Louder Than Words

By Daniel Kieval In the wake of January 8’s horrific shooting in Tucson, Arizona, attention was rightly given to Representative Gabrielle Giffords’ 20-year-old intern, Daniel Hernandez. Hernandez calmly and heroically rushed toward, not away from, the victims of the gunfire, and his immediate care of Giffords is credited with helping to save her life. Meanwhile, far more discussion concerned Sarah Palin’s and President Obama’s contrasting speeches in response to the incident. It seems that words, especially those of politicians, ultimately provide more fuel for the relentless 24-hour media than actions, even exceptional ones. Jewish tradition, on the other hand, offers a different perspective. Judaism is a religion of action; thought and learning are encouraged and even glorified, but the tradition also teaches that “lo hamidrash hu ha’ikar elah hama’aseh”—the main principle is not study but practice. Thus,...

Continue reading

Charity vs. Tzedakah: Restoring Justice to Giving

By Daniel Kieval The "season of giving," for better and for worse, is upon us. The bestowing of gifts upon friends and family for Hanukkah and Christmas pervades the current month, and soon non-profit organizations will begin drives for end-of-the-year donations. It is good that we remember to be generous not only toward those we know and care about but also–or especially–toward those whose very survival may depend on our gifts and the goods and services they fund. Tzedakah, often translated as "charity" but literally meaning "justice," has always been part of Jewish tradition. Its origin, though, lies not in the donation of money, which is most common and practical today, but in something more primal and immediate: food. In ancient society, when most people were farmers and marketplaces were not open 24 hours on every block,...

Continue reading