Positive Commandment 130 (Digest)
Tithes for the Poor
"At the end of three years, you shall bring forth all the tithes of your produce"—Deuteronomy 14:28.
We are commanded to separate a tenth of our harvest [in addition to the First Tithe given to the Levites] on the third and sixth year of the seven-year Shemitah cycle, and give it to the poor.
[During these two years, this tithe substitutes the Second Tithe.]
This biblical precept only applies in the Land of Israel.
The
130th mitzvah is that we are
commanded to give ma'aser ani [a
tenth of one's harvest to the poor] every third year—i.e., the third and the
sixth—of the seven-year (shemittah)
cycle.
The
source of this commandment is G‑d's statement, "At the end of each three year period, you
must bring out all the tithes of your crop..."
This
Biblical precept, too, applies only in Eretz Yisroel.
The
details of this mitzvah are explained
in tractate Pe'ah, Demai, and Ma'aseros. It is also mentioned in various
passages of the other tractates of [Seder] Zeraim, and in Machshirin and in Yadayim.
Positive Commandment 195 (Digest)
Charity
"You shall surely open your hand "—Deuteronomy 15:8.
We are commanded to give charity to the indigent, to relieve them of their distress. We are commanded to feed the needy and provide them with whatever they lack.
Even a pauper who is sustained by charity is obligated to fulfill this mitzvah—by giving charity (even if only a pittance) to someone needier than himself, or someone in a similar predicament.
The
195th mitzvah is that we are
commanded to give charity—to support and relieve the poor.
This
command is expressed in the Torah in various ways: "Open your hand generously";
"Help him survive, whether he is a convert or a born Jew";
"Help your brother survive with you." These verses all have the same point—that we
must provide for our poor and support them in accordance with their need.
The
details of this mitzvah are explained
in a number of places, the majority in tractates Kesubos and Baba Basra.
The
Oral Tradition relates that even a poor person who himself lives from charity
is also obligated in this mitzvah—to
give even a small amount of charity to someone less fortunate than him or on
the same level as himself.
Negative Commandment 232 (Digest)
Ignoring a Needy Person
"Do not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your destitute brother"—Deuteronomy 15:7.
It is forbidden to be stingy and withhold charity and relief from our needy brethren—if we are aware of their desperate situation and have the means to assist them.
The
232nd prohibition is that we are forbidden from withholding charity and
assistance from our needy brethren once we have become aware of their
difficulty and know we have the ability to help them.
The
source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement, "Do not harden your heart or shut your hand
against your needy brother."
This
prohibits being cruel and stingy to the extent that we do not give to those who
deserve our assistance.
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