Rebecca Walberg writes about the Harper government’s maternal health initiative from a Jewish-notion-0f-charity perspective:
The medieval philosopher Maimonides developed a ladder of tzedaka that tells us how best to give. The ideal is to give in a manner that is not begrudging, that is respectful of recipients, and that helps them to become self-sufficient…
Providing abortions for women in developing countries does nothing to help them, even if one considers abortion to be morally neutral. It does not give women the agency to refuse unwanted sex, the medical care needed for contraception and basic health, or the education and legal protection that would enable them to become fully enfranchised members of their own societies. According to Jewish tradition, giving in order to advance one’s own interests, and to seek praise and approval for oneself, would fall below the lowest rung on Maimonides’ ladder, “the gift of the hand but not of the heart.”
