Is this a good charity?

[Yehudayaakov]

Shalom Yehudayaakov,

I knew what you were talking about from your first post in this thread...

My fathers fathers Hebrew name was Yehudah, I am Michael Ben David Ben Yehudah.. The name comes from the root Hodah which means 'Thankfulness' or the feeling of appreciation for the good.

Shalom Michael

My brother Michael has the same name as you, I am Yaakov my fathers name is Yehudah i'm telling him where the root of his name comes from.

[Yehudayaakov]

http://www.torah.org/learning/tabletalk/5764/vayeitzei.html

Parashat Vayeitzei

Rabbi Raymond Beyda

Thanks a Lot!

"Again she [Leah] conceived and bore a son and declared, 'This time I will thankfully praise Hashem'." Beresheet 29:35

Yaakob Abinu a'h followed his father's instructions and traveled to the home of Laban, his mother's brother, in order to marry. After working 7 years for the hand of Rahel, his unscrupulous uncle substituted Leah for her sister and Yaakob, after agreeing to work an additional seven years for the rights to marry Rahel, then wed his first choice. With each bride he also married another [a maidservant], giving him a total of 4 spouses. Yaakob and his wives knew that the foundations of the Jewish people were in their hands and that they were destined to give birth to a total of 12 tribes.

The first to conceive was Leah. In fact, she gave birth to four children before Rahel had even born one child. The names given were symbolic expressions of her feelings. Reuben, Hashem saw [re-u means to see] my suffering; Shimon, Hashem heard [shema means to hear] my cries; Levi, my husband will now accompany [levaya means to escort] me. The fourth child was named Yehudah [hoda-ah is thanks] -- "This time I will gratefully praise Hashem."

The Talmud says: "From the time of creation there was no person who praised Hashem until Leah came and thanked him upon the birth of Yehudah. (Berakhot 7b)" Could it be that Leah did not express thanks for her first three children? Is it possible Abraham, Yitzhak, Sarah and Ribka never thanked Hashem for their good fortunes? Was there no human being before Leah who gratefully praised G-d?

Certainly there were others who expressed appreciation to the Master of the Universe; however, the thanks of Leah had a unique quality none other contained.

Leah knew that she was destined to participate in the nation building process. Knowing there were to be 12 tribes and that there were 4 wives she, like the others, assumed that each wife would have 3 children to raise. When Yehudah, her fourth was born, she felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude that she had gotten MORE than what was due. Many feel that they earn what they receive from G-d. "I do misvot, I help others and Hashem sends me His acknowledgment in the form of bounty." Leah felt what she had she did not deserve and even more so --an additional child was too good to be true. When a person thanks Hashem -- one should feel that ALL one has is a gift -- totally undeserved. This attitude can open the wells of the heart to an expression of true gratitude.

Rav Abraham Pam zt'l explained that when one achieves a happy milestone in life, marriage, a newborn child or a financial achievement, one's heart overflows with joy and gratitude. Yet, as time passes one gets used to the good fortune and the joy begins to dissipate. As happiness is burdened with responsibility to provide for a spouse, to raise the child, or to handle the new level of financial responsibility -- exhaustion and stress replace euphoria. Leah understood this psychological phenomenon. As the happy mother of a fourth child, she wanted to permanently ingrain her initial simha so that it would not diminish with time. Therefore, she put the root of the word for "thanks" in her son's name. In this way she would re-ignite her appreciation every time she called her son's name. This type of thanks -- no one before Leah had expressed.

Rabenu Yosef Hayim of Baghdad zt'l explains his approach with a parable. A king engaged two expert craftsmen to build an additional wing to his palace. The two arrived on the scene and began the project. One, unfortunately, became ill and was unable to work. The royal doctor's spent weeks administering medical care and by the time he had recovered the new wing was already completed. The king paid both craftsmen their full pay and sent them on their way. Upon arriving home both workers composed beautiful thank you letters to the sovereign. The king then sent to the worker who had performed his duties a bonus check and to the one who was ill throughout the project he sent nothing. The king's servants, puzzled by his behavior asked, "Your Majesty, was the craftsmen's letter lacking so much that you refused to send him a bonus check like you did to his counterpart?"

