Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe Podcast Collection

00:03 - Intro (Announcement)
You're listening to Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe of Torch in Houston, Texas. This is the Everyday Judaism Podcast.

00:08 - Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe (Host)
All right, welcome back everybody to the Everyday Judaism Podcast. It's so wonderful to be here, and today we are going to continue with the laws of charity simon 34on 34, simeon Lamed Dalet. Halacha Vav the sixth. Halacha Hanosein Levanov. Uvnosav hagedolem, someone who provides for his older son and daughter meaning children. She'eno chayev b'mzonosem, whose sustenance he is not liable. She'em yosem b'mnisheshonim Over here he says older than six years old.

00:46
Typically it's older than that. Even that you're obligated, that a father is obligated to support. We today support our children until they're married, until they're out of the house, and even then sometimes we continue to support them. But we're talking about Kedah. L'lamit is Bahabanim Torah. We're talking about meaning support them, sustain them so that they can learn Torah, and to pay for someone to guide the daughters to go on a straight path, and, similarly, one who gives gifts to his father, a father who cannot support himself other than through gifts to his father, a father who cannot support himself other than through his own charity funds. So all of these and they need this support, these are considered as charity and Maser funds can be used for this. So again, again, if you remember, just as a review, um, in in previous episodes we talked about the difference between Maser, which is the 10 percent tithe of everything we earn, and then we have, on top of the 10 percent, which is called tzedakah, which is charity.

02:03
V'lo od ele sh'tzorach l'agdimu l'acherm. But, moreover, is that the parent or child are obligated to give to their own meaning, to your father or mother or to your children, before you give to others. V'lo aviv, even someone who is not his son or his father, elikrovo, but his relative, hu kodim l'choladim. They take precedence over non-family we talked about. There's priorities in the charity that we give. Charity begins at home is a halacha. The halacha says we first need to give charity to our family. Va'aniyeh beisol kodim l'aniyeh iro says we first need to give charity to our family. And those who are poor in his own household precede the poor in the city, and the poor in your city precede the poor in another city, shemem. As the verse states Right To your brother, to your poor, to your destitute in your land.

03:11
However, the laws apply only to the individual who is giving charity. However, the executor of a charity fund who is distributing charity for the fund. For example, in most congregations they have a charitable fund that they give to poor people who come to their community, poor people who need for medical assistance or whatever it may be. Such an executor must be careful. Such an executor must be careful not to prioritize his own relatives from community charity over other poor people. Meaning, yes, it's very nice that you're the executor of the community funds, but that does not mean that you can prioritize your family over the other poor people in your community, because that's not your money to decide. A person's own money, yes, that they can prioritize, but other people's money, meaning the congregation's money, which is being allocated to give to the poor, shouldn't go to your family first because you're the executor. Shouldn't go to your family first because you're the executor.

04:26
Okay, halacha, number seven, kol anos sin stakolani. Anyone who gives money to the poor person. B'seiv erpanim ra'os u'epanim k'vushos bakarka. With a sour countenance. You don't give it with a smile. You don't give it. You have your face turned away to the ground. Afilu nosen lo elev zuvim. Even if you give him a million bucks, you give him a thousand gold coins, it doesn't make a difference.

04:53
Such a person has ruined his meritorious deed. You did a great deed, but you ruined it. Why you lost the mitzvah? You lost the mitzvah because you didn't do it properly, you lost the mitzvah. You lost the mitzvah because you didn't do it properly. ואובר ולא יירא לבווח that you have violated the transgression of, and let your heart not feel badly when you give to the poor person. And there's a verse in the Torah אלו צורך ליטן לו בסביר פנמי יפס ובסמחה ומסעונן אימה על צורסו.

05:26
A person who gives charity needs to give it with a smile. He needs to give it with a love, and you need to commiserate with the person over his misfortune, just like Job says Did I not weep for the heavily burdened? Did I not sorrow for the destitute? And we see that he spoke in consoling and comforting words, as it says in Job again, and I would bring joyous song to a widow's heart, meaning he took their pain and was there with them. He empathized with them.

