Give with Joy

There is materialistic selfishness and selflessness. There is also a form of spiritual selfishness and selflessness. Assisting others even before we generate positive feelings in giving is spiritual selflessness.

Phrased in the Negative

One of the Mitzvos discussed in this week’s parsha is the mitzvah of giving Tzedakah. The Torah refers to this basic obligation in several ways After the Torah mentions the command to give Tzedakah, it continues:

“…and you heart shall not feel bad when you give to him, for G-d, your G-d, will bless all your work and everything you do because of this.”

A simple question can be asked. Why does the Torah phrase this directive in the negative? Why couldn’t it have phrased it in a positive vein, “And you shall rejoice when you give him?” After all, we know how important it is to do a Mitzvah with joy.

The Primary Objective

One answer that may be proposed is that when a person gives Tzedakah the main thing is for the needy person to receive it. The feelings that we experience when we give Tzedakah are not nearly as important as the actual act of giving. The reality is that there are needy people and causes that we can and must help regardless of our feelings.

This doesn’t mean that our feelings that accompany this Mitzvah are not important. It does mean that our desire for self-perfection and refinement ought not to cause us to shirk our obligations towards others by saying that we are not doing the Mitzvah with the proper feeling. We should never postpone giving until such time that we give for the right reason. We should give without delay, and work on our feelings and our idealism afterwards, if need be.

Thus, the Torah does not emphasize the joy that must accompany our giving of Tzedakah for that would take the focus off the main objective of Tzedakah to help others. The Torah just mentions the negative part; that we should not feel bad when we give, for that is an integral part of giving. Were we upset that we had to part with our hard earned money, it would show. That, in turn, would make the recipient of our Tzedakah feel uncomfortable and degraded. So while we might be helping him or her financially, we will simultaneously be making the beneficiaries of our generosity feel terrible. And as the Talmud explains, an essential part of giving Tzedakah is making the recipient feel good not just giving money.

Trusteeship

On a deeper level, one can explain why the Torah emphasizes that we should not feel bad and fails to mention that we should give with joy.

To understand this we must preface a wellknown concept that has its roots in classical Jewish sources and has been expanded upon in Chassidic literature. The concept is that, in fact, we do not really give our own money when we give Tzedakah. G-d, in His infinite wisdom, wished to give us an opportunity to be His partner in sustaining the world. Rather than distribute the resources He created directly to all, He chooses to give more to some so that they will be His partners in giving to others.

In other words, the money that we earn is given to us in trusteeship. We were entrusted with this money—at least a significant part of it; ten to twenty percent according to Jewish law—until such time that the opportunity presents itself to “return” that which was allocated for others to their rightful owners.

This thought, can be rather humbling, because it makes us realize that our money is not really exclusively ours and that our giving is not simply an act of generosity and benevolence but a righteous act—which is the true translation of the word Tzedakah, not charity—we are returning that which rightfully belongs to those in need.

For a truly sensitive person, not only can this be a humbling feeling, it can also be depressing. For it posits that the other person was made poor only to give us the opportunity to help them. In a strange way, we become “accomplices” in their pain and suffering. So, even as we rejoice at the opportunity to help these unfortunate people by giving them Tzedakah, our joy is marred by the sense of sadness that they had to suffer so that we can partner with G-d.

We might therefore be troubled by the question, why couldn’t G-d distribute the wealth equitably in the first place? Why is there so much unfairness in the world? Granted, as was mentioned above, G-d created the inequity so that we can reverse it. But it still hurts and we might exhibit some of this sadness as we give the Tzedakah to the needy individual.

Postpone the Sadness

The Torah therefore admonishes us not to harbor these negative thoughts when we give Tzedakah. We should reserve these sad thoughts for other times; the times that are designated for soul-searching; when it doesn’t get in the way of our giving and the manner in which we give. When we are trying to uplift the spirits of the downtrodden, we cannot afford to be sad and bring them down.

As Jews we must not allow our questions and anguish get in the way of our observances. This must be balanced by the heartfelt pleas to G-d: Why is there still suffering in this world? Why has Moshiach tarried so long? How much longer do we have to stay in Galus-exile? But even as we ask these questions, we must not let them bring down our spirit, but continue to do our Jewish thing with joy and gladness of heart. It is the combination of sincere complaints to G-d for every second we remain in exile and joyful dedication to His commandments in these last moments of exile that become the catalysts that will ultimately usher in the Messianic Age.

From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Rei by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.