How Do You Do Charity? (May-Jun 2002)
By Moses Maimonides
May-June 2002
Eight levels of charity
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To give reluctantly
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To give cheerfully but not adequately
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To give cheerfully and adequately, but only after being asked
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To give cheerfully, adequately, and of your own free will, but in such a way as to make the recipient feel demeaned
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To let the recipient know who the donor is but not the reverse
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To know who is receiving your charity but to remain anonymous to him
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To have neither the donor nor the recipient be aware of the other’s identity
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To dispense with charity altogether, by enabling your fellow humans to have the wherewithal to earn their own living.
–13th century Jewish theologian Moses Maimonides
