_(english).jpg "Taking the Spiritual Dive")
_(english).jpg "Genetic Screening for Breast Cancer Genes")
_(english).jpg "When Bad Things Happen")
_(english).jpg "Judaism and the 12-Step Program")
+.jpg "Knowledge and Wisdom")
+.jpg "Moshe, Miriam and Prophecy")
+.jpg "Don't Give Up")
_(english).jpg "The Jewish Ethicist: Charity and Providence")
Q.God commands us to give charity. Does this mean He guarantees that we won't come to need and regret our generosity? If I still fear I may come to need, does that show a lack of faith in God's providence?
A. In Jewish thought, giving charity doesn't indicate faith that we won't need the money. The opposite is true: we give charity precisely because we recognize that someday we too might be in need of charity. Giving charity gets the ball rolling, and when we need it, it will roll in our direction. Let us examine some examples of this principle:
In the book of Exodus (22:24), the Torah commands us go give charity with the following language:
When you lend money to My people, to the poor with you, don't be unto him like a creditor, and don't take interest.
What is the meaning of the expression "the poor with you?" Rashi gives two explanations: the first is that "with you" means those who are close to you, for example your relatives or neighbors. These have precedence in giving charity. The second explanation is that "with you" means that you too may someday be poor: "Lood at yourself as if you are poor." This is supposed to motivate us to give charity, and not prevent us. When we imagine ourselves as poor, we think how we would want those better off to help us without too much thought for the future.
Another place we are commanded to give charity is in the book of Deuteronomy (15:10):
Surely give to him and don't let your heart sink when you give him. For because of this, the Lord your God will bless you in all your acts and in all your endeavors.
The word used for "because" is an unusual one, found in only four other places in the Bible. The word is cognate to the word for a wheel, or rolling. It is as if the verse says, Giving charity will wheel around a blessing for you. The Talmud notes this use as follows:
Rabbi Elazar HaKafar says, A person should seek mercy regarding this state [of poverty], for if it doesn't all on him, it could fall on his child; and if it doesn't fall on his child, it could fall on his grandchild. As it is written, "Because of this thing", and Rabbi Yishmael taught, It is a wheel that turns in the world. (1)
There is no blemish in your faith if you have some concern for future misfortune or need. God watches over us at all times, but those times can include many ups and downs. Faith in this context means that if you fall on hard times you trust that God will provide you a source of sustenance even in your troubles.
What is important is that any concern should not serve as an excuse to refrain from giving charity according to your current means. On the contrary, the thought that a person, or his offspring, might someday be in need is a motivation to give charity now. Once the ball is rolling, it will roll our way when we need it.
SOURCES: (1) Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 151b.
SPECIAL NOTICE:
Rabbi Dr. Meir will give a 20-lecture course in Jewish Business Ethics on the Web Yeshiva. The course is in English, and is suited for students of all levels. As a special promotion, the current Winter term at the Webyeshiva is free of charge! Please register at www.webyeshiva.org.
Torah in Motion of Toronto, Canada, an important force in promoting Jewish ethics, is sponsoring a special six-lecture series by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir. The series, Case Studies in Business Ethics, is offered through Torah in Motion's online lecture program, e-TiM. The lectures, in English, are suitable for people of all backgrounds but are addressed particularly at business people.The series begins Thursday November 13 at 12:30 PM Eastern time, and continues each Thursday at the same time for the following five weeks. Registration is inexpensive. Register at: www.torahinmotion.org, and click on e-TiM.
Send your queries about ethics in the workplace to jewishethicist@aish.com
To sponsor a column of the Jewish Ethicist, please click here.
The Jewish Ethicist presents some general principles of Jewish law. For specific questions and direct application, please consult a qualified Rabbi.
The Jewish Ethicist is a joint project of Aish.com and the Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem. To find out more about business ethics and Jewish values for the workplace, visit the Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem at www.besr.org.
Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir is Research Director at the Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem (www.besr.org). He studied at Harvard, received a PhD in Economics from MIT, and rabbinic ordination from the Israeli Chief Rabbinate. Prior to moving to Israel, he worked at the Council of Economic Advisers in the Reagan administration. Rabbi Dr. Meir is also a Senior Lecturer in Economics at the Jerusalem College of Technology and has published several articles on business, economics and Jewish law. He is the author of the two-volume, "Meaning in Mitzvot (Feldheim), and his Aish.com columns form the basis of the "Jewish Ethicist" book (ktav.com)._(english).jpg "The Jewish Ethicist: Charity from the Poor")
_(english).jpg "The Jewish Ethicist - Is It Charity?")
_(english).gif "The Jewish Ethicist: Charity Begins at Home")
(3) Anonymous, March 11, 2009 10:45 PM
Want to do the right thing, but I'm struggling
I agree with the article, but I'm wondering if it includes giving charity when you yourself are in a deficit position, i.e. your credit cards are maxed out and you're living on borrowed money?
(2) sbr, March 11, 2009 11:51 AM
loan repayment
The article mentions lending without interest- while I am inclined toward this myself, I worry about the person receiving the loan not repaying. I have witnessed this occur when family members and friends have lent money to others, never to be repaid. It strains the future relationship between the two parties and can lead to financial hardship on the part of the lender as the expectation of repayment was not honored. How does Jewish law propose preventing this undesirable outcome?
Anonymous, July 26, 2011 4:01 AM
Not a Torah Scholar
I am not a Torah Scholar, am actually quite an "ignoramus", deeply regrettably, concerning Jewish Law, however, I am profoundly disturbed that a human being is reduced to "begging," and or depending o charity. Even though I also am in that level, I would think that giving, with no strings attached, is for the best, it relieves pressure. In regards to relatives, I have found that the wealthier the relative, the more incredibly miserly, and greedy - bu, these relatives are non-Jews, so the ethos are atypical of the Jewish mindset. I simply give as much as I have, whenever I have and someone needs more than I. Strangely, I do not worry about it in any way, as I do about my own issues. I greatly doubt it causes me any lack to do this mitzvah. I deeply believe that a "schnorrer," is the "mitzvah-maker;" that individual (myself included at times), enables another human being to gather the proceeds of mitzvahs, in their proverbial Spiritual Backpack...
(1) Bob Rabinoff, March 9, 2009 2:58 AM
How true!
I've always found that when the cash flow gets tight, if I _increase_ my giving, things start to flow my way again. You'd think it'd work the other way around, but it doesn't. Aseir l'ma'an te'ashir.