A Timeless Message from the Chafetz Chaim

Many today assume that with charity and chesed so widespread, there’s no need to say more. But this is a dangerous illusion.

Charity is not a box to check. It’s a living, breathing responsibility — judged not by what you gave yesterday, but by who stands in front of you today.

The Torah tells us:
“You shall surely open your hand to him and surely lend him sufficient for his need” (Deut. 15:8).
Not just something. Not just your leftovers. Sufficient. For his need.

In earlier generations, the needs of the poor were minimal. A pair of shoes, some bread, a coat — and they were grateful. With very little income, a poor man could live with dignity and even contentment. There was no obsession with luxury, and no endless cycle of consumption. Today, our expectations are inflated, our expenses multiplied, and the costs of basic survival — housing, clothing, healthcare — have exploded.

If our lives are so costly, how much more so for those who have nothing?

This is why the Chafetz Chaim writes:

“Today… the costs of almost everything have doubled and quadrupled. Hence the obligation to satisfy the needs of the poor also requires much larger sums.”

The needs have changed. The Torah’s standard has not.

Even more so when a person is on the verge of collapse — when they can no longer stand on their own — you are commanded to uphold him.
As the Torah states:
“If your brother becomes poor and his means fail with you, then you shall uphold him… and he shall live with you.” (Lev. 25:35)

This isn’t simply a loan or a handout — this is a life-preserving act.

“If you do not help him, your own security, God forbid, may collapse too.”

You think he is the one falling? You may be next.
Help him stand, and you may be saving your own future.

In today’s world, giving to charity doesn’t exempt you when someone collapses in front of you.

“Even if you have upheld him four or five times — uphold him again,” say our sages.

Why? Because this is the highest form of charity. This is real Torah economics — not theoretical kindness, but active prevention of human destruction. And when you save him from falling, you are fulfilling the verse:
“Happy is he who considers the poor; God will save him on the day of evil.” (Psalms 41:1)

And don’t think you fulfill this obligation by giving your cast-offs.
The Torah clearly states that when someone comes to you in need — for clothing, food, shelter, or basic dignity — you are required to provide at the level that you live. If you wear a Moncler or Prada coat, it is beneath the standard of a frum Jew to hand someone a used jacket from Kohl’s or Target. That is not charity — that is insult disguised as help.

The Torah expects you to keep your brother living beside you — not beneath you.
If your neighbor is cold, you wrap him in the same warmth you expect for yourself. That is Torah. That is faith. That is justice.

So open your mind, learn your Torah, have real emunah — and give generously, not below your level of living, but in line with it.

Bottom Line

1. Charity must match the times. The poor of 100+ years ago lived simply. Today, costs are higher, pressures greater, and dignity harder to maintain. You can’t measure your giving by yesterday’s standards.

2. Charity must match the person. The Torah commands sufficiency, not token amounts. Don’t give what you can spare. Give what they need to survive — at your level.

3. Charity must match the moment. When someone is collapsing in front of you — act. Your past giving does not absolve you of present responsibility.

Give like someone’s life, dignity, and future depend on it — because they do.

By: Family Loan Fund

One of the most common questions among Jews who take mitzvos seriously is:

“I want to give generously. But I heard you can’t give more than 20% of your income. Is that true?”

The answer — like much in Torah — isn’t one-size-fits-all. And it goes far deeper than just numbers.
Let’s unpack what Chazal, the Chafetz Chaim, and generations of poskim say — and what’s been misunderstood.

📜 Where Does the 20% Limit Come From?

The Gemara (Kesubos 50a) says:

“המבזבז אל יבזבז יותר מחומש”
“One who gives away wealth should not give more than a fifth (20%).”

This became halacha, cited by the Rambam (Hilchos Matanos Aniyim 7:5) and the Shulchan Aruch (YD 249:1).

But what many forget is that this rule is based on a Takana (decree) made by Chazal in the city of Usha — and it wasn’t meant for every person or every case.

🛑 Who Was the Takana of Usha Really For?

The sages in Usha were dealing with a generation of emotional givers — people who had no steady income and would give beyond their means in bursts of idealism.

• A farmer who had a good year — but didn’t know if next year would bring drought.
• A businessman who sold a big shipment — but had no ongoing sales pipeline.
• Someone who inherited a sum, but had no reliable income to replace what he gave away.

And more importantly, the takana addressed people who were actively going out into the world to give — traveling, seeking recipients, pouring their hearts into generosity.

They feared such people would act beyond their limits and later come begging themselves.

✅ Who Is Not Limited by This Takana?

• Someone with a regular income (like a salaried employee, a business owner, or contractor with steady work).
• Someone who lives simply and safely, and has clear surplus each month.
• Someone who gives from home, passively responding to needs without aggressively seeking causes.

In other words: the 20% cap doesn’t apply across the board.

If you make $5,000 a week and only need $1,000 to live — you’re allowed, even encouraged, to give far more than 20%.

📘 What the Chafetz Chaim Actually Says (Ahavas Chesed, Chelek Rishon, Chapter 2)

The Chafetz Chaim rules very clearly that the 20% limit is a protective measure — not a ceiling on generosity. And he lists several cases where going above 20% is either permitted or obligatory:

✔️ 1. Pikuach Nefesh (Saving a Life)

If someone’s life is in danger — due to hunger, illness, eviction, or abuse — the 20% rule is suspended.
You’re obligated to help, as much as you can.

✔️ 2. Wealthy Individuals

If giving 30%, 40%, or even 70% won’t touch your lifestyle or your security — you’re not only allowed to give more, you should.

✔️ 3. Extraordinary Mitzvah Opportunities

A mikvah needs building. A cheder is in danger. A Torah family is collapsing under debt.
These are situations where the Chafetz Chaim says: go beyond your usual limit.

✔️ 4. Supporting Torah — No Upper Limit

When it comes to sustaining Torah learning, yeshivos, avreichim, chadarim, or the klal’s spiritual infrastructure —
there is no restriction.

The Chafetz Chaim says explicitly: the 20% limit does not apply when the Torah itself is in need.
Holding back under the excuse of “halacha” in such cases is not piety — it’s a misreading.

💡 So What Should You Do?

• If you have modest means: Use the 20% cap as your general rule.
• If you have real surplus or wealth: Go beyond it, especially if the need is pressing or eternal.
• If you’re supporting Torah institutions or talmidei chachamim: Give what your soul tells you, not just what the calculator says.

🔄 Final Thought

The takana of Usha wasn’t made to make people stingy. It was made to protect those who had no idea what tomorrow might bring.
But if you’re living with bracha, with security, with steady income — you’re playing by different rules.

Tzedakah tatzil mimaves — Tzedakah saves from death.
And even more so — it builds life. Yours and others’.

*For guidance in structuring your giving, or for a printable halachic tzedakah guide based on Ahavas Chesed and the Chafetz