Rabbi's Message August 2007

Rabbis' Messages

A Message from Rabbi Maurice (August 2007)

One of the things I still remember from my Hebrew School days growing up in St. Louis is probably something many of you also retained if you grew up going to Hebrew School too. It’s the famous “8 Levels of Tzedakah (charitable giving),” written by that great medieval sage and philosopher with the funny name, Maimonides. You remember how it goes – the lowest level of giving is one who gives not enough and gives begrudgingly. And the highest level of giving is to give someone in need a loan or teach them a skill so that they can become financially independent.

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The Shema, "Plant-a-Tree" Boxes & Maimonides

It is my unscientific opinion that the top three things most American Jewish adults remember from their Hebrew School experience are the Shema, the blue boxes that raise money for trees in Israel, and Maimonides’ 8 levels of tzedakah. In my case there was a fourth powerful memory I took with me – the sound of my teacher’s voice saying, “Maurice Harris – IN THE HALL!” But that’s another story.

As clichéd as it has become, Maimonides’ 8 levels of charitable giving offer a profound teaching that rings true. How often do we have opportunities to fulfill the highest level of giving – helping someone else to become financially independent? It’s so much easier to give at the other levels (which are essential to meeting the needs of countless people). Today, Fair Trade certification gives us a chance to help anonymous workers in faraway places earn a bit more for their labor, hopefully translating into steps towards financial stability. This isn’t tzedakah so much as a conscious choice to avoid underpaying someone for their labor.

Unless you’re a teacher or a volunteer who helps people learn a marketable skill, then like me, you may find that you rarely if ever get a chance to perform the highest mitzvah on Maimonides’ scale of giving. Thanks to technological innovation and the brilliant work of the pioneers of micro-lending, that may have changed. There’s now a remarkable web site dedicated to the highest level on Maimonides’ giving scale that I’d like to encourage you to check out, www.kiva.org.

Simply put, Kiva is a nonprofit that lets you loan small amounts of money to small businesses in the developing world. I learned about Kiva this spring when Nicholas Kristoff wrote a moving column about his rewarding experience making a $25 micro-loan to an Afghani baker. The Kiva web site promotes personal connections between lenders and borrowers by posting photos and biographies of the borrowers, and by allowing you to post your own photo and write a little about yourself. As their web site puts it: “You can ‘sponsor a business’ and help the world’s working poor make great strides towards economic independence. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates from the business you’ve sponsored. As loans are repaid, you get your loan money back.”

I think this is a wonderful mitzvah opportunity for all of us, and especially for kids. It’s also an opportunity to be visible as members of the Jewish community reaching out to people in parts of the world where, often, terrible rumors and stereotypes about Jews are still prevalent. In my lender profile I stated that my motivation for doing this is based in my Jewish values, and I explained that this kind of support represents the highest form of giving in my tradition. My current micro-loan of $50 has made me a stakeholder in the restaurant that is going to be opened by Kate Owusu Ansah of Ghana – may she be blessed with much success! Looks like I remembered something meaningful from those Hebrew School days after all!

Shalom,
Rabbi Maurice