Judaism emphasizes that those who have, when they give to those who do not have, are not doing an act of charity but of justice. Also, by doing so, it does not give a sense of superiority to the giver over the receiver. The Torah refers to the receiver as “your brother” to emphasize that he is someone equal to you.

In the book of Psalms, 41:1 it is written: “Blessed is he who considers the poor” and the Talmud interprets this to mean that we should give at the same time that we assess what is the best help we can give to a certain person. Rabbinic literature also speaks of giving being done anonymously or in secret, so as not to humiliate the recipient. In Temple times there was a publicly administered charity box, which kept both the giver and the receiver anonymous.

Maimonides set out the teachings of the rabbis on this subject with his list of eight degrees of charity. In ascending order they are as follows:

1. Giving reluctantly.

2. Giving gladly but less than you could give.

3. Giving only when asked.

4. Giving before being asked.

5. Giving in such a way that the recipient knows who gave it to him, but the giver does not know who received it.

6. Giving in such a way that the giver knows who received it, but the recipient does not know who gave it to him.

7. Giving anonymously to a community charity.

8. Helping someone who has become impoverished to get back on their feet by giving him a gift or a loan, partnering him in a business, or helping him find a job.

Giving Tzedakah is one of the mitzvoth that is most valued in Jewish tradition. In the tractate of Bava Batra (9a) the sages say that it is worth as much as all the other mitzvoth put together. However, good deeds, Gemilut Chassadim, are ethically superior to Tzedakah, since it involves personal involvement and is not just “checkbook charity,” and good deeds are done for the poor as well as for the rich.

Tzedakah undoubtedly belongs to the group of mitzvoth “Bein adam lechavero,” the ethical mitzvoth. And if it is done correctly, no one should find out about it, since in the end, it is just an act of justice.

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: The Jewish People, their history and their religion, by David J. Goldberg and John D. Rayner.