Taxes

Taxes have always been a very divisive issue. In fact, taxes are what split Israel into two kingdoms during biblical times.

How can we most fairly apportion the communal burden? Who should pay, and how much? And who decides where this money should go?

Why would a Jew who would never consider eating pork or turning on a light on Shabbat consider swindling the government? After all, the same Torah has determined both to be absolutely forbidden.

In a post I wrote last Friday, I promised to give a spiritual spin on the economic stimulus package recently passed by the Congress. Before I get to that, though, I want to respond to some of the comments that came in on that post. Here are two of them: "...

That question probably crossed the minds of millions of Americans as they scrambled to meet the tax-filing deadline last week...

When did Abraham pay a tariff?

A Safed resident moved to Syria and died, but not before the community tried taxing him in absentia. The city's rabbi ruled on the case.

The Talmud states: “A measure of beneficence is greater than a measure of retribution” (Sotah 11a).Every negative thing in the world pales in comparison to its positive counterpart. The income tax system dictates that those who earn more, pay more taxes. ...

Modern governments use their authority to tax their constituents and pay for public works and social services. How did Jewish communities understand their roles in furthering the welfare of the people? What is the Torah view on how a society can express c...

Is wealth a mark of sin, a sign that a person has greedily taken too much and necessarily impoverished others? Is poverty a sign of laziness, an outer indication of a poor character? We explore the Jewish view on why there is inequality in wealth, and wha...