08/07/2026
Rabbi O’s Weekly Parsha: Re’eh (Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17)
The Way You Give Is the Way You Live
Imagine someone hands you $1000 and asks you to give it to the family next door because they are in need. You walk across the street and give them the envelope, and then spend the rest of the day complaining to your family about how much money you just "lost." Your family listens in astonishment and tells you they don’t understand because it wasn't even your money; you were merely tasked with delivering it. As obvious as that sounds, the Torah suggests that many of us make this exact mistake when we give tzeduka (charity).
Give generously to him, and do not let your heart feel bad when you give. (Deut. 15:10) Why does the Torah have to tell us not to be resentful; isn't the important thing that the person received the help? Most mitzvot work that way. Even though ideally we should pray with concentration, perform mitzvot with joy, and bring our whole heart into our Judaism, but even when we fall short, the mitzvah still has enormous value. Tzedakah, however, is different.
Maimonides writes that someone who gives charity while wearing a sour expression loses much of the value of the mitzvah. Why should our facial expression matter so much? The answer goes to the very heart of what Judaism teaches about wealth. We tend to think of ourselves as owners. "I earned it, I worked hard for it; it's mine," but the Torah invites us to look at things differently.
Pirkei Avot teaches, Give Him from what is His—because you and what is yours belong to Him. Think for a moment; who gave us our intellect, our health, and the opportunities that came our way? Judaism doesn't deny hard work, it celebrates it, but it reminds us that every talent, opportunity, and blessing ultimately comes from the Almighty—and that changes everything.
If you’re working for a company and your boss asks you to deliver a package to a client, you don't feel as though you're giving away your own possessions. You're simply delivering something entrusted to you. The Torah says our money works much the same way. We are meant to enjoy what Hashem has given us; Judaism doesn’t glorify poverty or guilt. We are encouraged to celebrate our blessings, provide for our families, and appreciate the good in our lives, but we're also trustees. Part of what G-d places in our hands is meant to stay with us and part of it is meant to continue its journey to someone else.
When we give with a smile, we are demonstrating our belief that G-d trusted me with these resources and now I have the privilege of giving them away in the manner He intended. But when we give grudgingly, we're basically declaring, this is really mine and I’m not happy to have to give it away.
Perhaps that's why our Sages tell us that tzedakah (charity) is equal to all the other mitzvot and that redemption itself is connected to acts of generosity. Tzedakah not only helps a person in need, it also reshapes the giver. Every time we give we are reminded that we caretakers of our blessings—we are the owners of our blessings.
This idea is embedded in the Hebrew word tzedakah, which doesn’t literally mean "charity" because charity implies generosity. Tzedakah comes from the word tzedek, meaning justice or righteousness. The Torah's perspective is that helping others isn't merely an act of kindness, it’s’ part of living in a just world where G-d’s blessings flow through us to those who need them.
Here's a thoughtful question for each of us to ask ourselves this Shabbos: when I look at the blessings in my life—my family, my health, my time, my talents, my resources—do I see them as possessions to cling to or gifts entrusted to me? The answer may not only change the way you give, it may change the way you live.
Good Shabbos
