JUBILEE 2000: OPEN WIDE THE DOORS

When we open the great doors, we cross over into this new millennium. We find the Samaritan within the inn. He is binding up the world's wounds. When we open the sheep gate, we enter the meadow where the Christ shepherds the world. We find the Christ at the center of human and world endeavor. "It has please God to make absolute fullness reside in him and, by means of him, to reconcile everything in his person, both on earth and in the heavens, making peace through the blood of his cross (Colossians 1:19-20; see Ephesians 1:1-23)."

When bards sing of ancestors and contemporaries, they find the Christ standing at the center. This Christian belief does not disrespect the other great religions of the world. After all, the task of the third millennium will be to find insight into the relationship of Christianity to the great religious traditions.

For every thing there is a season (see Ecclesiastes 3:1-13). This is a Jubilee year, a time of grace and conversion. It is an opportunity for worldwide spiritual energy. Leviticus 25 indicates the five marks of Jubilee.. First, let the land lie fallow. Second, forgive debt. Third, free those in slavery. Fourth, restore just relations. Fifth, celebrate. When we do these five things, we find the Christ at the center.

First, letting the land lie fallow means learning communion with our earth and finding the Christ at the heart of creation. "A new revelatory experience is needed, herein human consciousness awakens to the grandeur and sacred quality of the earth process. This awakening is our human participation in the dream of the earth, the dream that is carried in its integrity not in any of Earth's cultural expressions but in the depths of our genetic coding. (Thomas Berry. The Great Work, Our Way into the Future, 165)."

Second, forgiving debt means asking world governments, especially those with power, money and technological clout to forgive the debt of nations deeply stuck in poverty. The Christ calls the church to make a preferential option for the poor.

Third, freeing those in slavery means freeing women and children caught in slavery, advocating workers' rights, standing tall with those seeking collective bargaining, and standing firm with the working poor, the redundant, and the disposable member of society.

Fourth, restoring just relations means converting from a punitive society and working for justice, truth, integrity, compassion, mercy, kindness and love.

Fifth, celebrating means public expressions of conviviality, shared stories, music, and dance.

Jubilee 2000 is a graced time, a time to break down barriers separating children and adults, women and men. It is a time of generosity and service. It is a bonging bell of hope.