“And they said to Moshe as follows, ‘The people are bringing more than enough for the labor of the work that Hashem has commanded them to perform’” (Shemos 36:5)

I am often asked if it is worthwhile to donate to a particular charity. To determine the right response, I have to look at several factors. If the donor has only a small amount of money, one worthy cause he is considering may not be affected by his donation in any significant way, while there may be another charity that is less “worthy”, but his money will make a greater impact. What is the right choice to make?

The Rambam, when discussing a related question, says that giving tzedakah is an opportunity to make great gains in one’s midos. The Mishna in Pirkei Avos (3:15) says: “Hakol lifi rov hamaaseh”. The Rambam explains this to mean that if one has $1000 to give away, he is better off giving $1 to each of 1000 people rather than $1000 to a single person. The reason for this is that the 1000 acts of giving more readily make him into a “giving and caring person” than the one act of giving a significant sum. Since part of the reason for performing mitzvos is to make us into better people, the more times we give the better we become.

Jews throughout the world – regardless of affiliation or hashkafa – are known for being “givers”. One accountant in America mentioned to me that when he does a Jewish tax return, the least the person gives is 10% and very often more. Whereas the average non-Jewish tax returns have charitable deductions of 1, maybe 2%.

Where does this trait come from? The Beis Yisrael of Ger (Rabbi Izrael Alter 1895-1977) teaches us that this trait was inculcated into klal Yisrael by the inauguration of the Tabernacle. The verse says that each person “asher yidvenu lebo” whose heart is generous. The Beis Yisrael says that when Moshe said those words, he put the trait of giving generously into the Jewish people until the end of time.

Our goal is to be a nediv lev, a generously giving person. If when we are asked for tzedakah, our minds start calculating how important the cause is, then our minds are in the wrong place. Assuming the cause is legitimate, our first thought should be, “How much can I afford to give?”. Our forefathers in the desert had to be stopped by Moshe from giving more than what was necessary. This should be our goal as well. We should be feeling restrained when we can’t give more than what we can afford.

We have just celebrated Purim, the happiest day of the year. We are so happy to read the Megilla and relive Hashem’s Divine Providence for us in the exile. We are also so happy to give our friends Mishloach Manos and to eat our festive meals. But the mitzvah that is supposed to bring us the most simcha is Matanos laevyonim.

As the Rambam writes (Hilchos Megilah and Chanukah 2):

It is better to give more money to poor people than to spend on the meal and Mishloach Manos. This is because the greatest happiness that one can attain comes from making the poor people happy…

May we merit to take the spirit of our Purim giving and continue it throughout the year.