Congregation Beth Shalom

Torah Portion: Ki Tetze
Book of Deuteronomy
Chaps. 21:10-25:19
September 9, 2011

Maybe government should turn to the Torah for advice on healing an ailing economy and putting people back to work.  In the Book of Deuteronomy it is written, “You shall not deduct interest from loans to your countrymen, whether in money or food or anything else that can be deducted as interest. . (Deut. 23:20)”

The Eitz Hayim Chumash notes, “There is no evidence for a money market of any significance in ancient Israel or evidence that solvent Israelites commonly borrowed for commercial or other purposes.”  Other mentions of the practice of interest-free loans in the Torah (Exodus 22 and Leviticus 25) refer to the borrower as impoverished.  Clearly, this practice was a form of economic stimulus during difficult times.

This practice continues in our own day.  It is called the “Hebrew Free Loan Society” and almost all Jewish communities possess one.  They are commonly a group of well-to-do Jews who raise funds from the wealthier members of the community and make available interest-free start-up loans to other Jews without the necessary means to start their own business.

One such example is the Jewish Hebrew Free Loan Association of Los Angeles.  In 1904, a  small group of businessmen met in the thriving city of Los Angeles to establish an organization to  grant loans to the needy without interest or any other charges. Over one  hundred years ago, loans were granted to help buy a sewing machine or a  pushcart for fruits and vegetables.  During World  War II, JFLA was instrumental in helping thousands of families get a fresh start in the US; after the Watts riots in 1965, JFLA assisted businesses in rebuilding; in the late 1980's, with the rising costs of higher education, JFLA  created the first of its many student loan funds; and in 1994, in the wake of  the Northridge earthquake, JFLA granted cash loans to those who had to vacate their homes or who could not access bank accounts.  Currently, JFLA  grants approximately 1,200 loans per year, there is more than $7 million in interest-free loans circulating throughout the community, and JFLA maintains a repayment rate greater than 99%.

The idea is simple: When others succeed, so do we.  Investing in the community’s economic future through stimulus spending (interest-free loans) puts people back to work which, in turn, strengthens the fabric of society and eventually provides a greater good for all.  Best of all, the net cost to the community is zero.  All the funds are raised from the wealthier members of the community who willingly understand their future is intertwined with that of the less well-off.

Makes sense to me.  Then, again, I’m only a rabbi!

Rabbi Howard Siegel