My poverty status is indicated by my EBT (food stamps) card. This card is not welcome at most kosher food shops in Riverdale. Does this mean that EBT cards are not approved by the rabbinate? Is there some Torah interpretation that holds that elderly poor Jews should go without EBT cards as well as without meat?
David R. Zukerman
Bronx, NY
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Charity Letters From Schools
A major issue facing the observant Jewish community is the twin problem of school tuition and support for our educational institutions. Equally clear is that support for Torah educational institutions is a halachic priority in a person’s distribution of charity money. But there are obvious questions that arise.
By “Torah educational institution,” does halacha mean a pre-school, an elementary school, or a high school? Or perhaps we mean a beis medrash or even a kollel? Are all the same? Are all on the same level for our charity dollars? If not, what is the order of priority?
Do we mean a boys’ school or girls’ school? If one cites a 500-year-old halachic principle, it obviously can’t refer to Bais Yaakovs, which didn’t exist back then.
Does the principle apply to all Jewish schools, or only yeshivish ones? Does it apply to Modern Orthodox yeshivas? How about day schools? Solomon Schechter (conservative) day schools? What demand do they have on the charity dollars of Orthodox people? (Obviously, the question can be asked in reverse by Conservative Jews.)
If I’m a Bobov chassid, what is my obligation to a Satmar school? If I’m Modern Orthodox, what is my obligation to a chassidic school? If I’m a strong religious Zionist, what is my obligation to an anti-Zionist school? Does halacha require that I contribute to the teaching of beliefs I find to be anti-Orthodox or to beliefs my rosh yeshiva is opposed to?
Does it depend if the yeshiva is the only one in the community or one of ten? Does it depend on whether it was the first school in the community? The newest? How about if it’s one of ten but happens to be the most left-wing or the most right-wing, offering a different choice to the community?
When we talk about individual poverty, the poor of one’s city take precedence over other cities. Is this true for schools as well?
Does it depend on the school’s governance? Clearly some yeshivas (like some shuls) are in effect private enterprises (shtiebels) started and run by one man, and later his extended family. I’m American – I believe in “no taxation without representation.”
Does it matter whether the school is run “on generally accepted accounting principles,” whether its books are audited, or whether it ever gives a full financial statement to the public? Does it make a difference whether the owner/rosh yeshiva is getting paid minimum wages or two hundred thousand dollars a year? Does it matter if, in effect, all money left at the end of the year goes into the owner’s pocket?
Is financial malfeasance or even outright fraud something I can ask about before I have an obligation to give charity to this school? How about management principles? Or obvious nepotism in the selection of administrators and staff? Does halacha say I must prioritize giving to a school that is poorly managed and ineffectively run?
How about the school programs? Do I have an obligation to support the secular studies department of the yeshiva? How about music and art classes? Class trips? How about gym? A pre-college guidance department? Who determines basic questions such as class size? If the school requires financial help because it aims at an average class size of 12 or 15 students (not special ed), can I withhold my charity dollars until it raises class size to 18 or even 25 students per class? Clearly class size and school expenses are closely related.