06:18
That's our job and we mention this so many times in all of our classes, particularly in our Jewish Inspiration podcast, where we talked about generosity. We talked it's not what you give, it's how you give. It's not what you give, it's how you give. The amount of money is very yes, it's important. Of course, a person needs a certain amount of money. You know to live and a person needs a certain amount of money to get out of their troubles. True, but more important than that is does this person actually care about me? Does this person feel my pain? Do they know what I'm going through? And that is much more important than the financial amount. Halacha number eight. Amount. Halacha number eight.

07:04
Asr lahach, sirs, ha'onish shesho, it is forbidden to turn away a poor person who has requested charity empty handed. Rekha, you cannot. Even if you give him one little penny, you give him a dime, a nickel, you have to give him something. You cannot give him. You cannot give him. You cannot leave him empty-handed. All right, it can also be. Uh, you know, if you see someone at the, at the street corner, they ask you have to give them something. You can give them a wafer. You can give them a sandwich. You can give them, you know, a candy, a drink, you can give them, but you can't not give anything. Shinemar al yashov dach nichlom.

07:47
The verse states in Psalms let not the oppressed turn back in shame. Ve'im ein biyot choklum mali tinlo. And if you have nothing to give him, if nothing, I don't have anything. Paisi awadvarim. Comfort them with words For asu ligaboni. And it's forbidden to rebuke the poor or to shout at them Because they're already broken hearted, they're already humbled, they're humiliated, that they have to go door to door to ask for charity. That's right, david, you understand. That's exactly what we know.

08:22
Some people don't understand the importance of feeling the pain of another person, and the verse states a broken heart and humbled, oh god, you will not despise. Okay, this is so important. The way in which we do our charity Woe unto the one who embarrasses the poor Should be to this person, to the poor, like a father, whether it be with mercy, whether it be with words, as the verse states in Job again, I was a father to the destitute, meaning feel their pain, just like a father would feel the pain of his own child in need. Now there's something very important that our sages tell us, very, very, very important. Let's say you have money to give, but you're prioritizing it the way the halacha says to prioritize it. Now someone comes and asks you, so you don't have money to give this person because you have already allocated it or already decided in your mind I'm going to give it to this cause, which is on my priority list, on the priority of what the halacha says to do. So I just saw this morning when I was preparing and a very important thing to to keep in mind, and that is never say I don't have, never say I don't have. Why don't open up a, an opening for the Satan to say, oh you, you don't have, I'll make you not have. Meaning you say, listen, I can't, I can't give you right now. I, you know, I have it. Okay, I don't have it accessible for you right now. You, there's a way. Even even I saw in this book that I was learning that he said you can even say I cannot at this time, right. Or he says give another excuse, but don't say I don't have, because if you don't have, you don't want to open the door for the Yetzhara or the Satan to say, oh, I'm going to make you not have now. So I think it's just an interesting side note.

10:49
Okay, halacha, number nine, a pledge to charity is included in and governed by the rules of vows and therefore, if someone says I hereby obligate this coin to charity, or this coin shall be charity or this amount of money shall be I'm donating this to this and that cause, you have to give it to the designated entity immediately. And if you procrastinated litna over bebalta achar. And if he violated this prohibition, meaning he procrastinated, he has violated a biblical command which says bebalta achar, do not delay in fulfilling your vows, kehven sheyoha litna miyad, since he could have given it immediately. And if he says I'm going to give it to a poor person when I find them, but he hasn't found them, then you should set it aside and put it. Put it aside, the pledged amount, until you find the poor person, so you can put it in an envelope and say this is designated for a poor person. Whenever I meet them, I will give them this envelope.

12:10
An infant person pledged while in synagogue to give charity that is given to the executor of the charity fund to distribute. He does not violate the prohibition, even if he procrastinates At she yit ba'o. So aghabay Till the executor demands of him to fulfill his pledge, meaning to send you the invoice, right. So that as an executor, an executor's responsibility is to collect on the pledges. That's the executor's job. So someone who's in synagogue and they auction off the aliyah, they auction off a, a uh, an honor in the synagogue, right. So the congregation is obligated to invoice the person to um to fulfill his pledge. Now he's still obligated, but he's still obligated, but he's not considered violating this command of not delaying the fulfillment of vows. Now, if the executor does send out the invoice, so then if he does not give it, then he does violate this prohibition immediately. The Imlo Kishiyodeh Yodeah, unless he knows that the executor does not need the money to disperse immediately and in such a case, but he will hold it himself. So in that case you do not need to give it immediately to the executor or to the organization that it's pledged to.

