Every year, when my family sits down for its Passover seder, we loudly recite these words, written nearly two thousand years ago: “Let all who are hungry, come and eat.” The words are an invocation to welcome the hungry into your home – and also a poignant reminder, at a time of abundance, that hunger is real and that the hungry need help. As a rabbi, I am responsible for teaching the mitzvot, or commandments of God, to my community. This week, I will teach about the mitzvah of “pe’ah,” “corners,” which we read about in Leviticus 19:9-10. “When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap all the way to the corners of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You shall not pick your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the strangers: I the Lord am your God.” We are told that when we harvest our crops, we must give a substantial amount to the poor. How much is this amount? The ancient rabbis tell us that the amount is unlimited, just like the amount of learning we are supposed to do. Our city’s budget is like a harvest plan. It is a listing of priorities and goals for the coming year. And this year, the proposed budget does not provide funds for feeding the hungry. I understand the hard work of making a budget, and that not all worthy programs can be funded. However, money to feed the hungry cannot be considered optional. It is a moral necessity for our city to fund programs to feed the hungry. Last year, the budget for the City of New Haven involved almost $500,000 of funding. This year, the City’s General’s Fund budget proposal does not include any funding at all for food assistance. We need to reach out to our alders to change that and restore the funding that was there last year. According to CFAN, the Coordinated Food Assistance Network of New Haven, which represents more than 40 local organizations: “Pantries, soup kitchens, and other food assistance programs in New Haven feed twenty-two percent of the New Haven population and are currently funded almost exclusively through private fundraising, in-kind donations, and foundation support. The estimated cost of supporting the current insufficient food assistance system is more than $3.5 million annually. These well-networked, community-based organizations will continue to solicit support through private sources while meeting the increasing demands of those who are food insecure, but they cannot meet the need without continued support from the City of New Haven. Last year (FY 2025-2026), the Board of Alders demonstrated its commitment to fight hunger in our community by allocating $482,439 to CFAN and its members through a combination of General Fund dollars and Community Development Block Grant funds.” Next week our alders are meeting to consider the Mayor’s budget proposal and to, I hope, add this money back into it. I know it’s a Jewish value to advocate for the hungry. I think it’s a New Haven value, too. Consider reaching out to your alder to ask them to put food aid back in the city budget. Let all who are hungry come and eat. Rabbi Eric Woodward is the rabbi of New Haven’s Beth El-Keser Israel synagogue. The post Opinion: Food Aid Is A “Moral Necessity” appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less