Tzedaka: The Just Path
Tzedaka is a way of life. Often misunderstood, misinterpreted, tzedaka is a special consciousness and involves a relationship with God. Tzedaka is about what The Holy One expects from us. See:
As the etymology of that term [charity] (from the Latin root caritas, or "love") implies, charity is a voluntary act of love by one person fo another. The analogous Hebrew term tzedakah (from a root meaning "to be just") has an altogether different connotation: tzedakah is an obligation rather than a voluntary act of grace, an obligation inherent in one’s membership in the community. Although benevolence (khesed, in Hebrew) and acts of loving-kindness (gemilut khasadim) are valued, Jewish tradition holds that the poor should not be dependent on them; as human beings they have the right to a decent life - hence the non-poor are expected to help, in accordance with their means. As Jacob Neusner puts it: "The Jew no more ‘gives’ tzedekah than the citizen ‘gives’ incomes taxes to the government. You pay our taxes because you must." From Charles Silberman, A Certain People: American Jews and Their Lives Today
Note: In Christian literature the Greek word for charity "agape", meaning "love" is used.
Question: Does this change your way of thinking about what the needy require? How?
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Here is a different "take" on tzedaka. It is much older and reveals the special character of doing:
Rabbi Yehudah said, "Ten strong things were cast into the world. A mountain is strong but iron can cut through it. Iron is strong but fire can melt it. Fire is strong but water extinguishes it. Water is strong but it is contained in clouds. Clouds are strong but wind (ruach) dispels them. Breath (ruach) is strong but the body holds it. The body is strong but it is broken by fear. Fear is strong but wine dissipates its strength. Wine is strong but sleep overcomes its effects. Death is stronger than them all. But tzedaka delivers from the clutch of death. As it is written in Proverbs, "Tzedakah saves from death." Talmud, Baba Batra 10a
Question: Why is tzedaka not among the Ten Commandments if it is so vital to life?
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There is the religious belief that we are only given worldly things so that we can share them with others.
Rabbi Yaacov Rosenberg (z’l) told the story of a man who decided to sell off all his worldly possessions after being told by his doctor that he was going to soon died. His children ask, “Why are you selling everything you own, dad?” They argued with him but he was adamant that he was going to take his riches with him to heaven.
Finally, he died and graduated to Olam Haba where he was greeted by the Angel Gabriel. He showed Gabriel all his accumulated worth. “That is not legal tender here,” the angel told him. “The only thing that counts here are receipts.”
In a similar vein, the great philanthropist Nathan Strauss was once asked, "How rich are you?" He answered, "When I add up my charity receipts I will tell you how wealthy I am." Rabbi Saul Teplitz
Question: Have you used the gifts you have been given wisely? Has the investment God made in us paid off? What would He say? What can we do?
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So much of who we are supposed to be comes from the internal messages of the Torah.
"By opening your hand to the stranger, he becomes your brother. Jewish solidarity forms the basis of the fraternity of all Jews. Being Jewish requires seeing other Jews as fellow Jews. Our obligation is to realize in life that which is already a reality through God. A mitzvah is the translation of God’s vision into human reality." R. Reuven Kimmelman
Consider: When I am needy I appeal to those closest to me for help. They, in turn, approach me. What limits, if any, do I set on the response I give?
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We are told by many authorities to be wary of strangers. Here is a Jewish answer:
"If a poor person unknown to you approaches and says, "I am hungry. Please give me something to eat." Do not suspect him of fraud and respond to his request with questions aimed at discovering whether he is telling the truth. Instead, feed him immediately."
Maimonides, Mishneh Torah , Matanot Anayim 7,6
Question: Are we able to react this way and quash our initial suspicion?
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It is a painful truth of life that poverty breeds distance while people tend to "cozy up" to wealth. The Torah is insistant that we pay attention to this imbalance:
King Solomon wrote: "Wealth makes for many friends, but the poor person becomes separated from his friend" Proverbs 19:4.
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What is our tradition, our Torah, on tzedaka?
