The Root of All Evil
Money is getting a bad rap.

by Rabbi Shea Hecht

These days, the economy has center stage. There's no major news story that does not carry with it the smell of Wall Street, the real estate bubble, foreclosures, government handouts or the like. Without a doubt, there can be no headline more gripping that the one that speaks directly to our wallets.

Money is the root of all evil, or so they say. The desire for money is famous for turning honest men into thieves and cheats. Money is credited with ruining many a personal or professional partnership, for splitting families apart, for creating questionable alliances and for motivating mankind to the vilest deeds.

Certainly, the recent whirlwind of corporate greed and mismanagement, Ponzi schemes and stimulus pork create a very compelling body of evidence for the filthy nature of the "greenback".

I, however, think that money is getting a bad rap.

For all of its hazards, it is true - and it's always been true - that no stomach can be fed without money; no back can be clothed or house built. All of humanity's advancement since the use of fire - medicine, technology, transportation, industry, architecture, science - they are all built on a foundation of cold, hard cash.

In fact, nothing worthwhile in this world can be accomplished without a bountiful, healthy cash flow. In fiscal 2007, 306 billion charitable dollars were donated in the US alone. These ducats enabled medical and scientific research, advocated for equality, sheltered the homeless, protected endangered wildlife and other good deeds too numerous to mention. That's what I call a hard-working dollar. Ready to see a cure for cancer? How about an alternative to fossil fuels or an end to human trafficking? Well, you better dig deep, 'cause it takes plenty of moolah to make it happen.

One thing I have learned during this financial crisis is that wealth is neither good nor evil. It is a resource, and like any resource it must be used wisely and conservatively. When we use our money to serve our coarse desires, we are unleashing its power in a way which makes us more coarse.

On the other hand, when we channel our gelt into something that is enriching for the world, we become likewise enriched. In this way we harness the constructive, healing power of money.

Is money the root of all evil? Okay. I'll buy that. But there should be no mistake that it's also the source of all good.

Rabbi Shea Hecht is Chairman of the Board at the National Committee for the Furtherance of Jewish Education and Dean of Hadar Hatorah School for College Youth, as well as a lecturer at the Ivy League Torah Study Program. He co-founded the Ari Program, an innovative school for at-risk kids.