"No, on the contrary", replied the monarch, "the letter was just as beautiful, if not more so, than the one his friend sent. However, his thank was obligatory. After all I did pay him even though he did not work on the project. His friend, on the other hand, received pay for services rendered and yet he felt an urge to thank me for what was by right due to him This kind of thanks deserves special notice!"

Explains the Ben Ish Hai zt'l, Hashem sends His Heavenly aid to His people in two ways -- The natural and the miraculous. When we are witness to a miracle we are quick to praise the Lord for His kindness. It is, however, more commendable when we take notice of the daily kindnesses and protection that Hashem provides in un-dramatic, "natural" fashion. This behavior on our part, in itself, invokes more Divine Providence on our behalf.

We must all learn from Leah the right approach towards our blessings. We should feel they are undeserved. We must take notice that they are constant. We must remind ourselves of our obligation to thank every time we hear our name "YEHUDIM" -- the people who thank G-d.

Shabbat Shalom

Nice

[Kahane-Was-Right BT]

KWRBT,


And of course LKZ is a Jew... It helps to read the post before replying...

You wrote the word, "EVERYONE."

Does everyone mean LKZ?  Or does it mean LKZ and all other earthlings?
As for what you claim I'm not going to dispute it.

BTW, could you provide sources to support the claim it is not a mitzvah? The Shulchan Aruch says indeed it is a commandment of the Torah.

You are confused.   You're referring to the mitzvah of tzedaka.  I'm talking about the custom/practice/mitzvah? of giving 10% of one's earnings.

[muman613]

You wrote the word, "EVERYONE."

Does everyone mean LKZ?  Or does it mean LKZ and all other earthlings?
As for what you claim I'm not going to dispute it.

You are confused.   You're referring to the mitzvah of tzedaka.  I'm talking about the custom/practice/mitzvah? of giving 10% of one's earnings.

We were talking about the mitzvah of Charity... It is you who injected the discussion of Tithing. The custom of giving 10% certainly comes from the commandment to Tithe 10% to the Levites.

[muman613]

http://www.torah.org/learning/olas-shabbos/5763/kisavo.html

Parshaa - Ki Seitzei 5763

Rabbi Eliyahu Hoffmann

Tithes - Key to Riches of All Sorts

--------------------------------

"And you shall rejoice with all the goodness that Hashem, your G-d, has given you and your family; you, and the Levi, and the proselyte in your midst." (26:11)

"'Goodness' can only mean the Torah, as it is written (Mishlei/Proverbs 4:2), 'For I have given you a good acquisition - My Torah - forsake it not!'

Therefore Moshe warns the Children of Israel (Devarim/Deuteronomy 14:22), 'Aser te-aser - you shall surely separate ma'aser (one tenth)!" (Midrash Rabbi Tanchuma, Re'eh 11)

The above Midrash seems to interpret the "goodness" referred to here out of context (literally it seems to refer to the fruits of one's field, the first of which the bearer has just placed before the Kohen as a first-fruit offering before Hashem), saying it means to rejoice with the Torah. True "goodness," it seems, can only mean the Torah; all other pursuits are ultimately transient and could not be called "goodness."

By concluding, "Therefore Moshe warns the Children of Israel, 'Aser te- aser - you shall surely separate a tithe," the Midrash seems to connect the concept of "rejoicing with the Torah" with the next passage, which describes the Vidui Ma'aser - Confession Over the Tithes. (The actual verse, "Aser te-aser - you shall surely separate a tithe," is not found in this week's parsha.) Yet the connection, notwithstanding the sequence of the verses, is not clear. Why, if "rejoicing with all the goodness" means the Torah, must we be especially careful to separate ma'aser, a tenth of our earnings and our fruits?

A most beautiful and brilliant explanation is quoted in the name of the holy Satmar Rebbe zt"l (see Sefer Ha-zikaron Minchas Yerushalayim, Blau, pp. 358): The Gemara (Ta'anis 9a) relates that R' Yochanan once met a small boy (it was actually his nephew, son of his sister and brother-in-law Reish Lakish) on his way home from yeshiva.

"Tell me," he asked the young lad, "which verse did your rebbe teach you today?"

"Today we learned, "Aser te-aser, You shall surely tithe your produce!" What does it mean (i.e. why the repetitive wording)?"

