Jubilee

“Do not take advantage of one another, but fear your God.  I am the Lord your God.”  (Leviticus 25:17)

You have probably read about the man who hoarded over 17,000 bottles of hand sanitizer in anticipation of heightened demand at the onset of the coronavirus.  When Amazon halted his attempt to sell bottles at elevated prices he was left wondering what to do with not only sanitizers but also other items he had purchased in bulk in anticipation of high demand.  He gave no indication that he felt sorry for his attempts to gouge buyers for the products he had purchased.  Aside from the fact that what he did at the micro-economic level is multiplied by others at the macro-level (futures investors, short sellers, hedge fund managers, etc.), I am left wondering how he can live with such an empty sense of conscience.

Admittedly, I have a hyper-developed sense of guilt which I have spent a lifetime trying to overcome.  Gratefully, I have made great strides in overcoming childhood shame and the neurotic guilt which can be so debilitating.  Still, there is a role for a healthy sense of guilt.  While there are many things I no longer feel guilty about, there are some things about which one should feel guilty - both sins of omission and commission -   hoarding much needed health supplies and squeezing unethical profits from them being but one example.  

The verse from Leviticus with which I open this blog encourages us not to take advantage of one another - a fitting instruction for Christian people, indeed, for anyone.  Like the Golden Rule, even non-Christians seem ready to see the good of this advice.  And in the present crisis of the coronavirus contagion, not taking advantage of one another - doing unto others as we would have them do unto us - seems like the better way forward.

The verse from Leviticus Chapter 25 is located in a body of instruction on the Year of Jubilee, a kind of super sabbath to be observed every fifty years.  The intent of the Jubilee year was to provide a great economic equalizer across society so that everyone could start afresh - wiping the slate clean so that people could have a new start.  Debts would be cancelled.  Slaves set free.  Property would be returned to ancestral owners.  The intent of Jubilee was justice, giving everyone a fair shake.  

Consider what might happen in semi-nomadic, agricultural society like that of ancient Israel.  In some places, some years, the crops do poorly.  The land owner has to borrow money, or perhaps sell some land, in order to make ends meet.  And if the misfortune continues, that land owner may have to sell everything, becoming an indentured servant, or slave, in order to provide for his family.  While this may seem an unlikely scenario, it does illustrate what can happen over the course of generations, especially if people “take advantage” of one another.

The present health crisis is creating an economic crisis as well.  Millions of workers are losing jobs.  Many small businesses will fail.  But some niche businesses will thrive.  Some corporations will lose millions while others will flourish.  Even now there are companies ready to hire thousands of workers.  The coronavirus is creating an unprecedented shift in our economy.  Many will suffer.  Many will thrive.  And I wonder if the Year of Jubilee can offer a model for how we might handle the sudden changes in our economy.

Can debts be forgiven?  What does it mean in the coming days for “slaves to be set free”?  After the dust settles, will there be an opportunity for people to make a fresh start, unencumbered by their losses?  What will it mean in the next years for us to “not take advantage of one another”?  What will justice look like?  

What if everyone started over again from scratch?  

I don’t see that happening, of course, but the Year of Jubilee is a good corrective on the view of capitalism that believes “win at all costs” is the only thing that matters.  Now is the time for a more humane approach, a more just solution to the human suffering that is now taking place for millions of people.  The Year of Jubilee reminds hand sanitizer hoarders not to engage in price gouging.  The Year of Jubilee judges Wall Street financiers who profit from national disasters.  The Year of Jubilee creates a society of people who will not take advantage of one another.  May we soon have reason to celebrate the end of the spread of the coronavirus so that we might shout, “Hallelujah!”  And as we deal with the long-term economic consequences of the outbreak of COVID-19 may we have reason to shout, “Jubilee!”