6
(OSV News) — When God instructed Moses how to declare a Jubilee Year — “And you shall hallow the fiftieth year and you shall proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you” (Lv 25:10) — the commanded celebration was to include forgiveness of debt.
It is an ancient social justice principle still encouraged during the current Jubilee Year, inaugurated by Pope Francis on Christmas Eve 2024. In his New Year’s address, the pontiff made the emphasis clear: “The first to forgive debts is God, as we always ask him when we pray the Lord’s Prayer. … And the Jubilee asks us to translate this forgiveness on a social level, so that no person, no family, no population is crushed by…
