that involves victims, offenders and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zehr/concrete-steel-paint-portrays-the-core-values-of-restorative-justice/) [Howard Zehr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zehr/) > [Our current criminal justice system has no provision for restorative justice, in which an offender confronts the damage they have done and tries to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piper-kerman/our-current-criminal-justice-system-has-no-provision-for-restorative-2/) [Piper Kerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piper-kerman/) > [“...our current criminal justice system has no provision for restorative justice, in which an offender confronts the damage they have done and tries to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piper-kerman/our-current-criminal-justice-system-has-no-provision-for-restorative/) [Piper Kerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piper-kerman/) > [“A lengthy term of community service working with addicts on the outside would probably have driven the same truth home and been a hell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piper-kerman/a-lengthy-term-of-community-service-working-with-addicts-on-the-2/) [Piper Kerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piper-kerman/) > [Retributive justice did not arise from any Christian principle; almost every pre-Christian society dealt with wrongdoers by causing them pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/retributive-justice-did-not-arise-from-any-christian-principle-almost/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [“Systems of retributive justice work well as long as they are proportional. However, in complex societies, where the State is the arbiter of justice,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-waterman/systems-of-retributive-justice-work-well-as-long-as-they-are/) [Daniel Waterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-waterman/) > [There are different kinds of justice. Retributive justice is largely Western. The African underTutustanding is far more restorative - not so much to punish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/there-are-different-kinds-of-justice-retributive-justice-is-largely/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [Retributive justice is one that says clobber him or clobber her because they clobbered me. So it emphasizes punishment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/retributive-justice-is-one-that-says-clobber-him-or-clobber-her/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [If the Pope were to deny that the death penalty could be an exercise of retributive justice, he would be overthrowing the tradition of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avery-dulles/if-the-pope-were-to-deny-that-the-death-penalty-could-be-an-exercise/) [Avery Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avery-dulles/) > [“A system of justice does not need to pursue retribution. If the purpose of drug sentencing is to prevent harm, all we need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-waterman/a-system-of-justice-does-not-need-to-pursue-retribution-if-the/) [Daniel Waterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-waterman/) > [If you don't have properly constituted civic authorities you will encourage vigilantism and solo efforts at retributive justice - which is anarchy, and God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright-2/if-you-don-t-have-properly-constituted-civic-authorities-you-will/) [N. T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright-2/) > [ \[On Senator Jesse Helms\] I think he ought to be worried about what's going on in the Good Lord's mind, because if there is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-totenberg/on-senator-jesse-helms-i-think-he-ought-to-be-worried-about-what-s/) [Nina Totenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-totenberg/) ## More by Lewis B. Smedes > [Nothing is more private than a woman's body; it is her physical, emotional, and moral citadel. She cannot be free at all if she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/nothing-is-more-private-than-a-woman-s-body-it-is-her-physical/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [...Forgiving is not having to understand. Understanding may come later, in fragments, an insight here and a glimpse there, after forgiving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/forgiving-is-not-having-to-understand-understanding-may-come-later-in/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [The God who has the whole world in his hands has grace for the whole world in his heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/the-god-who-has-the-whole-world-in-his-hands-has-grace-for-the-whole/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [Nobody sees reality whole; we all need others to show us the parts of it that they see better than we do. Nobody sees…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/nobody-sees-reality-whole-we-all-need-others-to-show-us-the-parts-of/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [I have discovered that most people who tell me that they cannot forgive a person who wronged them are handicapped by a mistaken understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/i-have-discovered-that-most-people-who-tell-me-that-they-cannot/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [Spoken forgiveness, no matter how heartfelt, works best when we do not demand the response we want. I mean that when we tell people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/spoken-forgiveness-no-matter-how-heartfelt-works-best-when-we-do-not/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [Forgiving does not erase the bitter past. A healed memory is not a deleted memory. Instead, forgiving what we cannot forget creates a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/forgiving-does-not-erase-the-bitter-past-a-healed-memory-is-not-a/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [We feel properly embarrassed when we are caught doing something that makes us look inept, knuckleheaded, or inappropriate. Maybe the difference is this: we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/we-feel-properly-embarrassed-when-we-are-caught-doing-something-that/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [Forgiving does not erase the bitter past. A healed memory is not a deleted memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/forgiving-does-not-erase-the-bitter-past-a-healed-memory-is-not-a-2/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [When I feel the joy of receiving a gift my heart nudges me to join creation's ballet, the airy dance of giving and