Finances and the Divine: Using Money as a Religious Tool

Historically, the Jewish people have seen financial resources as tools for building sacred communities. As recorded in this week's parashah, the fundamental approach to economic resources from biblical times onwards has been to operate within available resources and to thank God by offering back a portion of what we have been graced with.

Of course, confusion can also exist between religious values and the business of running a congregation or organization. Our contemporary world does not ask us to put our financial practices through a religious audit to see how our actions line up with living a moral life.

Simply attending synagogue does not, in itself, heal this divide. We must also consider what spiritual insights might guide fiscal choices within the sanctuary, and how the prayers and policies of our congregations contribute to us living in the image of God.

At times, differences between individual values and communal religious beliefs can be mutually enhancing, but they can also be in tension. Therefore, we can benefit greatly in our financial choices when we share not only balance sheets, but concerns over how money is connected to our deeply held values and life experience.

Avoiding these discussions contributes to a financial and spiritual split, where we may consider our financial decisions as unrelated to us being the best faith community we can be.

We must remember that we are neither for-profit "businesses" in the marketplace nor classic nonprofit organizations. We have dimensions of both, with the added ingredient of a religious mission. I like to think of our faith communities as "for-prophet enterprises," sharing the goal of manifesting the sacred values, laws and traditions we have come to hold dear.

Intersection of Concerns

One of the best-known Hebrew words is shalom. This word for "peace," "hello" and "good-bye" comes from the word shalem, meaning "wholeness or completeness."

So, too, in a wonderful embodiment of a Jewish approach to the intersection of Divine and human concerns, the word for paying for an item to take possession of it became l'shalem.

To obtain something is to create an exchange that leaves all parties feeling whole and holy in their comings and goings with each other. Money used as a spiritual tool in this way has the potential to leave everyone resting in a place of peace, of shalom.

To realize our personal and communal goals, we need to create a trusting environment for such a discussion.

Conversations about money in a communal setting can be challenging, because issues of class and money are tied to issues of self-worth, personal values and individual choices. We may have discomfort or even shame at having too much, too little or not enough.

Envy, competition and insecurity can surface when we talk about finances. Through study, effective listening and open discussion, however, we can turn a potentially challenging subject into an opportunity for building community.

There has never been any organized religion that didn't need resources of some kind. Still, we need to develop workable congregational systems where funds are collected and managed in a fair and just manner that both reflects our values and inspires more giving.

Rabbi Shawn Israel Zevit is the director of outreach and external affairs for the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation.