Maimonides Goes Wrong

null By Bert StrattonDec. 6, 2023 4:15 pm ETJournal Editorial Report: The week's best and worst from Bill McGurn, Kyle Peterson, Allysia Finley, Dan Henninger & Paul Gigot. Images: Getty Images/AP/ Composite: Mark KellyTzedakah means “charity” in Hebrew, but it also has a deeper meaning. It’s derived from tzedek, meaning “justice.” The Talmud points out that “anyone who averts his eyes from the obligation to give charity, it is as if he engages in idol worship.” Nobody wants to be an idol worshiper, particularly at this time of the year. Maimonides, a medieval Jewish philosopher and influential Torah scholar. Photo: Universal Images Group via Getty ImagesMaimonides, the 12th-century Jewish philosopher and physician, said one of the highest levels of charity is to give anonymously. That’s a touchy subject. The late Rabbi Michael Hecht of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, disagreed with Maimonides. In his sermons—which I listened to on Sabbath mornings as a member of his synagogue—he said a do