★ 本書獲美國亞馬遜 4.5顆星評價!「施予是必要的,但更要知道如何施予。」"It Is Necessary to Give. It Is More Necessary to Know How."我們常常在思考人行善或作惡的緣由,卻往往百思不得其解,儘管其中有幾個顯而易見的理由,例如罪惡感、自責、害怕杜會責難、宗教導引,甚或是對於最終審判的恐懼,但為什麼有些人就算天塌了也難有什麼慈善作為,有些人看到遊民接近時卻會主動掏出錢來?是什麼樣的施予滿足了那些施予者的需求?那樣施予的需求又是從何而來的?其間有何法則呢?將近一千年以前,偉大的哲學家及醫師麥摩尼地斯(Maimonides),亦即希伯來人所知的藍邦(Rambam),藉由思考「公義」這個問題,而從中領悟出「慈悲之梯」(The Ladder of Giving,又名 The Ladder of Charity)。【麥摩尼地斯的八級階梯】(The Ladder of Giving / Charity)麥摩尼地斯的八級階梯是由頂端最高階段的施予開始寫起,一路寫下來,從理想到現實,各階段主題為「勉強」、「比例」、「懇求」、「羞愧」、「界限」、「腐敗」、「匿名」、「責任」;最低階是屬於吝嗇的施予者,頂點則屬於能幫助窮人自給自足的施予者。◆ 第一階 勉強:吝嗇地施予(Reluctance: To give begrudgingly)◆ 第二階 比例:不是很適當地施予給窮人,但卻樂意這麼做(Proportion: To give less to the poor than is proper, but to do so cheerfully)◆ 第三階 懇求:窮人請求後才給他們錢(Solicitation: To hand money to the poor after being asked)◆ 第四階 羞愧:在窮人請求前就給他們錢,但是冒著讓接受者覺得羞愧的風險(Shame: To hand money to the poor before being asked, but risk making the recipient feel shame)◆ 第五階 界限:施予給你並不認識的人,但讓他們知道你的名字(Boundaries: To give to someone you don't know, but allow you
The Eight Steps of Giving Nearly a thousand years ago the great philosopher and physician Maimonides, known to Hebrew scholars as Rambam, pondered the question of righteousness Out of it came the L