Posts Tagged ‘tzedakah’
All Proceeds to Charity – Promise or Prayer?
1. Nowadays it is common to see the words “all proceeds to charity” or something along those lines on all kinds of advertisements, from books to concerts.
2. There are, however, a few potential ambiguities with this formula, based on the uncertainty of what is meant by “all”, what is meant by “proceeds”, what is meant by “to” and what is meant by “charity”.
3. Proceeds is generally understood in this context to mean profits, and fair enough: although in some cases the actual cost of producing whatever it is has been generously underwritten by a charitable donor, in which case the gross receipts from “customers” may go to charity, in most cases it is accepted that proceeds means proceeds net of actual expenses.
4. But what amounts to actual expenses in this context varies widely. In particular, where the person who is offering the service is paying himself or herself a salary out of the charity’s funds, “expenses” is likely to include a deduction that goes into the pocket of that person and possibly other employees of the charity.
5. Again, fair enough, one may say: people who run charities also like to eat occasionally; and where a charity requires more time and expertise than can be provided by a part-time amateur, the charity will of course need to factor into its running expenses the costs of salaries for its staff.
6. But in order to avoid halachic questions of theft from public funds and g’neivas da’as (“stealing the mind” – creating a false impression) three things are needed – transparency, accountability and proportionality.
7. As to transparency, it should be clear to donors that they are contributing towards the living expenses of the person or persons running the charity. Sometimes this will be sufficiently clear by implication: but not always – and if there is reasonable ambiguity, it should be dispelled in some appropriately express way. And if the person collecting for charity is on a commission, the amount of that commission should be made clear to the donor at the time of soliciting the donation.
8. As to accountability, charities should not just produce the accounts required by the Charity Commission: they should produce and publish their complete accounts so that people who donate even small amounts are likely to have access to the accounts. For example, if a charity has a standing advertisement in a synagogue, the annual accounts should be sent to the synagogue and it should be invited to exhibit them in the same way.
9. As to proportionality, salaries should be proportionate both to the resources of the charity and to the qualifications of the person providing the services. One sometimes suspects that people pay themselves or are paid out of charitable funds salaries at a rate that they would find it hard to command in the commercial sector.
10. Those who run charities without charging for their time, or who give all their time to charities and charge a reasonable amount for it, do an immense service both to those whom the charity benefits and to all of us who they allow to participate in it through donations. But by agreeing to run a charity one accepts a sacred trust that must not be tainted by hidden or unreasonable personal gain.
Charity in the Credit Crunch
1. This Thursday the Agudah rabbonim have called a day of prayer on account of the continuing and deepening impact of the recession. With so many local families and institutions in financial difficulty, the rabbis urge us to pray for Divine compassion.
2. At the same time, they remind us that those of us who are still blessed with jobs and sufficient incomes should be giving what we can to communal institutions and other tzedokohs.
3. The concept of the tithing of income derives from this week’s parashah; at the end of a conversation between Yaakov and Hashem (Bereishis 28:20-22). Yaakov says to Hashem, in essence, “if you are with me on my journey, give me food and clothing and bring me home safely, then I will give back one tenth of whatever you give me”.
4. A strange way to talk to God. Striking a bargain with God in this peremptory fashion is strange enough to begin with. And to promise to pay the donor for a benefit conferred by agreeing to return one tenth of the benefit is strange enough to be going on with; how should that convince the donor to give?
5. The practice of tithing is a recognition that everything belongs to and comes from God. If we recognise the Divine origin of everything we have, we can turn to God with confidence and trust, and ask Him to continue His blessings; by promising to use them for good (a concept which includes, but is not limited to, setting a part aside for others) we are trying to make ourselves fitting recipients.
6. In hard times when we are confronted by financial difficulties on all sides it is that much easier not to take our material blessings for granted; if realising our blessings encourages us to give increasingly generously to various causes, encouraged by the increased importance and potential impact of a small amount of money in troubled times, we can see why the rabbis have always stressed that the perfect Messianic world is more likely to emerge out of troubled times – nothing is more likely to lead to it than an enhanced sense of our responsibilities to each other and the importance of sharing our blessings.
The Sceptic Blog 