Monies in a Pushka
“Do Not Add Oil”
(Menachos 59b)
Our Gemara, in discussing the laws of the Minchas Chotei, the sinner’s Mincha offering, cites the pasuk in Parshas Vayikra (5:11): “[He] shall not place oil on it nor shall he place frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering.” Rashi on that verse explains that since it is a sin offering, it is not proper that it be adorned with oil or frankincense. The Gemara then discusses instances in which oil or frankincense was placed on the Mincha. The Gemara seems to resolve that while the proper offering of the Mincha itself must be minimally a k’zayis – the measure of an olive – if the amount of either oil or frankincense placed on the Mincha is an insignificant measure – a kal d’hu – such an offering would nevertheless be valid. As we will see, this sugya has relevance for the laws of tzedakah as well.
Supporting The Old Yishuv
Given that the Yishuv in Eretz Yisrael by and large was impoverished and in need of help from their wealthier brethren in the Diaspora, charity boxes were placed in many synagogues and homes with the sole intention that any monies placed therein would be exclusively used to support the poor of Eretz Yisrael. Once, a certain community needed a large sum for an immediate important charitable cause, and the suggestion was made to use the monies that had accumulated in the charity boxes. The Acharonim are of differing views on this matter.
Charity Boxes Belong to the Poor
If a person vows to give charity to a certain poor person, the Acharonim disagree as to whether he can change his mind and give the promised charity to another poor person (see Ketzos HaChoshen, 212). However, in our cited case, Rabbi Mordechai Zev Ettinger, zt”l (author of Mefareshei HaYam on Bava Kama and brother-in-law of the author of Shoel Umeishiv) claimed that, according to all opinions, the custodians of the charity boxes may not give the monies that had accumulated to other poor people as the boxes belong to the poor persons designated when the coins were deposited. The specified poor persons own the monies and no one may take it (Responsa Maamar Mordechai, 15). However, the author of Beis Yitzchak (Responsa, O.C. 21, s.k. 2) claims that before we decide the issue, we should pay attention to Tosafos on our sugya.
Tosafos (60a s.v. Mi ba’inan simah) explain that every reference to “giving” in the Torah does not mean giving the slightest insignificant amount but an amount with a shiur – a halachic measure. Concerning food, giving is defined as a k’zayis, but if we are dealing with money, only a perutah is considered giving. The Torah says, “Give, you shall give” (Devarim 15:10), commanding us to give charity to a poor person who requests money and not to ignore him.
Hence, the mitzvah of charity is observed by giving a poor person at least a perutah. One who gives less than a perutah has not properly performed the mitzvah. In light of the very minimal minimum unit required for giving charity, the Beis Yitzchak postulates that the charity box is, in fact, to the detriment of the poor.
Joint Rights
A person who puts money in a charity box certainly wants to observe the mitzvah of charity. However, even if he puts very valuable gold coins into the box, he does not observe the mitzvah, as the poor of Eretz Yisrael are many and as soon as he gives them the charity, it is divided among them equally. Since each recipient gets less than a perutah, the donor thus does not functionally fulfill the mitzvah. His only possibility of fulfilling the mitzvah of charity when he deposits coins into a charity box is to specifically stipulate that he is not granting the coins to the poor until the money is actually disbursed to them. Presumably, at that time, each recipient will surely acquire at least a perutah’s worth and thus the mitzvah will be achieved.
With this in mind, we cannot say that there is no permission to take money from the charity box for another charitable need since the designated poor recipients already acquired it. The custodian of the charity box does not immediately give over the money to them. At the time the funds are transferred, however, the recipients each receive at least the minimum perutah’s worth. The Beis Yitzchak finally concludes that the mitzvah of charity differs from all giving mentioned in the Torah in that one who gives charity in an amount less than a perutah does in fact fulfill the mitzvah (see his proofs ibid.; the Maharil Diskin, zt”l, agreed; and see Derech Emunah, Hilchos Matonos Aniyim, halacha 1 in Beiur Halacha).