Tikun Olam-תקון עולם: Make the World a Better Place

As a non-profit fundraiser (I never know whether to preface that with the word “former” or not), and someone interested in promoting the cause of peace and justice for Israelis and Palestinians, I thought I’d do a special year-end post offering ideas for those of my readers thinking about year-end charitable contributions.

But first a word about tzedakah. It comes from the word tzedek or “justice.” I’ve always admired tzedakah much more than the wimpy Latin ‘charity’ (or caritas) since the former is never accompanied by the notion of noblesse oblige as charity or philanthropy often do. No, tzedakah is a mitzva, an obligation. But a joyful one. We are commanded to give tzedakah, not encouraged. It is an affirmative obligation as a Jew.

So I hope even though you may have little, that you’ll preserve a small amount to help those who may not have your advantages in this holiday season. The following is a short list of worthy Israeli and Jewish groups promoting Israeli-Palestinian peace which are worthy of your giving. A few years back, I wrote an expanded version of Israeli and Palestinian online peace resources. You may find many more ideas for giving if you visit those posts:

Parent’s Circle
Americans for Peace Now
Israel Policy Forum
Brit Tzedek
Jewish Voice for Peace
Neve Shalom
Jewish Peace Lobby
B’Tselem
New Israel Fund

Give. Give generously. And to put in a shameless plug here, my blog always gratefully accepts gifts from readers.