The Highest Tzedakah
Give a man a fish and he eats for a day.
Teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime.
This morning, despite extra Rosh Chodesh (new moon) prayers, I had a few free minutes before work (I was -- *gasp* -- early!), so I called up Barya in Bat Ayin. Always a joy to talk to Barya. Dina Rayzl's due date was yesterday, so IY"H they're going to have a baby practically any second now!
That all seems to have Barya in a pretty happy, thankful mood, so he was talking about how the RaMBaM holds the highest form of tzedakah (charitable giving, more or less) to be where the beneficiary, rather than being given the fish, is given the means (knowledge, tools, a loan, whatever) to catch his own fish, yet he doesn't know his benefactor's identity and neither does his benefactor know his identity. And yet G!d's tzedakah is to give us life itself, which is in the most profound way the means to catch our own fish, but we know our benefactor and, in Barya's ecstatic words, "that's the whole point!" We know our Benefactor, so we can celebrate, sing praises, revel in the giving of the Gift.
I asked, "But if we are of G!d's image, then why would the RaMBaM not have us aspire to that holiest level of gift-giving?" In other words, why must we as benefactors remain anonymous? The most immediately obvious answer to me was that any gift I have to give is actually G!d's gift anyway, so why have my name on it? Barya's answer was, "I think maybe we give that kind of gift as parents." I chucked that it seemed he would find out soon enough! He laughed, "yeah, I'll tell you tomorrow!"
In retrospect, I think a better answer in this case would be to correct the question. As far as I recall (someone please correct me if I'm mistaken), RaMBaM actually doesn't require anonymity in the highest level of tzedakah. The second-highest level is where an anonymous benefactor gives a fish to an anonymous beneficiary. The highest level is just straight up teaching the guy to fish. Perhaps RaMBaM is in fact suggesting the exact same as Barya: G!d, by putting air in our lungs each day, models for us the highest form of gift-giving, which is to empower the vulnerable to strength and self-possession, such that there is no shame in the transaction, and the need for anonymity is replaced with the need to celebrate.
Mazal tov!
UPDATE: It's a girl!
(cross-posted -- with pictures! -- on http://seattleturtle.livejournal.com/18352.html)
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Regarding Tzedakah...
I've been having trouble for years figuring out the specifics of tzedakah, specifically how much to give and where to give it. The first is the more agonizing because 10% really is very difficult to calculate, not to mention difficult to afford. My rabbi in Englewood suggested that people in my bracket are not likely to make an enormous inpact with money the way the local philanthrophists do, so it's more important to give regularly and do so to causes in which I really believe.
Being me, I made a chart for the year that lists the months horizontally and the categories of causes vertically. I'm keeping track on here how much I give each month and to which cause. When, please G-d, our parnassah increases, so will the tzedakah.
Of course, can time teaching someone to fish be deducted from 10%? What if you are a teacher of children who cannot yet use the knowledge, but one day may be able to use that knowledge to make a living?
What if you are paid to teach?
By Evenewra, at 9:10 PM