42 Walter Jacob

Service, the Peace Corps , and other organizations. Direct aid along with funds have gone in those directions.

Tzedakah has taken a new and much broader meaning for both the religious and secular Jews for idealistic and social reasons. The organizations that collect and disburse funds provide considerable prominence to those who lead them, more than in previous eras. As there is more limelight on the presidency of a Federation than of a synagogue, country club, or social club, those positions have attracted able members of the Jewish community. As similar leadership positions in the world of general charities are now also open to Jews , many have been attracted in that direction, both for the fulfillment of mitzvah of tzedakah and for community-wide honors. This has meant that Jewish leadership must be shared with the broader community far more than in earlier times.

It is good and very much part of Judaism to help the poor and neglected of all humanity, but it cannot be at the cost of neglecting our own community. This balance is not easily established and that will always present a problem.

The renewed emphasis on zedakah has also united the Jewish community which is otherwise splintered not only into synagogue denominations, but also into innumerable social groups. Here is a forum where all meet and share the common tasks.

So strangely enough, in an era of lesser need, we have seen tzedakah become a cornerstone of Judaism for many who do little else that could be considered formally Jewish . They have made it an essential obligation for themselves and their children in the Jewish and broader general community. It represents a way of expressing Judaism through their lives. Having discovered this mitzvah, they may find others too. This represents another revolution in the long path of