I am very excited for the opportunity to share words of Torah with you. Each week, in this spot, I look to share an idea I've found that speaks to me and that I think will resonate with you as well. This week, I share with you an excerpt from an article by Rabbi Yitzchak Zweig entitled "Kindness: A Gift Everyone Can Afford" which shares how Tzedakah is really something that benefits all parties involved.
[...] In this week’s Torah reading we find the obligation to give charity to the less fortunate and a lesson regarding the giving of charity, [...] “You shall surely tithe from all the crops that come forth from your field each year” (Deuteronomy 14:2). [...] The Talmud (Taanis 9a) records a fascinating conversation between the sage Rabbi Yochanan and his young nephew. Rabbi Yochanan asked his nephew, “Recite to me the Bible verse [you have learned today].” The latter replied, “You shall surely tithe.” Thereupon his nephew asked, “Can you explain to me the meaning of these words?” Rabbi Yochanan answered, “Give tithes that you may be enriched.” His nephew asked, “How do you know this to be true?” Rabbi Yochanan replied: “Go test it [for yourself].” Rabbi Yochanan thus explained to him that he may actually test this secret to achieving wealth through tithing. But children often don’t let things go and he continued to question his uncle; “Is it permissible to test the Holy One, blessed be He? Do we not have a verse (Devarim 6:16) that says, ‘You shall not try the Almighty?’” Rabbi Yochanan replied, “Thus said Rabbi Oshaia: Giving charity is excepted [from the prohibition of testing God], as it is said (Malachi 3:10), ‘Bring the tithes unto the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and with this you may test me.’”
In other words, God explicitly says that a person can literally test His promise to enrich those who give charity. Even though the general rule is that one may not test the Almighty; the mitzvah of giving charity is exempt from this prohibition. Not only is it exempt, but God actually encourages us to test Him by giving charity. This seems unusual. Why is the mitzvah of giving charity an exemption to the prohibition of testing God?
The great medieval Biblical commentator Rashi explains that in Hebrew the word “chessed” means “kindness,” yet in Aramaic the word “chessed” means shame (see Leviticus 20:17 and Rashi ad loc). As I have explained in prior columns, Aramaic is a language based on an understanding of another person’s perspective. While a charitable person may feel uplifted by sharing his good fortune with others, one has to also consider the receiver’s perspective. When someone has to accept charity or kindness from another there is a devastating feeling of embarrassment that accompanies the realization that he is unable to take care of his own needs. This is why in Aramaic the word “chessed” means shame – it is focused on the other person’s perspective.
Yet, we know that giving charity and doing acts of kindness – “chessed” – are key components of one’s obligation of acting in a God-like manner. So how do we reconcile this obligation with the pain being caused to the recipient of charity?
This is the reason why the Almighty devised a system in which the person giving the charity is further enriched by his act of kindness. Just as a person would not be embarrassed to be paid for giving someone terrific investment advice, so too a person receiving charity is also providing the giver the opportunity to enrich themselves. In fact, it is better than ordinary investment advice; its success is actually guaranteed by the Almighty. God, in His infinite wisdom, is removing the poor person’s shame in having to receive charity by enabling the recipient to “give back” to his benefactor. [...]
Hoping and praying for a Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Davies
Rabbi@SOICherryHill.org
