LEV321 … all religions, and many secular philosophies (to the hard-line Marxist, charity is a sop extended by the rich to the poor in order to avoid the revolution. Hence it is an evil) are generous in their praise of the virtue of charity. To the best of my knowledge, Judaism broke new ground when it integrated the act of sharing one's possessions with the needy into its ritual and civil law. The giving of charity is not considered to be merely the exercise of another virtue, like courage, prudence, or self-control. It is an integral part of the Law, like the commandant to offer sacrifices, or not to steal or swear falsely. The commandment enjoining the sharing of one's possessions with "the poor and a stranger" is sandwiched between a ritual law regarding animal sacrifice and a civil law forbidding deceitful dealing with one another. ... [Citing Leviticus 19:9–10] ... A large tractate of the Mishnah and the Jerusalem Talmud (Pe'ah) are devoted to this elaboration of these verses. They form the basis for the law of tzedakah, of sharing one's material possessions with the less fortunate. This occupies a prominent place in every major code of Jewish Law (see Maimonides, Hilkhot Matnot Aniyim and Hilkhot Zedakah, in [sic? should be "and"?] Shulhan Arukh Yoreh Deah, pars. 247-59).