I have been distributing tzedaka to several worthy causes, but will unfortunately not be able to continue to provide them all. I must decide which ones I will no longer be able to support. Could you please list them which ones I should not drop;
Here are the situations:
1. a young woman who is very sick; I am paying for her nursing care;
2. a needy family that I provide help so that they have food for Shabbos
3. someone whose medical insurance I pay for
4. several situations in which I am paying for marriage therapy
5. several situations in which I am paying for someone’s individual psychotherapy
6. someone who is out of work and trying to complete a professional degree so that he can support his family.
Should I simply reduce everyone by a certain percentage – say 50% or 30% of what I am currently paying?
Thank you very much
Answer:
It is very hard to “grade” the cases, and they all seem very important.
There is some preference given by Chazal and later poskim to certain cases (such as supporting Torah study, establishing somebody on his own economic feet, and so on; on the other hand, who can dispute the importance of Shalom Bayis?), but under the circumstances I think you should reduce the amount in proportion to your abilities, rather than cut one off for the sake of the other.
Best wishes.