receiving,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/when-i-feel-the-joy-of-receiving-a-gift-my-heart-nudges-me-to-join/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [Our sense of fairness tells us that people should pay for the wrong they do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/our-sense-of-fairness-tells-us-that-people-should-pay-for-the-wrong/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [Gratitude is the best feeling I would ever have, the ultimate joy of living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/gratitude-is-the-best-feeling-i-would-ever-have-the-ultimate-joy-of/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [My father was only thirty-one when he died of a heart attack, much too young for a father to die and leave his young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/my-father-was-only-thirty-one-when-he-died-of-a-heart-attack-much-too/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [The only way to heal the pain which will not heal itself is to forgive the person who hurt you. Forgiveness heals the memory's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/the-only-way-to-heal-the-pain-which-will-not-heal-itself-is-to/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [If you cannot free people from their wrongs and see them as the needy people they are, you enslave yourself to your own painful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/if-you-cannot-free-people-from-their-wrongs-and-see-them-as-the-needy/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) [Explore all 106 Lewis B. Smedes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) ## More Complement quotes > [Cognitive and character skills work together as dynamic complements; they are inseparable. Skills beget skills. More motivated children learn more. Those who are more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-heckman/cognitive-and-character-skills-work-together-as-dynamic-complements/) [James Heckman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-heckman/) > [One of my business partners would remind me that no fashion line lasts forever, that we would hit the down curve eventually, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daymond-john/one-of-my-business-partners-would-remind-me-that-no-fashion-line/) [Daymond John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daymond-john/) > [I always hope that the artwork will complement and enrich a story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-paul-weston/i-always-hope-that-the-artwork-will-complement-and-enrich-a-story/) [Robert Paul Weston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-paul-weston/) > [I love Andre 3000 from OutKast. I think we'd complement each other, but I'm hoping he's got a good sense of humour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paloma-faith/i-love-andre-3000-from-outkast-i-think-we-d-complement-each-other-but/) [Paloma Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paloma-faith/) > [What's better, a poetic intuition or an intellectual work? I think they complement each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/what-s-better-a-poetic-intuition-or-an-intellectual-work-i-think-they/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [Ideology and communication more often than not run into each other rather than complement each other. Principle and communication work together. Ideology and communication…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-luntz/ideology-and-communication-more-often-than-not-run-into-each-other/) [Frank Luntz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-luntz/) > [Economic development cannot take a nation forward on its own. We need a society and economy which complement each other. We need to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/economic-development-cannot-take-a-nation-forward-on-its-own-we-need/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [In regards to live shows, space is very important to me. Space and context should complement the music in some way; you gain so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/einar-selvik/in-regards-to-live-shows-space-is-very-important-to-me-space-and/) [Einar Selvik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/einar-selvik/) > [Public morals are natural complement of all laws they are by themselves an entire code.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/public-morals-are-natural-complement-of-all-laws-they-are-by/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [Because man and woman are the complement of one another, we need woman's thought in national affairs to make a safe and stable government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-cady-stanton/because-man-and-woman-are-the-complement-of-one-another-we-need-woman/) [Elizabeth Cady Stanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-cady-stanton/) > [The best compliment I ever got from the public or producers or directors is that I just totally blend in and become the character…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-best-compliment-i-ever-got-from-the-public-or-producers-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you and your skills are a complement to the computer, your wage and labor market prospects are likely to be cheery. If your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/if-you-and-your-skills-are-a-complement-to-the-computer-your-wage-and/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [The cigar is the perfect complement to an elegant lifestyle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/the-cigar-is-the-perfect-complement-to-an-elegant-lifestyle/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [I like to choose things that fit my body for sure; you learn to find the things that complement your shape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gugu-mbatha-raw/i-like-to-choose-things-that-fit-my-body-for-sure-you-learn-to-find/) [Gugu Mbatha-Raw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gugu-mbatha-raw/) > [I think it's so cool to be tall. Even when I'm not wearing heels people tell me I'm tall and I always take it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-sharapova/i-think-it-s-so-cool-to-be-tall-even-when-i-m-not-wearing-heels/) [Maria Sharapova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-sharapova/) [Browse all 199 Complement quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complement/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Restorative justice is not a replacement of retributive justice, but a complement. It seeks the rehabilitation of the wrongdoer and the repair of the victim's injury.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lewis B. 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