Sacred Economics in a Profane America

Behar: A Blueprint for Sacred Economics, by Rabbi Yohanna Kinberg

I took one economics class in college—just one. It convinced me that economics is just as much a social science as psychology or political theory. And I knew even then that my approach to economics would never be neutral or technocratic. My economic principles would always be rooted in justice, compassion, and human dignity. The economic values of the Torah.

The values of this week's parasha will always shape my economic philosophys. Torah portion Behar is one of the most radically countercultural texts in our tradition. In just one chapter—Leviticus 25—the Torah lays out a complete economic system built not on profit, but on purpose. Not on permanent ownership, but on sacred stewardship. Not on exploitation, but on liberation.

The Economy Belongs to God

Behar begins with the commandment of Shmita—the sabbatical year. Every seventh year, the land must rest. Farmers stop planting, fields go fallow, and whatever grows on its own is shared equally by landowner, laborer, stranger, and animals. It’s a pause for the earth and society—a sacred rhythm that disrupts the endless churn of extraction.

Then, every fiftieth year, the Torah introduces Yovel—the Jubilee year. All land returns to the original families. Slaves go free. Debts are erased. The economy resets.

And the reason for all of this?

“The land must not be sold beyond reclaim, for the land is Mine; you are but strangers and settlers with Me.”— Leviticus 25:23

This is the core of biblical economics: we do not own the land, one another, or time. Everything belongs to the Divine.

A Radical Vision in 2025

Contrast this with the economy we live in today. In the United States in 2025, land is permanently owned—or more often, hoarded. Debt is a multi-generational inheritance. Productivity is worshiped. Labor is undervalued. Time is money.

Behar offers an antidote to this profane system. It declares that human dignity matters more than profit, that the land deserves rest just as we do, and that periodic redistribution is not theft—it’s holiness.

Imagine a society where:

   •   Land speculation is replaced by land stewardship.

   •   Economic resets happen regularly, by design.

   •   People are not punished for being poor.

   •   Time is structured around rest, renewal, and return.

This is not a utopian dream. It is a Torah mandate.

The Modern Synagogue as Sacred Economic Space

Our synagogues are not just places for prayer and study—they are laboratories of sacred economy. At Kol Ami, we gather not only to sing and learn, but to orgaize, advocate, and build a more just society together. We support those in need. We educate the next generation in the values of equity and compassion. We resist economic systems that devalue human life and ignore the sacredness of land and time.

The synagogue is where the economic vision of the Torah becomes a lived reality.

Living Toward the Vision

We cannot implement Yovel in its biblical form today. But we can live toward its values:

   •   We can support debt relief and reparations.

   •   We can organize around housing as a human right.

   •   We can honor Shabbat and Shmita as holy disruptions to capitalism’s grip on our lives.

   •   We can remind ourselves and our communities that we are all God’s servants, and that no one is disposable.

Parashat Behar reminds us that economics is not just about numbers—it’s about values. It’s about whether we choose to live in a system that exalts the few or one that uplifts the many. The Torah dares us to imagine a society rooted in liberation, equity, and sacred time.

May we have the courage not just to study this vision, but to build it.