More secrets, more tzedakah, Tisha B’Av and sharks

‘Secret’ Is No Fun

It was with dismay that I finished The Jewish Journal’s cover story about “The Secret” and Judaism (“Judaism vs. The Secret,” July 20).

Not because of the controversy itself — I have no opinion there. Rather, I was disturbed by the spin placed on the end of the article — not a new one for the pages of The Jewish Journal.

Suggesting remedies to attract Jews to Judaism, the writer asks if we would rather choose Rabbi David Wolpe’s honest assessment of life, versus “The Secret’s” positive promises.

Regardless of the merits of each view, why must the writer treat Judaism as an item to be peddled, for which we change our marketing to keep buyers happy? Why is it a product we choose if we prefer its benefits over the other brands?

Torah is not a product to be sold, nor do we choose it as such. Whether one accepts it or not, it is a deep-rooted worldview and philosophy, dedicated to truth in this world. To treat it as anything less, and suggest it be changed to suit fads, is to miss its point entirely. The rabbis quoted spoke from honest conviction; shall they lie about their understanding of the world to attract more clients? No, to suggest changing the Torah’s viewpoint is oxymoronic; it would no longer have any value as a philosophy. After all, what use is there in attracting Jews to a Judaism that has given up its very Jewishness in order to attract them?

Leor Hackel
Los Angeles

It was interesting to read people’s points of view about the “The Secret.” The reason why the “The Secret” is so popular is because it does what every quick solution in this world does. That is, trust everyone and anything but God. Only sincere love, and happiness can be attained through following the Lord God. Anything else that dares to go in any other direction is all just for a season. And it won’t last. That’s why this DVD and book is a deception.

People don’t like to hear what Rabbi David Wolpe and Rabbi Yitzchak Etshalom said because it is The Truth. People want to be misled, people want to believe that love and happiness and riches can be attained through a quick-fix solution.
Applause to Rabbi Wolpe and Rabbi Etshalom who speak out about the falsehood of this DVD and book.

Char Lovelady
via e-mail

Giving Tips

In your article, “A Primer to Giving: What to Ask Before You Start,” Susan Grinel, director of the Family Foundation Center of the Jewish Community Foundation, recommends asking a charity for its most recent Form 990 Annual Information Reports if they are not available online and comments that a “charity’s willingness to send the documents is a good way to assess its commitment to transparency” (July 27).

In fact, such a request is more than that. It is a good way to determine the charity’s commitment to obeying the law. The Internal Revenue Code requires any charity whose Form 990s for the most recent three years are unavailable online to send a copy to anyone who requests them. (The charity may impose charges for copying and mailing.)

Such a requirement, of course, applies only to organizations required to file the Form 990, and not every tax-exempt charity is required to do so. For example, small organizations (those with annual gross receipt that normally do not exceed $25,000) are not required to do so. In addition, and of particular importance to your readers, synagogues are not required to file the Form 990 and thus will not have such forms available online or upon request.

Ellen Aprill
John E. Anderson Professor of Tax Law
Loyola Law School
Los Angeles

Kudos to Amy Klein on her excellent article “A Primer on Giving: What to Ask Before You Start.” I’d like to add just a few thoughts.

First, donors should pay attention to external recognition earned by charities.

Letters of recommendation, awards, and major grants can provide independent and informed opinion about charitable organizations. External recognition should be recent and indicate a familiarity with the organization’s activities and leadership. Along similar lines, look for certifications by the Better Business Bureau and the Standards for Excellence Institute, two worthwhile rating agencies.

Second, if you have a family, involve all members, including the kids, in giving decisions.

Third, bear in mind that researchers have studied the usefulness of the allocation of expenditures between program and overhead as reported on charities’ financial statements. They find that the allocations are often inaccurate and tend to overstate the amount spent on program relative to overhead.

Fourth, if you’re really serious, ask about the organization’s governance. Check to see if they have effective policies for program evaluation, stewardship of resources, staff performance evaluation and salary review, etc.

Ira Kaminow
President
Tzedakah, Inc.
Potomac, Md.

Hollywood Givers

While I applaud the involvement of the Hollywood community in Jewish issues, it seems like most of it is more for “show” and less for “action” (“Does Hollywood Give Jewish?” July 27).

During the entire second intifada in Israel, Jews were being murdered by terrorists [but] not once did any celebrity … speak out and openly support Israel. Not once at a pro-Israel rally or a fundraising event could we ever get a Jewish celebrity to speak as a keynote speaker.

While I admire their support for Darfur and Africa, our community must first learn to take care of their own, and then help heal the world. But we are living in times that are similar to the threats of the 1930s and when a rogue country says, “Death to the small and the large Infidel” and “wipe the Jewish state off the face of the earth” the silence from Hollywood is deafening. When stars speak about what is not popular, like Israel, and not just jump on the Bono bandwagon, that is when they will be recognized as a righteous person for doing something that is right, without concern for publicity, commercial payback or fear of retaliation by the enemies of Israel and the Jewish people.

Allyson Rowen Taylor
Valley Glen

Tisha B’Av

It’s a shame that our national days of mourning interferes with the summer play time of the Movable Minyan’s president, Alan Fisher (“