Every society has had to cope with poverty and the poor.
Traditionally, most scholars have located the origins of modern
philanthropies in the free-grain-distribution schemes common in
ancient Greece and Rome, while most social workers see the history
of philanthropic or welfare institutions as beginning with the
Elizabethan Poor Laws. A few students know that the early Christian
church made provisions for the poor, but few are aware of what
occurred prior to the beginning of Christianity. This volume
provides evidence that contemporary philanthropic and welfare
institutions owe a greater debt to Judaism than to the Greco-Roman
culture.
By skillful use of source documents, the author explores Jewish
influence on early Christian charities, seeing it as more important
than previously believed.He traces the evolution of charitable
institutions in ancient Judaism from the days of the monarchy until
the conclusion of the Talmud, a period of about fifteen hundred
years. He demonstrates how responsibility for support of the poor
was initially placed on the individual, with every farmer obligated
to provide for the poor from his field. Dramatic increases in the
number and proportion of poor people made major structural changes
imperative. A theme throughout the book is how communal
institutions evolved in place of individual responsibility. The
change was gradual and not without opposition. How these changes
came about and in what functional areas they occurred are
discussed, as well as an analysis of Jewish support for the
non-Jewish poor and non-Jewish support for the Jewish poor. In an
appendix, the author discusses the philanthropies of the early
Christians.
From Charity to SocialJustice adds to current debates on the
role of religious institutions in welfare programs. It will be of
particular interest to those who are interested in the history of
philanthropy and in the development of welfare institutions. For
the first time relevant sections of the Talmud and other
post-biblical Jewish writings are made available to those who
cannot read these in the original.
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