BAIS HAVAAD'S PARSHA PERSPECTIVES Parshas Trumah: A Penny (or Maybe More) for Your Thoughts By: Rabbi Tzvi Price

As a rule, Jews give a lot of charity. Whether it be to yeshivos, chesed organizations, hospitals, political action committees, you name it, Jews can be counted on to reach deep into their pockets and give. This wonderful quality of generosity goes way back. In this week’s Parsha, we see that even at the earliest stages of their national development, the B’nei Yisroel were called upon to donate a significant portion of their wealth to build the Mishkan, a portable sanctuary made of the most expensive materials. It was the first “building campaign” in Jewish history, and it was a huge success. And since then, donating to a good cause has been part of the collective Jewish psyche.