'Test Me' — maaser is the one permitted test of Hashem
Maaser is the one area where the Torah invites testing Hashem's blessing (Malachi 3:10) — and the Gemara defines the promised blessing as 'ad bli dai,' beyond sufficiency, not a fixed multiplier. The permission's text is in the REMA at YD 247:4 (not the Mechaber), and its extension to monetary maaser is discussed. The app's tracker visualizes giving versus net worth over time and never promises returns.
Positions by community
Ashkenazi
Taanis 9a: 'aser bishvil shetisasher' — tithe so that you become wealthy; testing Hashem is forbidden except in this, from Malachi 3:10 ('u'vchanuni na bazos'). Rema YD 247:4 codifies the permission, recording a 'yesh omrim' that limits the test to maaser specifically (not other tzedakah). Whether it extends to maaser kesafim is itself discussed: the Pischei Teshuvah (YD 247:2) cites dissenters, while the Chofetz Chaim (Ahavas Chesed II:18, with the Or Zarua) defends that it does.
Sephardi
Same sources; the Gemara and codification are universal.
Chabad
Same sources; widely quoted in Chabad teaching on tzedakah.
Sources
- https://www.sefaria.org/Taanit.9a — Taanis 9a
- https://www.sefaria.org/Shulchan_Arukh,_Yoreh_De'ah.247.4 — Yoreh De'ah 247:4 (gloss)
- https://www.sefaria.org/Ahavat_Chesed,_Part_II.18 — Ahavat Chesed, Part II, ch. 18
- http://rabbikaganoff.com/maaser-kesafim/ — Maaser Kesafim
Track this for yourself
Tag transactions against rules like this one and see your running maaser balance.
MyMaaser presents sourced halachic positions and is not a substitute for your rav. Consult your rav (CYLOR).