"Abraham, our father, used to go searching for travelers. He would then bring them into his home. If a stranger was accustomed to eating wheat bread, he gave them wheat bread. If they were used to eating meat, he gave them meat. To those who were used to drinking wine, he gave them wine. More, Abraham built his homes specifically by the highways where travelers would pass so that he could give them food and drink and thank God. That is why Abraham was so blessed with the great spirit of joy. Whatever someone asked for was to be found at the home of father Abraham."
Avot d’Rabbi Natan 7
Idea: When the spark of the soul is strong we do not wait for those in need to find us and we give them what they are used to instead of making them feel like paupers.
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A poor person went begging for a ruble so he could eat. A rich man gave him one. The rich person later saw the same beggar entering an exclusive restaurant. There he ordered a large portion of fish. Viewing the scene the rich one went into the restaurant and demanded, "Is this why you beg? So that you can eat in a fine place and dine on fish??"
"I don’t know what you mean," the poor person replied. "Before I had even a single ruble I could not eat one thing. Nothing. Now that I have a ruble I am not allowed to eat? Tell me, when will I be able to eat fish?"
Consider: It is so easy to judge. We see a person who lives differently than we do and we immediately form opinions about them, and they are usually not positive. Why should anyone be denied what we want for ourselves?
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A familiar tale: Each morning on the sixth day of the week the rabbi vanished. Not even at services, the rabbi was nowhere to be found. The devoted said their rabbi had ascended to heaven on the eve of Shabbat. The skeptics argued other wise.
One man decided to find out the truth. He hid near the rabbi’s house and waited all night until very early in the predawn hours the door to the rabbi’s home opened. Out came the rabbi dressed in peasant garb. The follower watched the rabbi carry his axe into the wood, chop down a few trees and bundle the wood into a roll that he hoisted onto his shoulders.
The rabbi proceeded to a small shack on the outskirts of town and knocked. An old voice bade the rabbi to enter. Moments later the rabbi came out without his load and headed back to town.
The suspicious man that had followed the rabbi soon after became a disciple. Whenever someone would comment on the rabbi’s whereabouts on Friday mornings he would say, "The rabbi has gone to heaven, if not higher."
This is a well-worn story. Told countless times it delights, entertains, and teaches. What does it teach? What is the moral of the tale?
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Tzedaka is of this world but it echo reverberates far beyond our eyesight.
This year again the rabbi visited the miser to get a pledge. "Why do you bother to keep coming back to me years after year? Haven’t you learned already that I am going to send you away with nothing?"
The rabbi answered him, "I’ll tell you why I keep returning to you every year for tzedaka. I am taking away your excuse. You see, you are eventually going to have to face the Tribunal. When that happens they are going to ask you, "Why didn’t you support the poor?" Then you will answer, "I was never asked. How did I know they needed any money?" That is why I come to you each year so that you will have no excuse to give. Yes, you were asked."
It is said that we will have to answer for all our deeds in the Next Universe. What this implies is that this physical plane is connected to the metaphysical one that exists beyond life. They are really one.
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We are loaded. We have an abundance of things; more than we need and more than we can ever use. But that is only the beginning. There is an unending expanse of non-physical things that we also possess.
"Give of yourself.
Give as much as you can:
And you can always, always give something,
even if it is only kindness."
Anne Frank
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Tzedaka is mandated by Halacha, Jewish Law. Whether we feel like giving tzedaka or not is largely irrelevant. What matters is that we do what God has commanded. Still, there is always room for more. A mind that acts in harmony with the soul is preferable to one that is out of synch:
Rabbi Elazar taught: ‘Loving acts of kindness (gemilut hasadim) are even greater than tzedaka. It is said by the prophet Hosea, "You sow your future through tzedaka but reap through loving-kindness (gemilut hasadim). A person who plants is never certain that there will be a harvest while a person who reaps will certainly eat.
