Deuteronomy 15
Every seven years the law called for a year of jubilee where all debts were canceled. The Israelites were required to cancel the debts of other Israelites but not the debts of foreigners. Think how this law helped the poor. It gave people a second chance if they had made a terrible financial decision. It brought people back to more even terms.
Can you imagine such a law today in the United States? To enact such a law would cause economic chaos. So a year of "jubilee" would be impossible, but are there are other that could be done to give the poor a better chance?
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Richard Stearns advocates giving the poor a hand up, not a hand out, and I believe that this is one the best ways to give them a second chance. By helping them and giving them a hand up, they are empowered to earn means to not only relieve their debts, but to make a life for themselves, to be able to support themselves. In this sense, it is like allowing them to get rid of their debts on their own, rather than the government canceling them.
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