Family
Family is the first duty of every citizen of a Just Society. Without children, civilization, and even the species, dies. When society is functioning well, it is all too easy for the distractions of the flesh to convince people to remain single or not have enough children. Be it self-interested pseudo-rationalism or empty hedonism, excuses are found to avoid the all-important task of raising a family to carry the Just Society into the future.
History is replete with examples of great civilizations which collapsed from within because they allowed distractions to destroy the family. Time and again, this has led to a declining birthrate, weaking what appeared to be a peerless culture from within until it crumbled under its own weight and was consumed by barbarism.
The only way a Just Society can resist this cycle of collapse is for its members to remain focused on the family.
As individuals, this means preparing to be a parent from childhood. This is especially true for women since biology requires them to be pregnant by 25 to ensure healthy children, so they must be in a relationship heading towards marriage several years before that. Men have a bit more time since they can have healthy children even in their senior years. However, being too old presents problems for raising children, so it is still preferable for men to marry by 30.
Similarly, people must also marry for fitness to be a parent while maintaining reasonable expectations. Looks and emotions are fleeting things, and there will always be conflicts in any relationship. Only a fool prioritizes these transitory trivialities above the skills and maturity required to be a parent. Mature adults can work through conflict and avoid or correct most mistakes, so anyone who breaks the sacred wedding vows should be shunned as an overgrown child unfit for the world and be punished by a Just Society to avoid incentivizing the evil of divorce.
Once married, large families are essential. This not only prevents the pattern of civilizational stagnation and decline, but it is also vital for children’s social development. If a family has two children, or worse yet one, it is all too easy for the parents to stifle their children, preventing the confrontations that are essential to learning conflict resolution. At least three, and preferably four or more children are required to ensure they have the freedom to make and learn from mistakes, and thus the necessary experience to grow into mature adults.
Beyond these structural guidelines, there is endless advice and ancient wisdom about how best to raise children. However, since everyone is different, no advice can be universal. For example, some children respond well to verbal reprimands, while others require a more forceful hand to teach vital lessons through pain, the body’s most fundamental learning mechanism. Thus, the only truly universal advice is that parents should be mature and rational, assessing and modifying their approach to fit their child’s unique needs. As such, it is vital that a Just Society provide parents the necessary freedom rather than try to constrain them with oppressive laws or force all children into unnatural homogeneity through an inflexible school system.