Said R' Yochanan, "Aser bi-shvil she-tis'asher - Take tithes and you will surely become rich!" [This is a double entendre: Aser means to take a tithe. Osher means wealth. Thus: Give tithes, and you will become wealthy.]

"How do you know it's true?" asked the lad.

"Test it yourself!" said R' Yochanan.

"But are we allowed to test Hashem? Doesn't it state (Devarim 6:16), 'You shall not test Hashem'?"

"Yes!" R' Yochanan responded. "But my Rebbe, R' Oshaya, taught that this doesn't include ma'aser, for it is written (Malachi 3:10), 'Bring all the tithes to the treasury, and let there be sustenance in My Temple. Test me with this, please, says Hashem, if I do not open up for you the windows of the Heavens, and pour out upon you endless blessing!'"

Why, asks the Chasam Sofer, are we permitted, and even enjoined, to "test" Hashem by tithing our produce (and our earnings), if the Torah disparages and even forbids testing Hashem in all other areas?

It is natural, he answers, for man to desire wealth. While material bliss is far from our ultimate goal in life, it still remains true that, "Money makes the world go 'round," and a lack of it can make things pretty miserable for most of us. To paraphrase the holy R' Meir of Preimishlan zt"l, who himself paraphrased a verse in Tehillim/Psalms (119:140), "Your Torah is tied up with money" - there are very few mitzvos for which one does not need some form of wealth; Tefillin, Lulav, Shabbos - how is one supposed to perform the Torah's 613 mitzvos without the financial means to do so? "Therefore Meir'l loves money!"

There are two mitzvos, says the Chasam Sofer, which Scripture promises will bring wealth to their performers; Torah study and tithing. We know that Torah study is perhaps the greatest of all mitzvos; it is for this mitzvah more than all others that we have been placed in this world. What a shame it would be if we were squander our precious Torah study, doing so only in the hope that it will bring us material wealth with all its trappings, instead of achieving the venerated goal of Torah Lishma - Torah study for its own sake! Yet what is one to do? We need money, and we believe that Torah study will indeed influence our bottom line - so how are we supposed to keep the aspiration of wealth from creeping into and tainting our pursuit of pure Torah?

The Torah therefore gives us another mitzvah which also guarantees material bliss - tithes. It would be ideal for us to do all mitzvos li'shma - for Hashem's sake alone. If, however, we do "taint" our mitzvos with dreams of wealth and prosperity, let us do so by giving our tithes toward this inferior (yet noble?) purpose, but let our Torah study be pure. This is why we are told, even encouraged, to test Hashem in this regard - that we should be confident in the power of tithing to achieve our material needs, so that our Torah study, at least, will be with only the purest motives.

This, he says, is the meaning of the verse immediately following Aser te- aser, You shall surely tithe, "In order that you will learn to fear Hashem, your G-d, all the days! (14:23)" That way at least our learning will be replete with fear-of-Heaven!

If, says the Satmar Rebbe, true "goodness" refers solely to the Torah, then it would obviously be completely antithetical to study Torah in order to achieve wealth, whose goodness is at best transient, and at worst corruptive and perverse. Yet what is one to do? Even Torah study itself requires at least some form of wealth, both to purchase the necessary sefarim, and to allow one the free-time and peace-of-mind to study Torah for hours uninterrupted! Therefore, the Midrash concludes, Moshe warns the Children of Israel 'aser te-aser/you shall surely tithe' - if you are scrupulous in separating tithes from your produce and your wealth, you will never lack material needs, and you will truly be able to rejoice with the Torah as Hashem intended!

Have a good Shabbos.

[muman613]

As KWRBT points out there is question as to whether Tithing and Tzedakah are related. Most sages that I have come across derive that a Jew who has the means to do so should give 10% of their income to charity. This comes from the commandments of tithing.


http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/827412/jewish/Charity-During-Times-of-Economic-Difficulty.htm


It is a sad fact: when the economy is suffering, hardest hit are charitable organizations, and the needy people who desperately rely on the services they provide. This at a time when these charitable causes have to expand their services to accommodate a sadly growing clientele.

In the U.S., nearly 94 percent of nonprofit fundraisers recently surveyed said that the economy is currently having a negative effect on fundraising. In Britain, one in three organizations expects to lay off staff within months, and corporate donations have fallen by twenty percent.

