Coercing to Give Charity

Parshat תרומה begins by telling us that those who donated to the Mishkan, needed to do so with a giving heart. That is, that their contributions were given totally willingly and with love.

We contrast this with a Gemara in בבא בתרא that says that there are times when one may coerce someone to give צדקה. The Gemara says that if there was a situation where the Beit Din learned of a Jew who was very wealthy and never gave charity, they would send messengers of the court to forcibly take his possessions.

The exact situation is not one that could be duplicated today, but it is interesting to note that such miserliness was not tolerated, especially when there were so many poor Jews.

Rabbi Berel Wein claims that 80% of American Jews do not give a penny to any Jewish cause. The lesson from this is to be charitable within our means and to give with love.