American Jews are among the most charitable groups in the country, giving far beyond our small 2% of the population. It is one of the beautiful qualities of our community. And while Judaism certainly teaches concern for humanity as a whole, it also teaches that it comes only after our own community’s needs are taken care of.
This leads to a broader question: what actually motivates a person to give?
At the first and most basic level, a person gives because they are feeling generous today and want to do something good. There is certainly value in that. But naturally, the giving usually lasts only until one’s own emotional need is satisfied. Once the person feels they have “done something nice,” the motivation fades.
At a deeper level, a person gives because they are responding to a specific need. Someone is struggling. A school needs support. A family needs help. A community has to reach a goal. In this case, people often give far more than they originally planned, because they genuinely want to see the need addressed.
But then there is a higher level still. Those rare individuals in the community with an insatiable appetite for giving, not only because it feels good, and not only because there is a need, but because generosity becomes part of who they are. They stop viewing charity as a transaction and begin viewing it as a relationship with G d.
Often, we approach giving with endless calculations. We first need to determine exactly what amount feels fully comfortable, or we need to get permission from our financial advisor. Of course responsibility matters, and Judaism does not ask us to be reckless. But at the same time, a life of meaning can never be built only around comfort and calculation. Sometimes you need to go beyond and give it all you have got.
When it comes to our physical health, or the wellbeing of someone we love, we never say that we have spent enough. We go far beyond what feels convenient. Judaism asks us to see goodness the same way. To keep growing. To keep giving. To keep stretching ourselves beyond the comfort zone.
And, I have yet to meet someone who truly regretted the charity they gave.