4 November 2011 - Yeshiva College

Twice a day Jews recite the line that defines our faith. "Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.”
The words that follow define how we are supposed to express that belief through our actions. The original
Hebrew from the Torah is often mistranslated, "with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your
might." The more correct reading for the last phrase is "and with all your wealth."
Having a great deal of money isn't a problem. Not knowing what to do with it is what causes almost all of
our difficulties. And spending it correctly is the challenge we face throughout our lifetimes that will best
determine whether we can face our final judgment with confidence.
“Show me your checkbook stubs,” said the noted psychologist, Erich Fromm, “and I’ll tell you everything
about yourself.” Self-indulgence or selflessness Wine, women, and song or charitable works Hedonism
or helping others Forsaking God because you no longer need Him or feeling more spiritually connected
out of gratitude for your good fortune
For those whose crusade against Wall Street is synonymous with a vendetta against all those with wealth,
there needs to be recognition of the great good accomplished by many of those who've been blessed with
prosperity. Just because someone has "made it" doesn't make him a villain. To add the adjective "filthy" to
the word rich in signs hoisted by Occupy Wall Street protesters is to unfairly castigate those who God may
have rewarded because they're wise enough to work on His behalf in creating a better world.
We could all learn much from Michael Bloomberg, the self-made billionaire founder of the Bloomberg
financial information firm and New York Mayor, who for two years in a row was the leading individual living
donor in the United States, according to The Chronicle of Philanthropy. He recently said he intends to give
away most of his fortune, because “the best measure of a philanthropist is that the check he leaves to the
undertaker bounces.” And that will insure that he dies a very happy man.
Capitalism isn't only about accumulating more and more money. Just a few years ago TIME named Bill
and Melinda Gates as its “Persons of the Year.” Gates, a Wall Street superstar, was acknowledged as one
of the most influential people in the country – not because of how much money he has but because of how
much of it he is willing to give away. He came to the conclusion that greed isn’t meant to be our goal in life.
Having made more money than he will ever need, he has one more vision that drives him. He would love
to convince world business leaders that being socially responsible isn’t just altruism but sound business
practice. Gates says he has learned that greed is self-defeating. It destroys the very people who make it
their god.
Today Gates is spearheading a drive to get the super wealthy to publicly commit themselves to giving
away most of their fortunes for charitable purposes – and Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway
Inc. and one of the world’s wealthiest men, among others has signed on to this noble endeavour.
When the Occupy Wall Street crowd talks about cleaning up corruption, when it points a finger at all those
whose financial recklessness plunged the country into the Great Recession, when it gives voice to the
anger we all feel at the perpetrators of highly immoral business practices that hurt millions of innocent
victims – for all of these righteous causes they deserve our unqualified thanks.
It's only when they confuse anyone who is wealthy with the enemy that I think we need to remind them that
just as much as the poor don't deserve to be despised for their poverty, the rich don't deserve to be hated
simply because they have money.
Rabbi Bookatz
Associate Rabbi at Mizrachi
Tel: +27 11 485-3624
4 November 2011 – 7 Cheshvan 16