Rabbi Elazar went on to say, "The reward for tzedaka is dependent upon the amount of gemilut hasadim in the act. As it is written, "You sow your future through tzedaka but reap through gemilut hasadim. Talmud, Sukkah 49b
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In a similar vein to he idea of transcending the simple mitzva of giving to the needy, Rambam offers a different perspective:
"Anyone who gives tzedaka in a brusk manner with a face of gloom nullifies the merit of the deed. Even if the gift was a thousand pieces of gold is the tzedaka made void. One must give cheerfully and with a whole heart, sympathizing with the receiver. As it is written: "Did I not weep for the one whose day was difficult? Was not my soul pained for the sake of the poor?" (Job 30:25). Rambam, Mishna Torah, "Gifts to the Poor" 10:4
There is a difference between mandating actions and feelings. One can command what we do but not how we feel about it. Perhaps that is why the Torah does not enter into the realm of desire. Why then does the Rambam introduce this concept into tzedaka?
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"How much should one give to the poor? Whatever it is that the person needs. How is this to be understood? If the person is hungry, feed them. If she needs clothes, she must be provided with clothes. If he has no furniture or utensils for his home, he must be given furniture and utensils... If he needs to be spoon-fed then we must spoon feed him." Shulchan Aruch YD 250:1
Tzedaka, what a person needs, is not to be determined by us. We must find out what it is that they require and provide it.
Question: Does this alter our view of tzedaka? Does it require a change of attitude when dealing with the needy?
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The way in which we respond to the needy must be calculated to preserve the dignity of the one who is in need. To that end, the great sages used to think of ways to afford the poor the respect. Here is one example:
Rabbi Hana bar Hanila’i ...would walk the streets with his hand in his pocket so that when a poor person came to ask him, he would act quickly and they would not be embarrassed. Berachot 58b
Perhaps we can adopt Rabbi Hana’s way. Perhaps there is another, more person path we can choose. If so, what?
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The ideal of tzedaka is that what we pledge to give becomes kodesh, holy. It is therefore sacrosanct and must be given. At the same time, the mitzva of tzedaka expresses the wish of the Divine who has called us to do this holy work.
"Walking one day in Jerusalem, Rabbi Aharon Kotler turned around, ran after a beggar, and gave him some coins. Rabbi Kotler later explained that several years previously, the same beggar had approached him for alms, but he was carrying no money. Spotting that beggar now, he hastened to make up for lost opportunity, and gave him a double amount." Rabbi Shaul Kagan, Jewish Observer May 1973.
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"A penny for the poor will obtain a view of the Shechina," said Dostai ben Yanni. Talmud, Baba Batra 10a
For the true believer, there is no doubt that the task of tzedaka is pleasing to the Holy One, blessed be He. When a single act of such righteousness is performed we are blessed. It does no matter the amount of the gift; the only vital response is a swift, unthinking reaction to the needy.
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"Tzedaka saves from death." Proverbs
A miser refused every attempt to contribute to the community until one day the rabbi came to visit. The rabbi was direct and asked the miser for a sizeable pledge, payable over five years. The miser resisted. He said, "I may not even lie that long."
The rabbi assured him that he would still be alive after five years. "The Lord will surely keep you alive until your debt is paid. Such is the power of tzedaka."
The miser finally agreed.
Five years later the miser appeared before the rabbi. "Rabbi, you remember that conversation we had a few years ago? I signed a pledge that I would live until it was fulfilled. Well, I came to renew."
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A blind poor man accosted two people traveling on the same road. One of the travelers gave the poor man a coin; the other gave nothing.
The Angel of Death then appeared. Opening his dusty mouth, all three heard, "The one who gave the coin will not see my face for another fifty years; the other will soon leave the earth."
Panicking, the condemned one said, "Let me return to the beggar and give him money!"
"No," answered the Angel of Death. "A boat is examined for holes and cracks before it leaves port, not when it is already out at sea."
M’eil Tzedaka
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Our response to the needs of humanity is so critical that is not only time sensitive but may have far reaching implications.