13:52
It really depends. Every organization is different. People have different styles in how they give charity and different charities have different styles in which they hunt their donors down. Some people, they come after you, guns blazing you made a pledge, give me the money right. And some are much more kind and patient and say you know, at the right time people will fulfill their pledges with honesty and with accuracy.

14:27
Okay, halacha, number 10. Mi she'amar etein selot tzedaka l'poloni. Someone who says I will give a coin of, I'll give a certain amount of money to a specific poor individual, eina over, even if he does not give the money immediately, does not violate this prohibition against delay Ad she'yova osa'ani, until that person comes to him. V'yachol kol odam la'hafri sh'mos l't. Similarly, a person may set aside funds for charity with the stipulation that they will remain with him to distribute little by little as he sees fit. So that's what people have foundations. I guess this is the idea. You have the money which is allocated. It's already given to charity. Now you can decide through the foundation how you're going to distribute that. But that is a person's decision and a person can hold on to it till he finds the right time to do so.

15:32
One who prevails upon others to give charity U'ma ase oson and brings them to give charity Schor u'god u'mizchar nosen Such a person gets a greater reward than the person who actually gives the charity. It's an incredible thing Meaning if you influence others to give charity, you get a greater reward from heaven than the person who actually gives it. Sh'nemar v'hoi yema sa'atztok ha'sholam. The product of charity shall be peace. V'al gabayitztok v'kayotze v'hem sh'gov, mis'atzot k'nemar.

16:06
And about the executors of charity those who collect for charity and those who distribute the charity. It says and those who make the multitudes do righteousness will shine like the stars. And, unfortunately, those executors of charity who are abused by the poor because they're constantly harassing them for more and trying sometimes curse them out because they're constantly harassing them for more, and sometimes curse them out because they're not giving them as much as they wanted. Ein lo lachush, don't be disturbed by this. Ki alidei zez chusa yoseh godol, Because this humiliation only makes your reward far more greater.

16:50
Halacha number 12. Ha'mala agdolo she'en l'mala he'meno b'mala satsdaka. Halacha number 12 the greatest, the highest level of charity that no level of charity exists above it is one who strengthens the hand of a Jewish person who becomes impoverished and, as his hand falters before he becomes fully impoverished, to give. Him. Not wait till he's poor, poor, poor and he doesn't have anything left. Catch him before he falls and give him a substantial gift in an honorable manner. What does it mean in an honorable manner? Meaning not in a way that's public, not in a way that takes away, not in a way that takes away one's dignity, but rather one that keeps the person's dignity uplifted. Ad sh'yelvei mu'os, or lend him money. O yase imo shutfos, or make a partnership with him. O yamtsi lo eize eisek o malocho, provide him, make up some type of business or work. K'de lechazak yodo. Ad sh'lo yitzdorach labriyos him make up some type of business or work in order to strengthen his hand, meaning encourage him, give him a backing so that he doesn't feel humiliated till the point comes, till the point comes that he doesn't need to depend on charity anymore. And this is what the verse states, and you shall strengthen him. What does this mean? Hold him, strengthen him till he doesn't fall any longer.

18:35
Halacha number 13,. So, as we mentioned previously, one should be very careful to give charity in secret, without embarrassing the person who's receiving it In any way possible. And if you're able to give it, and if you're able to give it in a way that the recipient doesn't know who it's from and the giver doesn't know who it's to, meaning you give it to a middle party that's able to distribute it for you. A person shouldn't glorify himself by the charity that he gives. A person shouldn't glorify himself by the charity that he gives. However, if he dedicates an object to charity, it is permissible. It's a very interesting halacha. It is permissible for him to inscribe his name upon it, meaning this has been dedicated by David Block. Right, you can have that sign that says the David Block building the Torch Center. Right, the David Block Torch Center.

