Charity???

In terms of charity, what do you think is a better reason for giving charity:
*giving because you have to (ie tax)
*giving because "do unto others"

Judaism sees charity as a tax, while christianity sees it as a way of relating to people.

 

I personally think that the christian concept it better in terns of relating to people but because of the way people act today, I think charity as a tax (10% of your earnings) is better for "our" society

 

There is a story I've heard, I'll tell it again, you tell me which is better:

A man is on his way home from work. He sees a poor person and his heart is touched. He goes up to them and talks to him and expresses deep concern for him. Then, he gives them 12 dollars.

Another man comes by, sees the same person, but he's in a hurry and knows that he has to give money, so he hands the person a 20 with a nod, a brief smile, and rushes off to catch his bus.

Who did the better deed?

There is no word for charity in Hebrew, at least not literally. The word charity comes from a word meaning affection and love. The word Tzedakah in hebrew comes from a word meaning justice and rightousness. To a Jew, the fact that there are poor or hungry people in the world is unjust, and it is their responsiblity to right the wrong. It is an imperative, whether they feel like it or not.

I disagree with you because feeling doesn't help anybody. It may mean the giver gets more out of it in the moment, but what the one you're helping needs most is your time and money. By giving when we don't feel like it, because we must to make the world a better place, we teach ourselves to love helping other. Because whether really want to or not, the gratitude will still come from the other end and we may be able to see how we are helping others if it is an action that we are taking by volunteering our time.

It's not that caring about giving is not valued. There is something called Kavanah, attentiveness to God, that is expected at one level or another when fulfilling mitzvot. But when people can't bring together their Kavanah, they still have their obligations to their fellow people and to God to fulfill.

Dauer

 

I just noticed this thread again. The other thing is it's not just about 10%. There's the broader idea of gemilut hasadim, acts of lovingkindness, that tzedaka falls under. Again here, Judaism is more interested in frequent, structured acts of lovingkindness than random ones. If we only do things when we feel like it, for many of us it's not that often. But if we are truly concerned about the people around us we should help them even when we don't want to, and we should commit ourselves to that.

That's not to say random acts aren't good too, but we can't rely on that alone. Action first, then kavanah will follow. There are starving children somewhere, homeless people, all that.

Sorry for bumping this. I just don't want to give the impression Judaism is only about giving money.

Dauer

 

Tefilla, tzedaka, gemiult hasidim, praise and honor the Creator, be just in actions with others, and do acts of loving kindness for those in need. We do these because they are mitzvot. We do mitzvot because we love the Creator.
Charity comes from the Latin caritas, which means "affection, esteem."
Tzedaka means justice, doing something because it is the right thing to do.
Virginiaboy

 

No, giving 10% to help the poor is a Jewish obligation. Many liberal Jews ignore it.

And giving is not done of love in Judaism, at least not for that reason. It's done for justice, out of an obligation to the poor. You may do it for a different reason, but that's not what tzedakah means. Certainly when a person gives tzedakah, it is good to feel love in doing it, but Judaism cares more about what they (the receivers) get out of it than what we do. This is a good article on tzedakah that might clarify things for you:

http://judaism.about.com/library/3_askrabbi_o/bl_simmons_charitytzedakah.htm

 

Right. But Judaism says we can't rely on that alone.