Nehemiah of Sichin once met a man who said to him, "Give me that chicken you are carrying." Nehemia thought and countered, "I will give you in money the value of this chicken." As the story goes, the man took the money and bought some meat in th market. He ate it and died. Nehemiah heard what had happened and said, "Come and mourn the man that Nehemiah killed." Yerushalmi, Peah, viii 9,216
We are responsible.
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Question: I am concerned that with all the hunger in the world that anything I do will be useless, meaningless, in the face of all this terrible suffering. What is the point?
"As tiny scales join to form a strong coat of mail, so it is that little donations combine to form a large total of good." Talmud, Baba Batra, 9b
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And if the point is not clear enough , we can look deeper.
"Just as in a garment every thread unites with the rest to form a whole garment, so every person who does tzedaka unites with the rest to form a large sum." Talmud, Baba Batra 9b
If every person did a little bit poverty and suffering would be eradicated.
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"A penny here and a penny there adds up to a great sum."
Rebbe Nachman of Bratslav
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There is a bare minimum we are commanded to give for he needy. Yet, the soul must always be open to those who are wanting. This is expressed here:
"Though you may already given, give again, even one hundred times. As it is written in the holy Torah, "Give, yes, give thou shalt.." Deuteronomy 5:10 Sifre Devarim Re’eh 116
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"If you have given a single pruta (penny) to a man this morning and then another comes to you again that evening asking for alms, give to him as well." Avot d’Rabbi Natan19b
A Thought: Why should one poor person benefit while another go hungry?
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Care must always be taken when performing an act of tzedaka. For example, we may want to get rid of someone quickly with a lot of money or think that if they have a lot of cash they will know what to do with that lump sum. They need more. They require direction.
"A poor one who goes begging should not be given a large sum of money, but a small one. You must never turn away a poor man empty-handed, even if all you give him is a dried fig." Rambam Mishna Torah, Matanot l’Evoyinim 7:7
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Think and consider this halacha in the light of what we just learned:
"A pauper who begs from house to house should only be given a small sum."
Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah, 250:1
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Idea: It is always easier to blame the victim than face the larger issues. The poor are easy scapegoats for all the ills they bring forward. If they have a disease it is because they did not take better care. If they are alcoholic it is only due to their lack of self-control. If they are needy they should stop being so lazy and get a job.
A beggar once came to city of Kovna. There he collected a large sum of money from many people. The news spread however that this man was a fraud, an imposter. He was actually a wealthy man. The city elders met to decide what to do. They discussed making a city ordinance prohibiting beggars from entering the area.
Rabbi Yitzhak Elchanan Spector heard about the proposal and asked to speak with the elders.
He asked them, "Who deceived you, a wealthy man or a poor one?"
They answered, "It was a rich man pretending he was impoverished."
"If that is the case, " said the Rabbi, Why don’t you impose an ordinance against rich people from begging and not against innocent and needy beggars?" Ethics from Sinai, III, p, 121
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What does God want from us? The same thing that we want for us. He also wants the same thing for Himself. Listen:
"Our sages taught us, If you love your neighbor, are kind to your relations; if you are loving to your nieces and nephews, and lend money to a person in need, you are the kind of person Torah describes when it says, "When you see the naked and cover him and do not hide from earthly needs...then when you call, the Lord will respond. When you cry out, God will answer, ‘Heneni, I am here.’"
Talmud, Yevamot 62b
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All tzedaka is not equal. In fact all tzedaka is not even tzedaka.
Rabbi Abba bar Acha said, "It is not possible to understand the ways of this people. When they are asked to contribute toward the building of a Golden Calf, they give. When they are asked to contribute to the building of te Tabernacle, they give."
Talmud, Shekalim 1:1
Idea: As we are commanded to do acts of tzedaka in relation to amount of income, we still need to be responsible for how we use that money. If given recklessly we have committed two sins: 1. We have not helped the ones who are in need and 2. We have squandered our responsibility to God.
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What about the kind of tzedaka to which we contribute? Are there better or worse ones? Even amongst the tzedakas that call out for us, some are higher on the ladder than others. In this instance, the mitzva of tzedaka is conjoined with another commandment, the Jewish attachment to the Holy Land.
