Email For Prophets

Another day, another hundred emails. One from the Jewish Community Council asked that we write to the Senate leaders to request economic relief for non-profit organizations.  I found this to be novel as I had only thought of bailouts being for industry.  Then I remembered that in the great recession of 2008 – 2009 donations declined dramatically and the non-profit world suffered. Accordingly, I wrote a Jeremiad to my Senators.

I wrote that non-profit organizations are the moral spine of our nation. Their efforts are an integral part of our economy too.

I did some research. According to the Urban Institute, the nonprofit sector contributed an estimated $985.4 billion to the US economy in 2015, composing 5.4 percent of the country’s gross domestic product. By comparison, the cruise ship industry contributed a much smaller amount to the economy in 2018, just $52.7 billion according to the Cruise Lines International Association.

The President has spoken about bail outs for cruise ships and hotels. Lobbyists for the casino industry are pressing Congress for relief.  Our leadership’s values are perverted if not profane if the United States Government gives preference to the luxury travel and gambling industries.

Our task is to advocate for Jewish values which focus first on the needs of the widow and the orphan and the stranger. Giving is essential to Jewish identity and religious life and should comport with values of honoring each person as a precious gift from God.

The non-profit organizations help sustain the societal structures that keep our nation-state functioning, democratic and civilized. And these not for profit organizations are important components of our now fragile economy.

Here’s an email for you to send – fill up the inboxes of the Senators who would dare consider bailouts for cruise ships and casinos before taking care of laid off workers and people sick with virus. Call out in a prophetic voice, like Jeremiah, speaking of the immorality that infests leadership. Tell it to your friends on the phone and in your tweets. Share it with your children and your neighbors. We must demand moral government that honors the ethic of charitable giving, long an essential part of Jewish tradition.

R’ Evan J. Krame