19:49
A person can have his name on it to be a memorial for him so he can remember it. It can be something which can be a source of pride for the entire family and for the entire legacy. That would be a beautiful thing. Verro, he loves this Cain, he says. Moreover, it is indeed appropriate to do this Now, again, there are some people who want their name to be not seen at all and some people who understand that this would be an encouragement for others to give. This would also be something of pride for their children, where their children will see like wow, these were the values of my parents and now this is the legacy. I want to continue after they're following their ways.

20:34
Okay, halacha, number 14. It is very, extremely important, he says here, to support Torah scholars and to provide their needs in a manner befitting their honor. And if he doesn't want to accept, then we endeavor to help him with business, where you sell a merchandise cheaply and purchase it back at a premium. And if he's knowledgeable in business, he has the business mind, then you can lend him monies with which he can do business. Our sages of blessed memory said anyone who gives merchandise to a Torah scholar with which to do business, such a person will merit to sit in the heavenly academy with the Almighty, as it states in the Talmud. All the prophets prophesied only about the rewards that will be received by one who engages in business with a Torah scholar and one who marries his daughter off to a Torah scholar. Halacha number 15, just two more halachas here.

22:09
One should, if possible, distance himself from accepting charity. Now we're talking about the recipient. Now the person should do anything he can endure any privation just to avoid taking from charity. Shalom Yitzdorah labriyos, not to depend on people. V'chein tzivu chacham, einu z'choron labracha. And our sages of blessed memory said Aseh shabbos chachol v'altitzdorah labriyos, treat your Shabbos table as a weekday table and do not.

22:42
Even one who was a respected scholar and became poor should engage in a trade, even a repulsive trade, and do not become dependent on people. And we see in the Talmud, there are many, many scholars in the Talmud who are blacksmiths, silversmiths. They had filthy hands, right, but they were big, great scholars. They didn't want to come on to having to need the community's charity, so even they wanted to learn Torah. Great, learn Torah. But they would as well find a way to support themselves with, even if it was a a not exactly the most, the cleanest trade. It was a repulsive trade, one that had a bad odor. Didn't make a difference if it had a, if it was dirty didn't make a difference. Do whatever it takes not to come on to the community charity, all right.

23:41
Now the final halacha, halacha, number 16. Call me anyone who does not need to take from charity and deceives people into assuming that he is poor and thus takes from charity funds. Such a person is sort of what do they call it? Call it to to um manifest. He's manifesting poverty and such a person will not die until he is forced to truly become dependent on others. And anyone who needs to take charity and is unable to live unless he takes someone who's elderly, someone who's sick or someone who's afflicted and refuses to take due to his inflated pride, such a person is considered a murderer. Why aren't you taking from charity to provide for yourself, to take for yourself? You're liable for your own life.

24:51
ואין לו בצערו אלא אבונס וחטאים. And he does not have any merit for his self-affliction. Rather, it is only sin and transgression. וכל מי שצריך ליט. However, anyone who does need to accept charity u'mitzar atzmo but accepts privation upon himself v'doche k'sasho, v'chai chai etzar and pushes off the time which he would accept charity by living a life of deprivation, k'deishol lo yitriach esatzibor, so as not to be a burden on the community. Such a person will not die until he has the means to support others. And regarding such a person, it states blessed is the person who trusts in Hashem.

25:42
Okay, so there's a difference between one who is unable to live, someone who is going to die, someone who is sick, afflicted with terrible disease or whatever it may be, someone who is extremely old and, just because of their inflated pride, doesn't want to accept. That's not okay. But, um, you know, there are many, many amazing stories of people who were extremely, extremely rewarded for their um, for their, their greatness. Just I'll tell you the quick story of Yosela the holy miser. I was actually at his grave. I went to his grave in Poland. It really is an amazing story.

26:37
So what happened was is that, right before he passed away, he was known as the miser. And what would happen? People would ask him for charity. He would say no way, get out of here, I'm not giving you charity, right? And uh, everybody tried and tried and tried. Finally he was on his deathbed and the rabbis came and they said you know, um, if you don't give us money for your burial, we're not gonna have to bury you in the cemetery. He started laughing. He says you think you're gonna get money out of me? You're not gonna get any money out of me, it's not gonna help. Whatever you try to do, I'm not giving you money. So they said I'm it's the last warning. You know you're about to, about to die. It's this is like you know. Turns out, he did not give them money and they buried him outside the cemetery.

27:30
What turned out is that that was a Tuesday, wednesday morning. The rabbi gets a knock on the door from a poor person and the poor person says I need money for Shabbos. Shabbos is coming. I don't have money. And the rabbi is like well, what did you do last Shabbos? He says, well, I don't know. I would get an envelope under my door and I would have charity.

27:52
And one person after another, after another would come to the rabbi's house asking for charity from the community fund, and one after another. Each one was saying the exact same story. What happened last week? Last week, we got money under the door. Last week, we got money under the door. This week, there's no money under the door. And the rabbi started asking and investigating more. What happened.

28:13
Each one would say well, you know, we would all go to Yasala, the holy miser, and we would all be persuaded that we were the one who was going to be able to change him. We would be able to crack the code, had to get money out of him and we'd go, we'd prepare our whole proposal to Yassala and he would welcome us into his house and he would serve us food and wine and dine us. And then he'd say okay, now, why did you come? He said, well, I came. You know, I have a wife and children. I lost my job, I need, I need livelihood. He would say oh, really, how much? How much do you need? Let's say I would need the, you know. Let's say, five hundred dollars. You see, you need five hundred dollars where you know how many children do you have. You would tell him how many children, where exactly do you live, how much is rent, etc. Etc.

28:58
He would get all the vital information and then suddenly he'd put on an angry face and saying you think I'm gonna give you this money? Get out of my house. You throw me down the steps, get out of here, don't ever come back here and every single one of these poor people had the same story with this yasal of the holy miser. What happened was is that what they didn't realize is he was taking copious notes from each one of these people and then providing them money under their door. He would slip every Wednesday morning. He would slip an envelope with cash under their door so that they would never suspect that it was actually him, and he would go privately door to door to each one of these poor people, slip it under the door anonymously. And they hadn't money for Shabbos. So on his tombstone it said Yassala Kamsan. Here is buried Yassala the miser, but then they added underneath it Kadosh the holy miser. We didn't know that he was such a holy man. They didn't realize that really he was supporting the entire community. All the poor people in the community were, you know, those who were destitute, needed his charity that he gave, and the week that he passed away, suddenly nobody had anymore.

30:13
So there are ways to give. There's very beautiful ways to give, and it's something that we need to. We mentioned this many, many times giving is a muscle. It's a muscle, and the Rambam teaches us that it's better to give a million one-dollar bills than to give a million-dollar check. Okay, meaning it's better to give a million single-dollar bills. Why? Because what happens is that you learn to give, you learn to give, you learn to give.

30:43
There's a story that's told that there was once a king who needed an executioner and he needed someone to take care of his treasury. So he picked a very cruel person for the treasury and he picked a very kind person for the executioner. A few years later he called them back in. It turned out that the executioner, who was so kind, became cruel and the person from the treasury became very kind. Why? Because he was hearing the pleas of all these people and he was giving and giving and giving and giving and giving. Eventually it softened his heart and he became a big giver. But the person who was the execution and started killing and killing and killing those who disobeyed the king's decrees, he became very, very cruel.

31:32
So we see that the actions that we do manifest and when we are kind, that kindness continues to give. And when we are cruel god forbid we become cruel. So we all want to be kind, we all want to be giving, we want to be god-like, and this is what we ask hashem. We want to be god-like, we want to be like you, and we have to open up the doorways for that shefa, for that blessing to come to us. So Hashem should bless us all. We're going to stop here, we're going to end this broadcast here, and I look forward, god willing, to continuing our learning together with kindness, with giving and with a countenance, which is the most important, that everything that we give should be with a smile, not out of pain. Oh, it hurts me to write this check, but rather I'm so excited, I'm delighted that I have the opportunity, I have the privilege, to be on the giving end of this transaction. My dear friends, today's Thursday, it's almost Shabbos. Have an amazing Shabbos. I look forward. If anybody has any questions, I'll open the floor to questions.

32:43 - Intro (Announcement)
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