The Influence of Gifts

By RABBI DAVID ROSENN

Parashat Tazria (Leviticus 12:1-13:59)

[And Na'aman said to Elisha:] Now please accept a gift from your servant. He pressed him to accept it, but he refused. (II Kings 5:16)

In the prophetic reading for this week (II Kings 4:42-5:19), the prophet Elisha helps to cure a skin disease contracted by Na'aman, a general in the Aramean army.

(Note: Aram was a northern neighbor of ancient Israel. The disease Na'aman contracted—tzara'at—is the subject of much of this week's Torah portion.)

After having been cured, Na'aman offers Elisha a gift in gratitude, but the prophet refuses to accept the gift. Perhaps Elisha refused the gift because he believed that he did not actually "cure" the general. God caused the healing, and Elisha only served as the channel for seeking God's help.

But Jewish tradition also raises another possibility for Elisha's refusal. As a communal leader, he has too much power and responsibility to risk falling under the influence of those who can afford to give him gifts.

The following midrash makes the connection between gift giving and a society's capacity for justice:

Rabbi Nachman bar Kohen explained the verse, "The King by justice establishes the land, while one who loves gifts overthrows it" (Proverbs 29:4). If a judge is like a king, who feels that he has no need for material assistance, he preserves the land [through justice]. But if he is like a priest, who goes around threshing floors to collect the donations due to him, he will destroy it [through injustice].

(Bavli Sanhedrin 7b)

How do the sources above connect to campaign finance legislation in the United States today? Is there some way in which public officials can accept gifts without falling under the undue influence of the gift givers? If not, how is the cause of justice affected by the current model of electoral politics financing?

© AVODAH: The Jewish Service Corps