Charity: Difference between revisions
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# The mitzvah of tzedaka applies to men and women equally.<Ref>Sefer Hachinuch 479, Laws of Tzedakah and Maaser p. 27</ref> | # The mitzvah of tzedaka applies to men and women equally.<Ref>Sefer Hachinuch 479, Laws of Tzedakah and Maaser p. 27</ref> | ||
# Children should be trained to give tzedaka from the age of chinuch, which is around 5 or 6, if he has his own money.<ref>Laws of Tzedakah and Maaser p. 32</ref> | # Children should be trained to give tzedaka from the age of chinuch, which is around 5 or 6, if he has his own money.<ref>Laws of Tzedakah and Maaser p. 32</ref> | ||
# Someone who is poor nonetheless has an obligation to give a minimal amount of tzedaka.<ref>Based on Gittin 7b the Shulchan Aruch Y.D. 248:1 writes that even a poor person needs to give tzedaka. Shach 248:2 writes that this only refers to someone who has income to support himself but doesn't have capital to himself, however, someone who doesn't even have a steady income is completely exempt from tzedaka. However, the Nachlat Tzvi 248:1 disagrees and holds that every poor person needs to give a minimal amount of a third of a shekel. The poor person is not exempt from that; he is exempt from giving more tzedaka if he doesn't have an income. Laws of Tzedakah and Maaser p. 33 agrees. See Shevet Halevi 5:132:2 and Igrot Moshe YD 2:113 s.v. ach.</ref> | |||
# Many opinions hold that if one decided to give charity mentally without expressing it verbally, one should fulfill that decision.<ref>There's two opinions in Shulchan Aruch C”M 212:8 if a mental thought to make something hekdesh or [[tzedaka]] is binding. The Rama C”M 212:8 and Y"D 258:13 writes that the halacha is that it is binding. Yechave Daat 6:52 has a doubt about the opinion of Shulchan Aruch. On the one hand, since there are two opinions in S”A, it would seem that the halacha is like the second one, who in this case is lenient. But, on the other hand, the second opinion is quoted as yesh mi she'omer in singular, whereas the first is quoted in plural yesh omrim. Yalkut Yosef y"d 247-259:12 just quotes Shulchan Aruch but doesn't give a definitive ruling. In one article of [http://www.dailyhalacha.com/displayRead.asp?readID=1205 DailyHalacha by Rabbi Mansour], he writes that we're lenient according to the opinion of the Daat Esh who says that everyone agrees that its not binding if the whole event was mental but there's a dispute if you said you'd give but didn't specify. However, the Yechave Daat 6:52 argues that this opinion is not implied by Shulchan Aruch. However, in another article [http://www.dailyhalacha.com/displayRead.asp?readID=2375 Rabbi Mansour] writes that we're machmir that it is binding according to the Or Letzion.</ref> | # Many opinions hold that if one decided to give charity mentally without expressing it verbally, one should fulfill that decision.<ref>There's two opinions in Shulchan Aruch C”M 212:8 if a mental thought to make something hekdesh or [[tzedaka]] is binding. The Rama C”M 212:8 and Y"D 258:13 writes that the halacha is that it is binding. Yechave Daat 6:52 has a doubt about the opinion of Shulchan Aruch. On the one hand, since there are two opinions in S”A, it would seem that the halacha is like the second one, who in this case is lenient. But, on the other hand, the second opinion is quoted as yesh mi she'omer in singular, whereas the first is quoted in plural yesh omrim. Yalkut Yosef y"d 247-259:12 just quotes Shulchan Aruch but doesn't give a definitive ruling. In one article of [http://www.dailyhalacha.com/displayRead.asp?readID=1205 DailyHalacha by Rabbi Mansour], he writes that we're lenient according to the opinion of the Daat Esh who says that everyone agrees that its not binding if the whole event was mental but there's a dispute if you said you'd give but didn't specify. However, the Yechave Daat 6:52 argues that this opinion is not implied by Shulchan Aruch. However, in another article [http://www.dailyhalacha.com/displayRead.asp?readID=2375 Rabbi Mansour] writes that we're machmir that it is binding according to the Or Letzion.</ref> | ||
# If a person wrote a check for tzedaka he must carry through with his decision and give it to tzedaka.<ref>Chukei Chaim YD 3:56 raises the possibility that an action to give tzedaka is more significant than just thinking about giving tzedaka and should be fulfilled. Mishnat Hamishpat p. 369 quotes the Mayim Kedoshim, Olot Shlomo Menachot 55, and Binyan Olam EH 2 who say this. He concludes that if someone wrote a check to tzedaka he needs to actually give it to tzedaka.</ref> | # If a person wrote a check for tzedaka he must carry through with his decision and give it to tzedaka.<ref>Chukei Chaim YD 3:56 raises the possibility that an action to give tzedaka is more significant than just thinking about giving tzedaka and should be fulfilled. Mishnat Hamishpat p. 369 quotes the Mayim Kedoshim, Olot Shlomo Menachot 55, and Binyan Olam EH 2 who say this. He concludes that if someone wrote a check to tzedaka he needs to actually give it to tzedaka.</ref> | ||