Professor Mandelstam of Kiev returned from the first Zionist Congress. He invited all the local men of distinction to his home including the wealthy Brodsky.
The Professor explained how critical the situation was in the world and emphasized the importance of settling in Palestine.
Brodsky asked, "Do you mean to say that I should sell all my real estate, liquidate my property and settle in Palestine??"
Mandelstam replied, "Tell me, are you a patient in all the hospitals to which you contribute?"
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Now that we have learned that there is a hierarchy or tiers of tzedaka. What are they?
Rambam taught us eight levels of tzedaka:
1. A person gives but is not happy when s/he digs into the pocket in order to give.
2. A person gives cheerfully, but gives less than s/he should.
3. A person gives, but only when asked by a poor person.
4. A person gives without having to be asked, but gives directly to the poor. The poor person knows he gave the help, and the giver knows who was benefited
5. A person gives a donation in a certain place, but walks away so that the giver does not know who received the benefit. The poor person knows the giver however.
6. A person makes a donation to a poor person secretly. The giver knows who was benefited, but the poor person does not know who the giver was.
7. A person contributes anonymously to the tzedaka fund which is then distributed to the poor.
8. The highest level of charity is to give money and help to prevent another person from becoming poor. For example, teaching a person a trade, finding them a job, lending money, teaching them to fish.
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"Give a man a fish
and he eats dinner.
Teach a man to fish
and he eats for a lifetime."
Chinese proverb
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What we do is always seen by others. They learn from our actions or inactions.
"There was once a poor person who went begging from door to door. Rav Papa paid him no attention. Rav Shamma bar Rav Yiba turned to Rav Papa and said, "If you give no attention to the one who begs then no one will and he will starve to death."
Baba Batra 9a
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Once there was well-to-do manufacturer who was traveling overseas on one of his many business trips. The ship was laden with much merchandise. Despite all the preparations he remembered to bring his tallit, tefillin and siddur with him. It was then that ferocious storm arose and the ship cast about on the waves like a cork. All the passengers screamed and trembled with fear hat they would drown.
The captain addressed both crew and passengers. "Each person must do their part to lighten the load. We must jettison much of what lies in the staterooms and hold." Speaking to the merchant, the captain continued, "You must go down into the hold and throw everything into the ocean. Otherwise we will all die."
The merchant zealously began to lay his hands on everything he brought with him in his stateroom and began to cast them into the depths. His hands gripped his tallit and tefillin and were about to hurl them overboard when his servant seized him.
"What are you doing, master? That which you are about to throw away is the only thing that keeps us alive. Dump the rest of our merchandise, all of it, but not this!"
When people meet with a difficult situation our first impulse is to economize of the tzedaka that we dispense. But tzedaka is our lifeblood. Far wiser would be to cut back on luxuries.
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“If all Jews would do tzedaka, the redemption would come.”
Four Hasidic Masters and Their Struggle against Melancholy, Elie Wiesel.
The Holy One, blessed be he, only waits for His children to act. He waits.
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“During Shacharit [the morning service], one should give tzedaka; when one reaches the words ‘Wealth and honor are before You, and You rule over all.’ … Rabbi Pinchas of Koretz said if all Jews would give tzedaka at this point in Shacharit, the Mashiah would surely come.”
Imrei Pinchas HaShalem, vol. 1, Sha'ar Seder HaYom.
Kavannah, awareness, of the mind creates a universe of possibility.
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Inspirations:
> "If your ears are not open to the crying of the poor, then you will not hear God calling either." - Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach
> "All beginnings require that you unlock new doors. the key is giving and doing. Give charity and do kindness." - Rebbe Nachman
> "It is taught in the name of Rabbi Joshua: "The poor do more for the rich than the rich for the poor." - Ruth Rabbah 5:9
> "Bring all the tithes to the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now with that says the Lord of Hosts; if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour for you an overflowing blessing." - Malachi 3:10
> "And the act of tzedaka shall bring shalom." - Isaiah 32:17.