The Inadequacy of Charity in Jewish Law

Sherra Wong, American University

Abstract

Over the centuries, Judaism has developed intellectual and practical mechanisms to confront poverty and economic inequality in society. A central idea is tzedakah, loosely translated as distributive justice. Jewish poverty activists from across the political spectrum have cited interpretations and practices of tzedakah to support the application of their views to secular society. Two positions are prevalent. The first limits the obligation of the wealthy toward the poor to contribution to charity in a variety of forms, citing poverty as a persistent phenomenon that can only be brought to an end in an eschatological era. The second, which took root in the early twentieth century as a centerpiece of the social justice agendas of the Reform – and to a degree Conservative – movements, advocates a more radical redistribution of resources. This paper argues that both approaches evolved as Jewish communities’ responses to specific historical circumstances. They are not immutable tradition and should not be cited out of context. In addition, this paper examines the tension between hope and pessimism toward the eradication of poverty through the lens of messianism. It describes Judaism’s views on the role of man in the work of bringing about the perfect justice of the messianic era, and attempts to reconcile the divine commandment to alleviate poverty with the impossibility of eliminating it within human history.