Q&A: A Loan, Bank Interest, and Tithing
A Loan, Bank Interest, and Tithing
Question
Hello Rabbi,
We have 50,000 shekels that we wanted to put into a bank deposit bearing 4.9% interest.
Good friends of ours have run into a difficult financial situation and need to take out a loan of 50,000. We wanted to lend them the money, and thus fulfill the commandment of lending. Our question is whether we can count the annual interest we would have received from the bank (about 2,500 shekels) and deduct it from our tithing.
Answer
Tithing is only a custom, but if you already observe it, it seems to me that you cannot deduct the prevention of future profit.
Discussion on Answer
A custom is a custom.
Sorry, Rabbi, I really didn't understand, because my understanding of this matter is limited. What does "a custom is a custom" mean? I want to know whether I am obligated to observe this or not.
There is an obligation to uphold customs, on the basis of "do not forsake" and the like. Part of the public does not do this, so you cannot say that this is a universal custom (of the entire Jewish people). If your parents and/or your community observe it, then it is a binding custom for you.
Can one say that the whole idea of a binding custom applies when I have no position, but when I do have a position, I should act accordingly?
And what is the law when it is not clear to me that everyone gives tithes?
Aside from that, seemingly, one could say that nowadays, when the world is like a kind of global village, the principle of the local halakhic authority or local custom becomes less of a factor. Do you agree?
No. That is only in the case of a custom of halakhic ruling. There you should rule as seems correct to you, and if your grasp of the Jewish law is shaky, follow the custom. But where the practice is entirely a custom, there is no question of having a position.
I already wrote that.
No. If there is a custom in a place, then that is the custom. If not, the practice is to go by one's origin. What determines it is the community in which you live.
There is no point in looking for rigid rules regarding customs.
Is tithing a binding custom or not?