Giving Tzedakah as a Family

The PJ Library Blog

GIVING IS LIKE MUSCLE-BUILDING — the more it’s done, the more it becomes second nature. That’s the principle at the heart of the message from 12th century scholar and philosopher Rambam (Maimonides). Your family can strengthen its giving behavior, or tzedakah (from the Hebrew word meaning righteousness, fairness, or justice), by establishing routine habits and creating ongoing opportunities.

STRENGTHENING GIVING BEHAVIOR

If you had $100 to give away, would be it better to give that lump sum to a single person or to divvy it up and give $1 to 100 different people? Rambam (Maimonides) says the latter option is ideal because the act of repeated giving turns generosity into a habit. By continually fostering a spirit of generosity, more giving will ultimate result. He writes:

    “If a person gives 1,000 coins at one time and to one person, this is secondary to the one who gives 1,000 times with 1,000 coins … for the latter case multiplies the spirit of generosity 1,000 times over, while giving just once will arouse awaken the spirit of generosity once, and then it ends.”

    (Commentary to Mishnah Avot 3:15)

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London Hugs Paddington Bear

As Britons welcome a new screen adaptation, author Michael Bond muses on the bear’s quasi-Jewish roots

By Rachel Shukert for Tablet Magazine

Look at any picture of London these days, and it appears a small army has invaded—an army of bears, that is. Over 50 celebrity-designed life-size statues of the beloved children’s character Paddington Bear have been placed at strategically chosen locations around the city, including, of course, at Paddington Station, to coincide with the feature film debut of everybody’s favorite, accident-prone, duffle coat loving Peruvian.

The film is, by all accounts, a delight—an instant children’s classic that adults will love as well. Unfortunately, like so much of the best of Britain these days (your Downton Abbeys, your Sherlocks), we in the States will have to wait until January for it. But we can enjoy the flurry of British press surrounding the film, particularly the interviews with Paddington’s 88-year-old creator, Michael Bond, in which he reveals his inspiration for the kindly bear: the Jewish evacuee children he remembered seeing in the train stations of London during the Kindertransport of the late 1930s. “They all had a label round their neck with their name and address on,” a recent article in The Guardian quotes Bond as saying, “and a little case or package containing all their treasured possessions. So Paddington, in a sense, was a refugee, and I do think that there’s no sadder sight than refugees.”

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9 Hanukkah Crafts for Kids

By Marie LeBaron for babycenter.com blog

Hanukkah is just around the corner and it’s time to start gathering ideas to bring in 8 nights of light. Here are 9 ideas that are sure to get the kids involved and celebrate this Jewish holiday.

1. Festive Felt Chanukah Bunting by Creative Jewish Mom


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Best Children's Books About Hanukkah

 By Elizabeth Kennedy, Children's Books Expert, for aboutparenting


 Every year, we see more and more Hanukkah books for children. The children's Hanukkah books below emphasize the importance of this Jewish holiday, family activities during Hanukkah, folktales about Hanukkah, the history of Hanukkah, and sharing Hanukkah with friends and neighbors. The children's Hanukkah books include an excellent anthology, engaging Chanukah picture books, a book of poetry and history, and a chapter book. There are books for preschoolers to middle schoolers.

















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For more on Jewish books for children, check out our    page.

The Chanukah story for kids, from G-dcast

A video to share with your family.