EXOD932 "He that is gracious unto the poor, lendeth unto the Lord", sang the Psalmist [Ps. 19:17]. Social Ethics echo this refrain by teaching us how to become "God's bankers". When a Roman governor inquired of Rabbi Akiba: "Why does your God, for whom you claim such loving concern for His creatures, not Himself provide for the poor?" The reply was: "Charity makes wealth a means of salvation. God wishes us to help one another and thus to convert this earthly life into a period of character-molding." Our blessings must be regarded as opportunities for serving God and helping man. Why, asks one teacher, do the words "that they take for Me an offering "[this verse] follow so closely on the words: "And they said: 'All that the Lord hath spoken we will do, and obey'"? [Exodus 24:7] To show Israel that the best way to obey the Torah is to give offerings of all we have, as well as to emphasize that our affirmations must be backed by our readiness to give.

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EXOD933 The word Tsedakah means something more than charity; it means to do right and in the best possible way. It is a basic principle of Social Ethics to provide for the welfare of all and to each according to his need. As one of the three pillars on which society rests, [Avot i.2], kindness can be regarded as a virtue only if it be practiced in secret [See B.B. 10b; Ps. xli.1] and not regarded as almsgiving to be dispensed grudgingly. In the Torah, giving to holy causes is dignified by the word Terumah [this verse] ("uplifting"). Since each of us needs the ennoblement which true kindness fosters, it is a virtue from which even he, who himself is dependent on charity, is not exempt [Gitt. 7b]. The Rabbis ruled it is better to give nothing rather than bring a blush to the recipient of alms. [Hag. 5a]. The word Tsedakah is comprehensive, including any deed leading to the alleviation of the afflicted and resulting in a sweetening of human relationships. True charity bestows as well as receives; "more than the householder does for the needy, the needy does for the householder" [Lev R. xxiv.8].

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EXOD935 Lest such a conception of a monotheistic God, described both as immanent and transcendent, appear to the rational mind as contradictory or mutually exclusive, it is necessary to add that to logic of the Rabbis these two sides of the divine character were considered as complementary. When they beheld held in rapturous admiration the wonders of the universe, they described God as transcendental; when they witnessed the painful struggle with which human beings grappled with the problems of life, they pronounced Him to be immanent. This immanence was impressed upon the Jew by the teaching that His presence (Shechinah) and His Holy Spirit (Ruah Ha'kodesh) fill the earth whenever sincere attempts are made to plant the sublime amidst the prosaic and the mundane [this verse]. God is at once above the universe and, at the same time, the very soul of the universe. The link is the inflation of His Spirit and His abiding Presence, His Ruah Ha'kodesh and His Shechinah. This must be remembered when discussing the duties Judaism has assigned to man in the worship of his Creator.

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EXOD936 Life to-day issues a challenge to men of goodwill of all nations to unite and present the world with an ethical programme of conduct. In this task Judaism must play a conspicuous part. It was a Jewish teacher [Hillel the Elder] who, nearly two thousand years ago, made God exclaim to Israel [Sukk. 53a; this verse]: "If you come to My house, then shall I go to yours." Life will be worthwhile and safe only if our daily actions are motivated by holiness and if the heavenly pattern of life be reflected on earth. The aim of Jewish ethics is not to distinguish the Jew from among those around him so much by racial, social or political features but to mark him out by his spiritual characteristics.

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EXOD937 See [[EXOD158]] Exodus 12:23 home LEHRMAN 27-8

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EXOD939 True to their teaching that "he who engaged in work causes the Shechinah to rest upon Israel" [In this verse, God assures Israel that if they will consecrate a sanctuary to Him, He will dwell in their midst and bless their work], the majority of the Talmudic Rabbis were humble workmen who earned a precarious livelihood in order to pay for the barest essentials of life so as to devote much of their time to the study of Torah.

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EXOD950 Merely to preach love for everybody, in the expectation to be loved in return, is not regarded by Jewish ethics as a principle of action sufficiently potent to mold character or govern society. Man is too much swayed by impulse and emotion and exhibits a partiality that is inimical to strict justice. He must be guided in his actions by the viewpoints of his ancient teachers. "Love, without justice, leads to abuse and persecution [What is the history of mankind's attitude toward the Jew if not a proof of this statement?] The Rabbis read into the two names of God Adonai and Elohim the attributes of Love and Justice. Only when one is tempered by the other can true kindness be exhibited and real loving deeds be performed. It is for men to shape his conduct after the Divine example if he is to lead the life directed in the Torah [Sot. 14a][this verse].

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EXOD962 No duty [other than tzedakah] is more important, and none ushers in salvation more speedily [B.B. 9a; Sukk. 49b; Ket. 67b]. "As long as the Temple stood", declared Rabbi Eleazar, "a man would donate his shekel and receive atonement for his soul [this verse]. Now, however, in the absence of a Temple, it all depends on the giving of Tsedakah; if he gives, all is well, if not, hostile forces will come and deprive him of his wealth by force" [B.B. 9a; Abot d'R'Nathan iv; Hosea vi.6]. To ignore giving help to any deserving cause is regarded by Rabbi Joshua b. Karcha [Ket. 68b] equivalent to idol worship; for it brands the man as "possessed" by his possessions, a worshiper of the "Golden Calf".

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EXOD967 The word Rokeach occurs in the Bible [this verse] where it is translated "perfumer", and this prompted [Rabbi Judah He'hasid of Regensburg (d. 1200); author of "Book of the Pious"] to try and impart to the daily life of the Jew the fragrance of religion. His object has well been described thus: "Just as the holy anointing-oil scented the lowliest vessels of the sanctuary, so the goodly direction of the Rokeah sought to sweeten and glorify the humblest life." To him, as to the French philosopher Amiel, religion without mysticism was like a rose without perfume. Though he advocated the most meticulous observance of Jewish ritual, he always emphasized the finer aspects of our moral standards.

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EXOD1029 See [[LEV1107]] Leviticus 26:3 If LEHRMAN 160

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