Upholding One Another

By RABBI DAVID ROSENN

Parashat B'har (Leviticus 25:11 – 26: 2)

If your brother grows poor and his means fail in comparison to yours, uphold him, whether a stranger or a resident, that he may live with you.

(Leviticus 23:25)

What does it mean to uphold our brothers and sisters who are struggling? The following answer is proposed by the Sifra, an ancient collection of legal interpretations of the Torah

...In other words, don't allow him to fall into utter poverty. This mitzvah may be explained by analogy with a load on a donkey: as long as he is standing up, it is easy to grab him and steady him so that he remains upright. But once he falls, five people do not have the strength to raise him up again.

(Sifra Behar 109b)

This source appears to be offering an argument based on efficiency. Once people are poor, it is very difficult to bring them back to a level of subsistence above the poverty level. Therefore, we should do whatever we can to prevent them from falling into poverty.

Do you agree with the premise? Do you think that efficiency is the reason that prevention programs are desirable? What other advantages might preventing poverty have over responding to its effects?