Though unfortunate, this begs the question: is it indeed inappropriate to scale back on charitable disbursements when times are tough, when we are curtailing our spending in so many other lifestyle areas?

That depends on how we view our contributions.

The Rebbe once explained that "charity" is actually an inaccurate translation of the Hebrew word tzedakah, the age-old word used to describe financial assistance provided to the needy. The literal meaning of tzedakah is "righteousness." It's simply the right and just thing to do; whereas the word charity denotes an act that goes beyond the call of duty, an elective though praiseworthy act.

Whose Money?

According to Jewish tradition, a minimum of 10% of our net earnings are earmarked for tzedakah. It is our belief that ultimately we are G‑d's bankers; in addition to the monies intended for our personal use, He entrusts us with an additional sum—which we are meant to disperse to charitable causes.

G‑d created a world of givers and takers. And while He provides for all His creations, he desired that His beneficence reach the "takers" via the wallets of the givers.

When doing so, we are not going beyond the call of duty; we are merely faithfully discharging our responsibility.

"Charity" is a luxury; during difficult times we cut back in this area. Tzedakah, on the other hand – i.e the 10% that we donate – was never ours in the first place; and delivering it to its intended recipients is certainly not a luxury that can be scaled back.

(It should be noted, however, that a person who has only enough to cover his or her most rudimentary needs is exempt from this tithe.)

G‑d's Test

The following is adapted from a letter the Rebbe once wrote to a veteran businessman who had fallen on hard times:

    Undoubtedly we must view this is a test from G‑d. Though He knows that the Jewish heart is always open, and at all times ready to heed the call of Torah and mitzvot, still, He tests us in order to satisfy the reluctant-to-believe angels of the Heavenly Court.

    G‑d therefore says to them: "See, despite the natural tendency to decrease in tzedakah when business is not as it once was, here is a wise Jew, who understands that this is only an attempt to test him. He also understands that when he will withstand the test – and will then understand the real intent behind it all – not only will his business be as prosperous as beforehand, but it will be better than before..."

Our Test

King Solomon says in Proverbs (19:17): "He who is gracious to a poor man is [in fact merely] extending a loan to G‑d, and He will repay him his reward."

One never loses by giving tzedakah. Whereas the reward for virtually all mitzvot is granted in the World-to-Come, all tzedakah that one gives is repaid in full – with plenty of "interest" too – during his or her lifetime.

Normally it is forbidden to test G‑d (as per Deuteronomy 6:16). Practically this means that one may not do a mitzvah with the expectation that G‑d will reward the act by fulfilling a particular need.

Tzedakah is the exception. As the Prophet Malachi proclaimed (Malachi 3:10): "Bring all the tithes into the treasury so that there may be nourishment in My House. Test Me, if you will, with this, says the Lord of Hosts, [see] if I will not open for you the windows of the heavens and pour down for you blessing until there be no room to suffice for it."

Accordingly our Sages say (Talmud Rosh Hashanah 4a): "One who says, 'I am giving money to charity on the condition that my son recovers from his illness,' is a righteous person!"

True Wealth

A story is told about Rabbi Shimshon Wertheimer, a seventeenth century scholar, who was ordered by the German-Roman Kaiser to present an accounting of all that he owned. When Rabbi Wertheimer submitted his financial ledger, the Kaiser accused him of lying and treason, for he had personally gifted Rabbi Wertheimer a castle that alone was more valuable than the sum total on his ledger.

Rabbi Wertheimer explained that the Kaiser had asked for an accounting of all that he owned, whereas the castle had been a gift that could be revoked.

"Then what is recorded here?" demanded the Kaiser.

"This is my tzedakah," explained Reb Shimshon. "This is truly mine, even the Kaiser can not take this away."

[Kahane-Was-Right BT]

We were talking about the mitzvah of Charity... It is you who injected the discussion of Tithing. The custom of giving 10% certainly comes from the commandment to Tithe 10% to the Levites.

Not really.  It was in the Aish.com article you quoted and pasted here in the thread.

So if you are at or below the level where you are obtaining or at any rate eligible for means-tested assistance, then you should be giving a token amount to charity. If you are making more than that, then you should strive to give ten percent to those needier than you