Kristofer and the Year of Remission

“The seventh year, the year of remission, is near.”

In today’s video, Kristofer speaks about the challenge of debt and how St. Francis’ commitment to justice challenges us to examine the structures of our society. He reflects on some of his own recent personal experience with student loan debt, but focuses primarily on the housing debt that so many members of our wider community carry and how that is negatively impacting their lives. While aspects of our Community Center operations are currently set up to support those in crisis facing eviction and homelessness, as we listen and learn more about the situations our neighbors face, we are increasingly aware of how complicated and how painful things are for so many.

The passage that Kristofer refers to speaks about “opening our hands to the poor”, but this scriptural context also presupposes the practice of relieving the debt of all every seventh year - “the year of remission” or jubilee - that was common place during that time among the Israelites. As we - at St. Francis - seek to be the people that God calls us to become and be about the work of both justice and mercy, what does that look like in the relationships and ministries of our Parish & Community?

Deuteronomy 15:7–11
If there is among you anyone in need, a member of your community in any of your towns within the land that the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted toward your needy neighbor. You should rather open your hand, willingly lending enough to meet the need, whatever it may be. Be careful that you do not entertain a mean thought, thinking, “The seventh year, the year of remission, is near,” and therefore view your needy neighbor with hostility and give nothing; your neighbor might cry to the Lord against you, and you would incur guilt. Give liberally and be ungrudging when you do so, for on this account the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, “Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land.”

For the complete listing of readings for this day, see: https://lectionarypage.net/LesserFF/May/Perkins.html