Should Charity Reflect Past Luxuries? A Tale of Tradition and Change

In the portion of Bechukotai, it is written, "And your brother shall live with you," commanding us to sustain every person and provide for their needs.

The Talmud tells of a man who fell into poverty, yet was accustomed to riding a horse with a servant running ahead to clear the way. When he sought charity, the sages decreed he should receive these very comforts, if the communal charity fund allowed, because the Torah instructs, "Provide for their needs as they lack."

Rabbi Yechiel Michel Epstein, in his work Aruch HaShulchan, notes that this applies to someone who was truly wealthy. However, today, many indulge in luxuries they can't afford. People lease luxury cars, purchase extravagant items in installments, and rent upscale apartments—only to face bankruptcy when the bubble bursts. For such indulgences, they should not be granted previous luxuries, as these choices led to their poverty. One must not borrow for luxuries.

An intriguing debate arose between a certain scholar and Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv ztz"l. After the Holocaust, a cherished Jewish figure, who once served as a Rebbe in a small town and hosted Friday night gatherings (*tishim*) with his followers, made his way to Tel Aviv. There, he lived alone in a single room, his demeanor marked by sorrow. Though he had survived, his illustrious past, family, students, and status were left behind, erased from his old hometown.

A city rabbi, moved by this man's plight, invoked the Talmudic precedent: even a horse and servant to run before him. If this learned man had been accustomed to leading a gathering with his Chassidim, surely it was now his missing need, to be funded by charity just like the once-wealthy man who fell from grace.

However, Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv ztz"l argued that charity could not be allocated this way, as the concept of "their missing needs" applies only to someone impoverished. As long as this individual had a livelihood, he was not poor. His pain stemmed from his former position, not a lack that charity can fill. Anyone wishing to uplift him would indeed perform a great mitzvah, but not from the charity fund...