Judaism and Poverty

History of Judaism and Poverty

One of the strongest declarations about the importance of charity can be found in early Judaism. Amos, the oldest prophetic book in the Bible and the name of a prophet who prophesied during the reign of Jeroboam II (775–750 b.c.e.), called on the Jewish people to embrace charity. This emphasis on social justice and on charity was present in a long line of Hebraic prophets—Micah, Hosea, Isaiah, Jeremiah, to name only a few.

In the Bible one can find established rules for tsedakah by use of the rule of peah, whereby corners of the fields were left unharvested. Leviticus (23:22) stated, “when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not finish off the corner of your field in your harvesting and the gleanings of your harvest you shall not take.” Here, landowners provided opportunities for the poor to gather food from land they simply could not afford to own. Also, this provided an opportunity for the poor to work for their food. In other words, this was not a welfare-like entitlement or benefit per se.

This important principle was later to be demonstrated well in the noted work of Moses Maimonides (1135–1204 c.e.). Maimonides (known as Rambam) is most remembered for his detailed philosophical integration of Greek philosophy into Judaism. It might be said in this respect that what Maimonides did for Judaism, Thomas Aquinas did for Christianity.

Maimonides adapted and developed the basic concepts of peah into eight levels of giving in his Laws of Gifts to the Poor. Maimonides wanted to provide for the needy, while at the same time maintaining the dignity of the individual.

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