EXOD929 The concept of generous and spontaneous giving from the heart appears in the Torah in the section where the Israelites undertake to build a sanctuary so that God might dwell among them. Rabbi Meir Leibush [known as the Malbim (1809-1879)] commented that [this] verse actually means that God would dwell not literally in the sanctuary building but among the people. He concludes that each person is to build a tabernacle in his or her own heart for God to dwell in. The Torah wants us to see that the way we do this inner construction work is by perfecting spontaneous generosity. Because we live in a money-centric culture, we tend to think of generosity only as a question of reaching into our wallets. But as with all soul-traits, generosity is a quality of the soul and so it can find expression in many ways. You can be generous with money and also with your time, your energy, and your possessions. The one who gives terumah gives because his or her heart is so inflamed with magnanimity that it would be painful not to give, and the heart finds a way to respond spontaneously, whether with money, time, materials, or in any other way.